dooms du jour, June/2001
[Commentary] ©2001 Phil Hyde, The Timesizing Wire, Box 117, Harvard Sq, Cambridge MA 02238 USA (617) 623-8080

6/30/2001 sat (re fri biz)
6 takeovers reported in NY Times (NYT) & Boston Globe, totaling $1.39B + $??
+ 2 downsizings, totaling 4000 jobcuts +??, reported in NYT & Boston Globe (BG):
• 24% additional workforce cut (4000 US jobs lost) as Agere Systems over-reacts to
downturn in comms mkt, instead of just trimming its workweek 24% (to five 6h5m days
for whole firm including top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted
training & hiring - keeping everyone employed, earning & spending 76% their usual am't
• unspecified Mass. cuts as Sipex cuts 15% of its staff & idles plant to avoid more
vs. glimmers of Timesizing:
• Hooker Furniture has 35-hr workweek & 1-wk idling in Aug. to avoid layoffs
• Sipex semiconductors to temporarily idle Ma. plant to hold line at 15% layoffs
• French 35-hr workweek called "government's chief measure to cut joblessness"
• 2 possible timesizings: - HP asks 10% paycut  - Alcoa cuts Brazil plant output 15%

6/29/2001 fri
8 takeovers reported in NY Times (NYT) & Boston Globe, totaling $1.96B + $??
+ 6 downsizings, totaling 3384 jobcuts +??, reported in NYT & Boston Globe (BG):
• 8% workforce cut (1250 expected US early retirements) as Deere & Co. to save
$90m/yr, instead of just trimming its workweek 8% (38 mins/day for whole firm includ-
ing top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring
- keeping everyone together, employed, earning & spending 92% as much as usual
• 1120 US cuts at DaimlerChrysler  • 1000 Finnish cuts at Nokia
• 14 NYC cuts as Dweck agency closes  • unspecified cuts as Estee
Lauder closes 86 Tommy stores, &  • Bank One closes its e-bank
+ bankruptcy du jour: • Greyhound Bus's parent, Laidlaw, with $3.5B post-merger debt
+ omens: • unprecedented uncertainty  • gloomier forecasts
• Conagra needs Viagra  • Microsoft gets wristslap
vs. glimmers of hope:
• 1 UPsizing, 5 new jobs: - Boston Business Forward magazine starts up
• speaking of Viagra, fireflies use the same substance to light up

6/28/2001 thu
6 takeovers reported in NY Times (NYT) & Boston Globe, totaling $239m + $??
+ 7 downsizings, totaling 2013 jobcuts +??, reported in NYT & Boston Globe (BG):
• 1500 Ill. jobcuts as Bridge-/Fire-stone closes plant  • 285 UK cuts at Scoot.com
• 35% additional workforce cut (153 US jobs lost) as VA Linux overreacts to huge Q3
loss, instead of just trimming its workweek 35% (to five 5h12m workdays for whole firm
including top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring
- keeping everyone together, employed, earning & spending enough to create 65% of their
usual markets, instead of 35% of their people now dropping to as little as zero% spending
• 45 Oregon cuts at RadiSys Corp.  • 30 Minnesota cuts at Fallon Worldwide
• unspecified cuts at JDS Uniphase in Canada & US, &  • at Alcatel in France
+ 1 makework case reported: • Swiss jobless build 140-ton 17th-cent. galley for 5 yrs
+ 1 more bankruptcy mentioned: • Newport Creamery restaurants in N.E. 
+ 1 homelessness item: • Census will not breakdown homeless data
+ omens: • here's how our media lull us to our own demise
vs. glimmers of hope:
• 1 UPsizing: - Intel plans plant  • 1 UNtakeover: Thomson told to shed txbx
• Pentagon to dismantle last 50 MX nuke-tipped missiles (& France kills draft)
• Pew Trusts = big force in environmental salvation (but no systemic guarantees)
• Taxcuts Unltd. - Ma. governess Swiftie gets it right (but Ma. senior homes crisis...?)

6/27/2001 wed
- day of bloodbath as CEOs strain to bring back the Great Depression -
10 downsizings, totaling 7,690 jobcuts +??, reported in NYT & Boston Globe (BG):
• 2700 US, UK & Nordic jobcuts at Cap Gemini consulting & computer services
• 19% additional workforce cut (2270 US jobs lost) as 3Com tries to turn a profit, in-
stead of just trimming its workweek 19% (to four 8h6m workdays for whole firm includ-
ing top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring
- keeping everyone together, employed, earning & doing 81% of their usual shopping
• 900 US jobcuts at Olin  • 800 Md. cuts at Fedders  • 500 Ct. cuts at R. R. Donnelley
• 150 US cuts at Aether Systems  • 140 US cuts at Nasdaq  • 130 US cuts
at CCC Info Services  • 100 US cuts at Carpenter Technology steel 
• unspecified cuts as BSCH Bank closes 1,000 branches (20%) in Spain
+ 5 takeovers reported in NY Times (NYT) & Boston Globe, totaling $165m + $??
+ 1 more bankruptcy mentioned: • Alpha Tube in Ohio 
vs. glimmers of TIMEsizing :
• Minnesota nurses return to work, having won more control over their hours

6/26/2001 tue
10 takeovers reported in NY Times (NYT) & Boston Globe, totaling $8.36B + $??
+ 3 downsizings, totalling 3,030 US jobcuts, reported in NYT & Boston Globe (BG):
• 10% additional workforce cut (3000 jobs lost) as International Paper restructures and
self-mutilates, instead of just trimming workweek 10% (48 mins/day for whole firm in-
cluding top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring
- keeping everyone together, employed, earning & doing 90% of their usual spending
• 40 Boston jobcuts as for-profit Advantage Schools Inc. fights for survival
• unspecified Calif. cuts as NMS Communications closes Tustin division
+ 1 bankruptcy reported: • Latin label RMM Records 
vs. glimmers of hope:
• freelancers win in online copyright case

6/24-25/2001
weekend roundup per the NY Times and the Boston Globe:
• 31 takeovers reported this week, worth over $12.6 billion
• 21 downsizings reported this week, costing over 7,462 lost jobs
• 2 bankruptcies  • 1 homelessness item  • 4 prison stories  • 2 suicide stories
vs. 5 TIMEsizing stories + 2 UPsizings (70+ new jobs) + 1 UNtakeover ($41B)
< YTD: 644 dnsz (746842 jbcts) +762 takv($486B) +123 bkrp vs. 154 timsiz +65 upsz (26099+=3%) +29 untk ($77B+)>
1 takeover reported this weekend, worth $10.4B
+ 1 homeless story: • new genre - highly educated homeless
+ 1 work-related suicide story: • new phenomenon - "suicide by police"
+ weekend ominous qikis: • campaign finance turbulence  • welfare cutoff looms
• scarcity of women in rural China feeds kidnapping, trafficking in brides
vs. weekend glimmers of hope:
• firms urged to keep bridges to laid-off
• Bush attacks some corporate welfare (but...)
• Putin says Star Wars would rock global stability (unless...)
• Pentagon itself questions missile defense schedule after test flops

6/23/2001 sat (re fri biz)
7 takeovers reported in NY Times (NYT) & Boston Globe, totaling $2.86B + $??
+ 2 downsizings, totalling 2,307 job cuts, reported in NYT & Boston Globe (BG):
• 300 Wa. jobcuts as Alcoa closes a smelter  • 60 Chicago cuts at Midway Games
+ omens: • louzy leadership incentive - $1.4m severance for CEO who quit in disgrace
vs. glimmers of hope: • NY state to ban hand-held carphones
• finally, Mass. governor kills pork-barrel, environment-trashing resort development

6/22/2001 fri
5 takeovers reported in NY Times (NYT) & Boston Globe, totaling $4.93B + $??
+ 5 downsizings, totalling 2,307 job cuts, reported in NYT & Boston Globe (BG):
• 14.3% additional workforce cut (1500 US & Singapore jobcuts) as Maxtor 'has a cow'
over weakness & uncertainty in PC market, instead of just trimming workweek
14.3% (to 34.3-hr workweek for whole firm including top execs), re-investing pay from
overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring - keeping everyone to-
gether, employed, earning & doing 85.7% of their usual spending
• 700 admin. jobcuts at GAP  • 65 cuts at Digitas  • 30 at
Mullen/LHC  • 12 at Euro RSCG McConnaughy Tatham
+ 1 prison story: • sheriff gropes for nice probe of nasty jails
vs. glimmers of hope: • more Americans wake up to widening economic gap 
• skeptics grill Rumsfeld over Star Wars  • India, over 1B population, is pushing sterilization
• 1 TIMEsizing item: - Philly Fed's June report indicates region's manufacturing sector continuing
decline in average workhours - so if it's happening anyway, let's do it right & claim it as a positive!

6/21/2001 thu
4 takeovers reported in NY Times (NYT) & Boston Globe, totaling $473m
+ 2 downsizings, totaling 400 +?? jobcuts, reported in NYT & Boston Globe (BG):
• 400 jobcuts as Millipore panics over slowdown in microelectronics & reacts by
worsening it, instead of just trimming workweek, re-investing pay from
overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring - keeping everyone
together, employed, earning & doing most of their usual spending
• 10% staff cut as Dutch monsterbank munges 2 U.S. banks &
slams 59 branches (& you thought the Dutch were enlightened)
+ 1 bankruptcy reported: • Wolf Camera, 1 of nation's top foto retail chains 
+ omens: • ohoh, now airline CEO sees sky falling  • 3d story in 9 days on Japan slump
• economist is 'blocking' on complexly biassed measurement of working hours
vs. glimmers of TIMEsizing: • Bush moves toward annualizing 40-hr workweek max
• Toshiba idles one plant three weeks, one plant two weeks, avoids layoffs

6/20/2001 wed
6 takeovers reported in NY Times (NYT) & Boston Globe, totaling $367m
+ 3 downsizings, totaling 517 jobcuts, reported in NYT & Boston Globe (BG):
• 305 jobcuts at NY-based Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings due to drop in demand
• 2% additional workforce cut (180 lost jobs) as Teradyne gets hysterical about business
uncertainty & decides to deepen it, instead of just trimming workweek 2% (10 mins/day
for whole firm including top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted
training & hiring - keeping everyone employed, earning & spending 98% the usual
• 32 jobcuts (33%) to reach profitability at Bluefly designer clothing e-discounter
+ 2 prison stories: • Calif. plans to reprogram violent inmates
• Judge releases Tex. prisons from federal oversight - with a few caveats
+ omens: • Teradyne CEO thinks sky is falling  • Bush would never do price controls, no,
never!  • one in five kids online get accosted for sex  • where's our $4B/yr to Israel go?
vs. glimmers of hope:
• 2 UPsizings: - Fallon adds 70 doctors in Boston's western burbs
- Hilton sinks $600m into building time-shares in Orlando & Vegas
• 1 UNtakeover: • EU to block $41 billion GE takeover of Honeywell
• 2 TIMEsizing items: - French study finds shorter hours boosts economy, widely popular
- French employers fight plan to use soc.sec. surplus to cushion shorter workweek tho' cuts soc.sec. costs

6/19/2001 tue
- downsizing breaks the Golden Rule, Timesizing obeys it -
5 downsizings, totaling 1893 jobcuts, reported in NY Times & Boston Globe:
• 25% workforce cut (1400 lost jobs) as Level 3 Communications network struggles with
steep sales declines, instead of just trimming workweek 25% (30-hr workweek for whole
firm including top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training
& hiring - keeping everybody employed, earning & spending 75% as much as usual
• 300 cuts at PurchasePro  • 193 buyouts at Boston Globe  • unspecified cuts at
PricewaterhouseCoopers  • unspecified cuts at Snap-On
+ 9 takeovers reported in NY Times & Boston Globe, totaling $3.97B
+ 1 bankruptcy/liquidation reported: • Independent Insurance in Britain 
+ omens: • Japan & • Thailand worse  • Fleet bank reamed by Globe columnist
vs. glimmers of intelligence: • smaller U.S. firms look to Europe for real antitrust action
• NY state revives birth control coverage  • Times readers have criticism & ideas on revived 'star wars'

6/17-18/2001
weekend roundup per the NY Times and the Boston Globe:
• 34 takeovers reported this week, worth over $9.7 billion
• 37 downsizings cited, costing over 27,356 lost jobs
• 3 bankruptcies  • 3 prison stories
vs. 8 TIMEsizing stories + 8 UPsizings (135+ new jobs) + 1 UNtakeover ($??)
< YTD: 623 dnsz (739380 jbcts) +731 takv($473B) +121 bkrp vs. 149 timsiz +63 upsz (26029+=4%) +28 untk ($36B+)>
4 downsizings reported this weekend, totaling over 38 mostly-disguised, lawyer layoffs:
• 19 Cal. jobs (2.5%) cut as Brobeck Phleger & Harrison pretends there's no downturn &
even if there is, no associates will have to take the hit   • 10 "performance-based" NY cuts
at Thelen Reid & Priest   • 9 admitted Cal. layoffs at Venture Law Group
• "several" Cal. cuts at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
+ 1 homeless story: • high-tech homeless in the Silicon Valley!
+ 1 prison story: • Suffolk Cty jail guards defend Suffolk Cty jail guards
+ 1 work-related suicide story: • hotline calls nearly doubled in 2 Cal. counties in 7 mos.
+ weekend omens: • 3 Cal. counties pay jobless to vamoose  • times tougher for temps
• economic downturn fuelling burnout of those still employed
vs. weekend glimmers of hope:
• Molly Ivins, Bush-whacker

6/16/2001 sat (re fri biz)
- death by a thousand cuts - today's CEOs are "forced" to induce downturn -
3 downsizings, totaling 10,193 jobcuts, reported in NY Times & Boston Globe:
• 12.5% workforce cut (10,000 more lost jobs) as Nortel Networks of Canada continues
hysteria, now due to biggest quarterly loss in corporate history, $19.2B, instead of just
trimming workweek 12.5% (35-hr workweek for whole firm including top execs),
re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring - keeping
everybody together, employed, earning & spending 87.5% as much as usual
• 185 cuts at Bath Iron Works  • 18 as SmartMouth.com closes down
+ 2 takeovers reported in NY Times & Boston Globe, totaling $3.24B
+ 2 makework cases: • Boston's Big Dig bloats another $150m
• Chinese start copying US litigiousness = mixed blessing
+ 2 bankruptcies : • Vlasic pickles  • Caliber Learning Network
+ omens: • The Economist mag asks 'Does inequality matter?'
and by not answering, answers no
vs. glimmers of hope:
• 1 UPsizing: restless Ted Turner starts own production firm - again
• 1 TIMEsizing item: Comair pilots cut from 16-hr maximum shifts to 14½

6/15/2001 fri
- death by a thousand cuts - kamekazi management amputates on -
5 downsizings, totaling 4031 jobcuts, reported in NY Times & Boston Globe:
• 6% workforce cut (1500 lost jobs) as Tribune Co. of Chicago over-reacts to advertising
slump, instead of just trimming workweek 6% (29 minutes/day for whole firm including
top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring -
keeping everybody together, employed, earning & spending 94% as much as usual
• 1455 cuts at GlaxoSmithKline  • 1050 at Xerox  • 25 at iWant.com 
• one 32-yr columnist at Boston Globe - David Nyhan
+ 8 takeovers reported in NY Times & Boston Globe, totaling $766m
+ 2 prison stories: • Louisiana eases tough sentencing to spare taxpayers
• Alabama focuses on more jail space regardless of nonviolent & victimless "crimes"
vs. glimmers of hope:
• California GDP bigger than France but only during dot-com bubble
• 1 TIMEsizing item: - Comair pilots win better worktime arrangements

6/14/2001 thu
- death by a thousand cuts - the gratuitous self-devastation continues -
8 downsizings, totaling 7748 jobcuts, reported in NY Times & Boston Globe:
• 9% workforce cut (2900 lost jobs) as Exelon power (regular & nuke) cuts costs the
sabotage-inducing way, instead of just trimming workweek 9% (43 mins. a day for whole
firm including top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training &
hiring - keeping everybody together, employed, earning & spending 91% as much as usual
• 2000 at Polaroid  • 1200 at Mail-Well  • 900 at Integrated Device Technology  • 500 at
Georgia Pacific  • 120 at Infinium Software  • 88 at Thoratec  • 40 at KGA Advertising 
+ 4 takeovers reported in NY Times & Boston Globe, totaling $294m
+ omens: • hard-driving "new" economy workers doing same megahours as Nazi slaves
vs. glimmers of TIMEsizing:
• Weirton Steel cuts 1st week of July to avoid further job cuts
• 500,000-member South Korean union wants cut workweek from 44 hrs to 40

6/13/2001 wed
5 takeovers reported in NY Times & Boston Globe, totaling $1.22B + $??
+ 11 downsizings, totaling 2598 jobcuts + unspecified, reported in NYT & BG:
• 5% workforce cut (1737 lost jobs) as R.R. Donnelley printing warns of lower yearly
earnings, instead of just trimming workweek 5% (24 mins. a day for whole firm including
top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring -
keeping everyone together, employed, earning & doing 95% of normal spending
• 400 cuts at Cordiant  • 190 at Firepond  • 180 at Digitas  • 76 at Modem Media  • 15 at
Equipe Communications, plus  • unspecified cuts at CMGI  • Loews Cineplex  • State
Farm Indemnity in NJ  • Latino hiring site in NY  • HypoVereinsbank in Germany
+ 1 bankruptcy mentioned: • Reliance Group Holdings 
vs. glimmers of hope:
• 2 UPsizings: - Ford creates Ga. unit for boat engines & - DaimlerChrysler expands French factory
• Argentina eases three-year recession by debt consolidation (but no real reform)
• 2 TIMEsizings: - R.R. Donnelley reduces workweeks to avoid more layoffs
- airline & industrial employees in Korea strike for shorter workweek

6/12/2001 tue
9 takeovers reported in NY Times & Boston Globe, totaling $4.18B + $??
+ 7 downsizings, totaling 2767 US jobcuts + unspecified, reported in NYT & BG:
• 40% workforce cut (1500 lost jobs) as Greenbrier railcars warns of losses, instead of just
trimming workweek 40% (to 6 four-hour days for whole firm including top execs),
re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring - keeping
everyone together, employed, earning & doing 60% of normal spending
• 800 cuts at LTV  • 440 cuts at Varian Semiconductor  • 13 cuts at Women's
Wear Daily  • 9 cuts at Deutsch Inc./Boston  • 3 cuts at Weber
Shandwick  • unspecified additional cuts at Space.com
+ omens: • Japan sinks deeper into the tank
vs. glimmers of hope:
• 1 UNtakeover - • Acer does spinoff in Taiwan
• 5 UPsizings: - Manufacturers Services (135 new jobs) 
- Viking Office Products (30)  - NYC school board  - Causeway Capital Mgmt  - Conoco
• 1 TIMEsizing item: - Varian Semiconductor will cut July workmonth in half instead of deeper cuts
- doctors strike Portugal health service for 42-hr workweek = U.S. level 62 yrs ago per the FLSA

6/10-11/2001
weekend roundup per the NY Times and the Boston Globe:
• 34 takeovers reported this week, worth over $13B
• 23 downsizings reported, costing over 13,115 lost jobs
• 2 bankruptcies  • 1 homelessness item  • 4 prison stories
vs. 5 TIMEsizing stories + 3 UPsizings (?? new jobs) + 1 UNtakeover ($??)
< YTD: 586 dnsz (712024 jbcts) +697 takv($463B) +118 bkrp vs. 141 timsiz +55 upsz (25894+=4%) +27 untk ($36B+)>
3 weekend downsizings, totaling 19 lost US + unspecified overseas-US jobs:
• 19 jobs (100%) cut as Internet magazines Feed and Suck shut down
• AutoZone to close 45±15 (1½%) of its autoparts stores
• State Dept. reduces personnel at embassy in Yemen
+ 6 takeovers reported this weekend, worth $??
+ 1 prison item: • problems with prison work
vs. weekend glimmers of intelligence:
• Dave Warsh is back in groove with great 'idea bio' of the late Chicago economist, Sherwin Rosen

6/09/2001 sat (re fri biz)
5 takeovers reported in NYT & BG, totaling $444m + $??
+ 1 downsizing, totaling 5 jobcuts, reported in NY Times & Boston Globe:
• 2% workforce cut (5 key employees fired) at NY Post as testosterone-poisoned
Murdoch family starts its stifle of America's free press, instead of just trimming
workweek 2% (10 minutes/day for whole firm including 'mates' at the top), re-
investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring - keeping
everyone together, employed, earning & doing 98% of normal spending
+ 1 homelessness item: • 1-2 punch: first, AIDS, and then, homelessness
+ 1 prison story: • US prison population supposedly stabilizing
vs. glimmers of hope:
• NYT columnist roasts Nixon & Kissinger for making truth treasonable
• 1 TIMEsizing item: last Nov, Molex cut from 5 to 4-day wks to avoid firing permanent employees

6/08/2001 fri
8 takeovers reported in NYT & BG, totaling $8.9B + $??
+ 7 downsizings, totaling 2070 jobcuts, reported in NY Times & Boston Globe:
• 1000 US jobcuts at Rockwell International automation as earnings forecast falls 
• 1% workforce cut (600 mostly US jobs lost) as Accenture panics about slowing client
spending, instead of just trimming its workweek 1% (5 mins/day for whole firm includ-
ing top execs), re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring -
keeping everyone together, employed, earning & doing most of their normal shopping
• 350 US cuts at Ethan Allen  • 70 Ma. cuts at EPresence  • 50 US cuts at Saks Holdings 
• unspecified Ma. cuts at Taurus Capital Investment Group 
• unspecified cuts at SLI Inc. in Tex. & Mex.
+ omens: • German jobless jumps 
vs. glimmers of hope:
• 2 UPsizings: - Too Inc. opens 7 Mishmash stores in US  - Visteon builds factory in South Africa
• 1 TIMEsizing item: - Accenture encourages 800 consultants to take voluntary sabbaticals for up to 1 yr

6/07/2001 thu
6 takeovers reported in NYT & BG, totaling $262m + $??
+ 6 downsizings too, totaling 3820 jobcuts, reported in NYT & BG:
• 1000 jobs lost as Ingram Micro panics about sliding demand, instead of just trimming its
workweek, re-investing pay from overtime hours in OT-targeted training & hiring -
keeping everyone together, employed, earning & doing most of their normal shopping
• 800 cuts at Russell Corp.  • 600 cuts at Artesyn Technologies  • 600 more cuts at
Gillette  • 470 Kan. cuts at Raytheon  • 350 jobs adrift as Heinz buys Borden brands
+ 1 prison story: • Boston finally responds to illegal strip-searches of women
vs. glimmers of TIMEsizing:
• Texas Instruments shortens workmonth to avoid layoffs

6/6/2001 wed
5 takeovers reported in NYT & BG, totaling $1.92B + $??
+ 4 downsizings, totaling 456 US jobcuts, reported in NYT & BG:
• 300 cuts at America West Airlines  • 100 more cuts at Comair 
• 15% workforce cut (56 jobs lost) as Elantic Semiconductor spooks over softening
demand, instead of just trimming its workweek 15% (to five 6h48m days for whole firm
including top execs), re-investing pay from any overline hours in overtime-targeted training
& hiring - keeping everyone employed, earning & doing 85% of their usual spending
• unspecified job loss in Australia as One.Tel liquidates by June 26
+ 1 prison story: • mixed blessing = prison employment/"jailfare"
vs. glimmers of hope:
• 1 UPsizing: Harley to expand 3 factories in Wisc. & Pa.
• 1 UNtakeover - UK's Kingfisher to spin off Woolworth & Superdrug units by July 31
• 2 TIMEsizing items: - Reuters gives us a rundown on world workweeks (worst is S.Korea's)
- South Koreans not taking this lying down

6/05/2001 tue
9 takeovers reported in NYT & BG, totaling $1.36B + $??
+ 5 downsizings, totaling 6764 US jobcuts, reported in NYT & BG:
• est. 5130 cuts at Marketing Specialists Cp.  • 1000 cuts at Furniture Brands Int'l. 
• 30% workforce cut (400 jobs lost) as Entrust web security's struggles turn against itself,
instead of just trimming its workweek 30% (to four 7-hour days for whole firm including
top execs, re-investing pay from any overline hours in overtime-targeted training & hiring
- keeping everyone together, employed, earning & doing 70% of their usual spending
• est. 228 cuts at Payless Cashways  • 6 cuts at The Sciences magazine
+ 2 bankruptcies: • Payless Cashways • Marketing Specialists Cp.
+ 1 prison story: • 69% of Rouse's guards flunk promotion exams
vs. glimmers of hope:
• as 2001 nears halfway mark, Boston Globe makes the most
of our last chance for new-millennium end-of-world thrills - advantage: skeptics

6/03-04/2001
weekend roundup per the NY Times and the Boston Globe:
• 20 downsizings reported, costing over 29,121 lost jobs
• 32 takeovers reported this week, worth over $25.72B
• 4 bankruptcies  • 4 prison stories
vs. 4 TIMEsizing stories + 4 UPsizings (450+ new jobs) + 0 UNtakeovers ($0)
< YTD: 563 dnsz (698909 jbcts) +663 takv($450B) +116 bkrp vs. 136 timsiz +52 upsz (25894+=4%) +26 untk ($36B+)>
1 weekend takeover reported, worth $117m: • Tweeter ingests Sound Advice
+ weekend omens: • key to venture capital in downturn = kissing frogs
• paid placement is turning search engines from infinite electronic
encyclopedias to universal commercial directories - another 'open society' closes?
vs. weekend glimmers of intelligence:
• 2 items on time bind - we're using technology to torture, not help, ourselves
• Malthus revisited - exponential growth in demand dwarfs however much oil you find

6/02/2001 sat (re fri biz)
- downturns are made, not born, & the guiltiest are CEOs in profit who downsize
regardless -
7 takeovers reported in NYT & BG, totaling $4.62B + $??
+ 5 downsizings, totaling 1190 jobcuts, reported in NYT & BG:
• 905 US jobs lost as Alcatel telecoms over-reacts to collapse of Lucent deal & to
expected $2½B loss this quarter, instead of just trimming its workweek for whole firm
including top execs, re-investing pay from any overline hours in overtime-targeted training
& hiring - keeping everyone employed, earning & doing most of their usual spending
• 235 Wa. & Or. cuts at Weyerhauser  • 50 more cuts at Palm Inc.  • unspecified
Irish cuts at Guinness  • unspecified cuts at Artificial Life Inc. software
+ 2 bankruptcies: • PSINet, $2.1B debt  • Artificial Life's German & Swiss units
+ 1 prison story: • fraying saga of Sheriff Rouse
vs. glimmers of intelligence:
• Anthony Lewis discloses some compelling Israeli warnings for aggressive Israelis

6/01/01 fri
7 takeovers reported in NYT & BG, totaling $282m + $?? -
+ 3 downsizings, totaling 8839 jobcuts, reported in NYT & BG:
• 10% workforce cut (8500 UK jobs lost) as Invensys factory controls gets hysterical
about global downturn, instead of just trimming its workweek 10% (48-mins/day for whole
firm including top execs), re-investing pay from any overline hours in overtime-targeted
training & hiring - keeping everyone employed, earning & doing 90% of usual spending
• 180 more cuts at CSFB  • 159 at William A. Mercer human-resources consulting
+ 1 bankruptcy: • 140-yr-old Baldwin Piano & Organ goes Chapter 11! 
+ 2 prison stories: • Texas retools criminal justice in wake of furor
• Suffolk County retools criminal justice in wake of furor
+ omens: • Philippines worse  • US unemployment worse
vs. glimmers of TIMEsizing:
• 35-hr workweek France has a slight rise in unemployment -
gotta flex up that static workweek, Líônèl! - and inch it further DOWNWARDS -
in the economy of the future, the workweek will be a dynamic control variable
varying inversely and automatically with un(der)employment