Buying Art By Price Tag

No matter what the expert opinions tell you, or the astute interpretations, there is, unfortunately, a bottom line to the determination of art value. 

No matter what experts say, buying art too often is determined by price tags on the item. And, of course, what I refer to all the time as the Bigger Fool Theory, that someone will come along and pay more for that item you bought. (Remember, always, the basics of general art originality.)

Government-Union Pension Traps

One reason why most state budgets are out of control is attributed to union-contracted, public employees pensions.

Unfortunately, the unions continue to feel optimistic about the ability of their pensions to accommodate coming obligations by more earnings on investments than most experts envision.

Unions find it easy to be optimistic about the future return on investments, far much higher than what most market observers consider possible in the light of our budget deficits and their effects on investment markets. And prospective future inflation.

Government union pension bigwigs entertain lots of false optimism. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

How An Artist Could Promote Himself

Looking at art over the years, if I were an artist or a dealer for an artist, I confess that my experience and observation has made me quite cynical.

As I have often said, The Bigger Fool Theory is what permits otherwise smart investors to pay out millions for work whose worth is highly subjective in the eyes of a beholder with no special acumen.

Bottom line: What sells most otherwise nondescript,  run-of-the-genre art and what makes for most “value” is merchandising and marketing, the more the better. The more astute that effort,  the more successful its accomplishment.

Few art buyers are aware of value in the art they buy. They look at price tags and the comments of the public and hope to milk the system when it’s time to sell.

Everyone is told to buy what they want to have in their homes. How many who buy for investment really, truly,  like what they have? (Remember, always, the basics of general art originality.)

Inept Regulators Need Dodd-Frank?

I keep writing about our inept federal regulators, about their actions and how they do everything but regulate what they set out to do.

I have taken particular aim at the Dodd-Frank Act with its over 200 provisions still to be completed, and which has had so many, by now, countless unforeseen negative effects.

Such as forcing the banks “too big to fail” to keep adding to capital. This makes them less profitable, when they must be able to attract necessary capital for a thriving economy.

Moreover, this is foolish when capital cushions can be wiped out overnight whenever you mark-to-market the bank’s assets in poor markets, as in 2008. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Read Art Comments With a Critical Eye

You learn a lot and can have a good laugh, if you read the comments in articles on art you will find in the media, while you apply certain rules of logic.

Sometimes you will have to read them more than once, to get the hang of it. But after a little practice you will more easily see contradictions and lots of meaningless verbiage-even drivel. This is because the opinions by experts are highly subjective. And therefore useless in the real world. (Remember, always, the basics of general art originality.)

Job Resume Ideas

 Job resume suggestions generally involve what not to mention. But so many job applicants add superfluous information which helps impede the essential message.

It’s of course important that everything, particularly your educational background, be truthful.

Topics such as the salary you’re seeking ought to be left off the resume. That question should come up only if the interviewer decides to ask about the subject during the first interview.

Your hobbies can be listed only if they specifically apply to the work you’re to do.

Your photo is not required and is generally left out unless your appearance is a prime aspect of the job. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

What Are Original Art Standards?

I often refer to original art standards. Here is the basic outline:

1) Evidence of creative thought in the work’s production. 

2) Conformance to standards set forth by art convention and recognized organizations. This is as important in the creation of oils and watercolors, as it is with original, multi-copy prints.

3) Provenance, or assurances of the art’s proper creation and its past ownership which can attest to standards. 

Remember, always, these basics of general art originality.

Government Business “Management”

According to those leaning to the left, government can outperform corrupt “capitalists.”

But we have the perfect example of how government manages politics.

General Motors decided to close dealerships after the government took it over. Closed dealers contacted their congressmen and senators, and the orders were then mostly rescinded, by political influence.

Valid business decisions became arbitrary decisions. The exact opposite the administration promised would never happen, when it took over GM control.

Politicians need voters; they cater to voter pressures. That means private industry employees will lose out to political influences over time.

Business people need profits and do what they must to get them, or they go bankrupt. Bankruptcy resolves problems. Otherwise those difficulties fester for years at taxpayer expense, as they do under government control.(See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Original Art Creation Requires Creative Thought

By definition, true original art ought to demand creativity by the artist. There must be fresh thinking that makes each work of art unique. 

Yet so much of what goes for expensive, sought-after work

today totally fails this essential standard. The artist in such instances rests on past laurels, turning out the same work repetitiously. Moreover, the earlier works the artist used as his or her springboard to fame, often lacked the needed creativity from the start. (Remember, always, the basics of general art originality.)

Fire Teachers Before the Police and Fireman

Gutless politicians, mostly those on the left who are beholden to government unions for political funding and patronage, have a way of cutting spending.

It’s a favorite resort if you are going to spite those greedy taxpayers who refuse to keep paying salaries and benefits to those who earn more than they do.

The political payback device? Lay off or fire the cops and firemen or let the prisoners out of jail.

In a society where the kids are getting dumber each year and only a third are educationally prepared to go to college, why do average class sizes have to remain at about 20 or so students? The small classes are still not working.

It's beyond me. Why not 40 kids in a class? It was in my youth, and the kids were smarter and better behaved.

And the larger class size with astute teachers would save sufficient educational outlay, while keeping cops, firemen, and criminal vigilance intact.(See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Is a Good Artist One That Copies the Masters Well?

In  many art museums you will find artists who are permitted to copy famous works. Those who look on and watch often ooh and ahh when the see someone make a copy very much like the original on the museum wall.

The copyist who should get attention is the artist whose interpretation is different. Creativity counts in art. Only would-be forgers make potential true-copies. (Remember, always, the basics of general art originality.)

Graduate Schools Must Teach Ethics?

 Graduate schools who specialize in high-priced MBAs go out of their way to be politically correct and fashionable. To do so, and be PC while charging exorbitant fees, they teach ethics.

In fact, the MBA schools are going out of their way to teach ethics in return for the obscenely, unconscionably high tuition they charge.

Why not teach the subject in high school and undergraduate college? It’s too late to bother if the graduate student has to be taught ethics.(See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

What Art Should You Buy?

 There are lots of different forms and types of original art. The first rule is to buy what your budget will allow. And importantly, buy what you will want to look at, and readily see every day of the week, and each year thereafter.

Most important: Learn the basics of what makes original art. That may take a little time. During this period of gathering art education, I would suggest you start with small, low-outlay purchases. Therefore, look into the possibility of acquiring original prints.

They are made in multi-copies but are considered original if in limited quantities and signed and numbered by the artist in the margin. (Remember, always, the basics of general art originality.)

Illegal-Immigration Resolutions

You find illegals in states such as New Jersey, New York and Illinois, yet not heavily in states that surround them. Pennsylvania, Ohio, Missouri and Michigan, have them, though not heavily. Nor are they heavily populated in North and South Dakota or Montana. You do not find them concentrated in Mississippi. But next door in Alabama, Louisiana and Arkansas, there are larger percentages.

Would it be social benefits or schooling or legislation? There must be a particular combination of reasons in those states.

Those reasons can be addressed if the state governments truly wanted to correct them.(See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Greece Financial Problems and a Solution

I know this is not not popular wisdom: A complete Greek bankruptcy would probably be the best solution for that country and its general population, along with the rest of Europe.

It would actually be the best medicine for Greece and the world, despite the gloom and doom portents being given. The pain would be severe but short-lived. Not much more than what is still festering after current efforts.

The result would have been the lesson Greece, Europe and the U. S. desperately need; that you cannot avoid living forever on air or the productive energy of other taxpayers. Debtors would learn to tighten their belts today, not down the road, tomorrow.

Bailouts always fail except for politicians in office who keep kicking the solution- can down that road. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Can a True Artist Perform Work By Proxy?

The question often arises as to the legitimacy of art as being original, when the artist doesn’t actually apply his or her hands to the work itself. Example: Can the artist write notes advising assistants how to do the work or project? Perhaps the artist then merely approves the results?

The answer is a definite, YES.  Much conceptual, original art is at times done this way. (Remember, always, the basics of general art originality.)

Read Art Comments With a Critical Eye

You learn a lot and can have a good laugh, if you read the comments in articles on art you will find in the media, while you apply certain rules of logic.

Sometimes you will have to read the articles more than once, to get the hang of it. But after a little practice you will more easily see contradictions and lots of meaningless verbiage-even dribble. This is because the opinions by experts are highly subjective. And therefore useless in the real world. 

Remember, always, the basics of general art originality.

The Media Fails to Explain Basic Economics

The Dow Jones Economic Sentiment Indicator tries to gauge the U.S. economy by weighing the balance of sentiment in articles published by fifteen major American newspapers. The Indicator analyzes published stories. They look for key words that indicate changes in economic sentiment.

Journalism schools do not teach enough economics. If they have any real economic study at all. Because that would entail a balance of conservative as well as liberal thinking on the subject. The results of the work of their graduates show a deficiency.

About 50,000 newspaper journalists work in the U.S., with thousands of published articles daily, Economics are integral to the news, particularly finance and its relation to politics.

Unfortunately, schools do not teach news balance. Journalists do not know enough to screen what has worked and not worked economically in the past.

And to avoid passing along political nonsense without critical oversight. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Heavy Government Spending Doesn't Make Private Industry Jobs

Unfortunately: It has become a mantra of the left and the Administration. It is Keynesian Economics 101. It's repeated over and over.

It does not work. 

It did not work during the Great Depression. It did not work for stimulus efforts and all other allied spending programs. It certainly did not work for Greece and other failed economies, present and in the past.

But because the concept appeals to the lowest mentalities with no idea of the past, but those who also vote, the lame mantra happens to be an extremely useful political tool.

So supposedly intellectual politicians continue to pontificate the mantra over and over, in an attempt to get reelected again and again.(See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Using Taxation For Social Justice

Taxes imposed today are not really used to get optimal revenues for the government. They’re used by politicians to get at the so-called rich.

Take the estate tax as an example. The rich use foundations as an escape. But the estate tax is really a means of making it appear the government is evening out the playing field of the economy. The tax produces only about $10 billion or so in revenue for the federal tax maw. But it helps the politicians give an appearance it’s for the little guy. Yet, it sees to it that family businesses and farms  tend to be sold out to big business to pay the penalties. And it sells lots of policies to meet the tab, for the insurance giants' gain.  (See the Earl J. Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole at twitter.)

College Education as a Job Guarantee

Why the vast majority of folks believe that college education will guarantee a job,  a myth that keeps its life only because of ignorance among the would-be educated. There’s absolutely no assurance that a college course will prepare you for the basics of a job unless that job calls for a very specific skill taught in schools, such as high technology, medicine and science.   

A so-called liberal arts education you can pick up on your own investigations in the library or the internet does not require a degree, nor does it assure the wherewithal to fulfill employer needs. (See the Earl J. Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole at twitter.)

  Recap: 2008 Financial Meltdown Responsibility

A book has documented what many observers and I have been saying for the past several years, to overcome the drivel on the perceived story behind the financial meltdown of 2008, that liberals and the left, abetted by the conventional media blamed on “greedy” bankers.

A recap is periodically necessary.

Ironically, liberals who were chiefly responsible for the financial meltdown, were able to further legislate their failed regulation into the even more questionable, flawed Dodd-Frank Act, naming the bill after two of the legislative actors responsible for the original debacle.

Surprisingly, the book is from a long-time New York Times reporter, Gretchen Morgenson, and the financial analyst, Joshua Rosner, and is titled "Reckless Endangerment." The Times represents the media particularly friendly to the left-leaning sentiment that has permeated the thinking on the subject.

Morgenson and Rosner have critiqued all the participants in the financial mess; the rating agencies, investment bankers, real estate brokers, etc.

However, with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and to their political benefactors, mostly liberal Democrat politicians and organizations, the incentives were always there for more mortgage production, more insider profits, and more party campaign contributions.

The warning signs were there. The admonitions for caution were there. Key members of Congress were in the forefront of waiving off disciplinary warnings.

With a couple of prominent exceptions, the politicians were Democrats claiming to do good for the poor. The supposed idea was to give homes to the poor but the rich got much richer, while the poor couldn’t even afford what homes they got for so little.

Along the way, insiders enriched themselves and their friends, stuffed campaign coffers, and resisted all attempts to enforce market discipline. When the inevitable collapse arrived, the entire economy suffered, (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Business Men or Successful Stock Traders?

The media glorifies many rich business men and women, as business gurus because they happen to have made billions in business. Yet these folks have never really operated a business.

They may have started a business for which they received stock certificates that have become very valuable. But they have never run a business.

The public is duped once they see so much wealth.

I find there is a difference. Yes, some actually have run businesses. Sam Walton who originated Walmart was one; people who opened up and closed the premises, and who did the hiring and made up the payroll.

If you oversee just the stock price, and merge companies, and buy others, you are a different sort of business person. The public too often makes no distinction, yet hands out the same plaudits. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Merger and Acquisition Stumbling Blocks

When corporations announce mergers or acquisitions they love to give the reasons why there is the premium invariably paid by the acquirer to shareholders of the company being acquired.

After all, there has to be an incentive to sell the business. And sometimes, that premium of the targeted company’s book or operating value can be quite high, well above current market pricing.

One of the main reasons often given for this premium is the alleged value of synergy. That is, the innate benefits to be derived from having the merger. However, studies show that synergy frequently is not as beneficial as it’s made out to be. Problems always arise where unexpected, from merging staffs and personalities. And they may not be easily minimized.

It’s difficult to determine who really gets the benefit. They’re usually done too fast, and far too often for CEO ego satisfaction. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Manipulated Unemployment Numbers

Monthly government unemployment numbers often have little to do with reality. If corporations spewed out such faulty figures they would be hauled off to court and their officials jailed.

The media emphasis usually goes along with the official government charade by placing a spin on what you are supposed to make of the raw figures, depending on the political party of media favor.

One illustration was the past Obama administration’s creation of the “jobs saved” number. When actual “job lost” numbers are the norm. Jobs saved were merely estimates of the “coulda and if” variety, that could not be truly measured.

But worse, unemployment statistics leave out those who have given up looking for work, or are counting part-timers who cannot find full-time work. Right now the government is reporting unemployment of under 8% when it’s well near Great Depression levels, at 15%. And for minorities, it is running much higher.(See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Cut Corporate Income Taxes to Create Domestic Jobs?

The U.S. corporate income tax is too high, in relation to what is being imposed by other countries, many who unabashedly claim to be socialist or who have otherwise managed economies. They definitely don’t profess to have capitalist underpinnings. I include Communist China in this category.

They all realize the importance of relatively low corporate tax rates.

Yet, one major party in America has a social mantra of “soaking the rich” and the corporation is targeted as rich, though the taxes paid are really a cost of doing business and must be priced into what’s sold.

There is no logic in keeping U.S. corporate taxation as high as it is, when you want to keep American business competitive in global markets and at home.

And while we’re at it, let American corporate already-taxed earnings overseas come back home, tax free, The funds can be used here. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

American Health Care Participation

Much is made about how much Americans spend on health care, compared to others.

We spend about 16% of the GDP on health-related services. Fine, it’s perfectly acceptable to do so, if we get the best care available. Provided it’s not directed and controlled politically by the government. That is when mismanagement sets in, as it has whenever government runs any business or service,

And while the French, for example, spend about $6,000 per household less on health care, they get far, far less in services and quality than Americans do, a fact that proponents of ObamaCare never disclose,(See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Bureaucrats Usually Stumble

Steve Forbes, on Forbes.com, April 21, 2010, wrote a piece of basic economics for the laymen, which I repeat here, for the public to learn and also remember today and in the future.

 

The media does a poor educational job, but Mr. Forbes sums up Education 101, also for those whose parents have bankrupted themselves to send kids to college.

Mr. Forbes reflects on the erroneous supposition that there are always ”wise” men around who try to manipulate economic problems and fine-tune the necessary financial remedies necessary to mitigate and rectify them. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Good Jobs Don't Always Require College

About 60% of jobs in 1950 did not require special skills. According to ETS, Educational Testing Services, there were plenty of jobs for those looking for work requiring no special abilities.

Now about 80% of jobs are considered skilled and need training, not all of which are available to high school graduates.

This is a fault of high schools. You don’t need a college degree for most non technical work positions. You would not, if K-12 standards in English and mathematics were adequate.

We send non-scholarly kids to expensive college where they become useless graduates. All we have to do is train them for useful, profitable work while in high school. They can go on to master good paying jobs once they have the basics. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Medicaid and Medicare Debacles

Congress created Medicare and Medicaid in 1965, Politicians kept expanding benefits, while talking about controlling costs. Yet costs kept skyrocketing.

This couldn’t happen in private business because of the likelihood of bankruptcy. But government intervention prolonged losses and made matters much worse and expensive. As long as taxpayers continued to pay the bills. Eventually enormous amounts have been paid.

This same government failure, as we see with fraud-infested Medicare and Medicaid, is on the menu with ObamaCare. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Analysts and Lawsuits

Law suits can arise when credit rating agencies, who judge the quality of bond or derivative issues, are considered the cause of investors’ loss of money. Making it easier to sue can thus open a can of worms.

The First Amendment is supposed to guard free speech. That usually protects financial analytical reports. Including opinions on Structured Investment Vehicles or SIVs, or derivatives, or any form of corporate and municipal bond.

Can analysts and their employers be sued for malpractice if their opinions have been wrong? Or are they covered by the First Amendment? What does any court decision do to those who evaluate due diligence in the future? Every so often a move is made to sue credit agencies for alleged malpractice. (See the Earl J. Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Evaluating Economists

Economists generally agree on basic tenets of economics. These have to do with the long-term effect of deficits, and the Inevitability of inflation as a result. They usually also agree on incentives for business and, to some extent, on tax cuts for small business, in efforts to increase jobs. Other than for basics, their opinions differ.

I’m not impressed by their awards, especially Nobel prizes.

Economics involve many complex variables and facts, unknown and the unknowable, and can be difficult to understand. It definitely is not a science.

Economists can see what has worked well in the past and what has not, but there is no predictability. Modeling and planning did not worked properly in the past, and will not in the future. 
 

As one observer has said, “economics is history trying to be physics.”

Politics plays a big role in the thinking of many. It produces the variations we are accustomed to, as an accommodation by economists tuned to the political interests they may favor.

There are a handful in which I have more confidence. Examples: Milton Friedman, Friedrich von Hayek, among others, whose work I follow. (See the Earl J. Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Athlete Salaries Are Subsidized by Taxpayers?

The Left complains when a "rich" top executive gets more than a million or so a year of “taxpayer-protected” income. What about a ball player who hires no one, who makes ten million and more a year? And may actually be a loser?

Remember: Money is fungible. The payment does not have to be direct. Money can be substituted from one pocket of government or payer to the other, to hide the source of funding. It adds up to the same total outlay.

Yet, many ball parks are subsidized in some way by government, and thus the fungible funds are being used to pay grandiose athlete salaries. (See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

What Makes a Good Business Analyst or Consultant?

I’ve been asked and I’ve written on the subject of business management over the years. It’s a subject based on my personal, hands-on experience in small, medium size and large business.That leads me to frequently disagree with advice and suggestions gleaned from the media and their experts.

I note their preferred ideas that managers be taught in so-called “top” schools and have MBA degrees in business. I have looked at the curricula of such schools over the years. However, I’m not impressed by such management-by-formal-schooling..

I find there’s a bottom line: It has little to do with formal education of business management. It does have a connection with open, creative minds that are willing to learn about practical business and financial matters, often on-the-job, either part time at the outset, or as small entrepreneurs at some stage. (See the Earl J. Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole at twitter.)

Why Bother With Social Security Deductions or Contributions?

Social Security was set up as a supposed insurance program which it never was. It’s not insurance, with no lock box, no reserves, and no benefits directly tied to contributions. As I have always said, it is more of a Ponzi scheme than a legitimate retirement insurance program.

There’s been talk of doing away with the payroll deductions because it amounts to a severe “progressive”  tax that liberal politicians abhor. But there is yet a better argument for doing away with the deductions. It would stop the masquerade that Social Security is a legitimate insurance program.

Private Social Security is a viable option. Those who don’t like common stock can instead invest in government bonds. (See the Earl J. Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole at twitter.)

Private Health Insurance Incentives

 Nothing the government does is truly cheap, except quality, when you total up the direct and indirect costs. ObamaCare health insurance never will accomplish what it intends to do.

One suggestion: Tax employer-provided health-care benefits but return this money to employees in the form of tax deductions, to buy their medical insurance as they buy home and auto insurance.

That will make insurance transferable and keep workers on their jobs with coverage. You will then have health-insurance security and portability, along with personal independence.

And even more competition among about 1,500 insurance carriers. With certainly lower health insurance costs.(See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Capitalist Realism Versus Socialist Fantasy

Socialism always ruins environment; as evidenced in Soviet Russia, China and communistic Eastern Europe. Capitalism has invariably treated the environment as an asset for future use.

Socialist countries use capitalist principles only to bail them out of dire economic disaster after socialism fails.

Even in so-called socialist countries, it’s capitalist principles that countervail socialist errors.(See the Earl J Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole tweets.)

Firing Help While Avoiding Potential Lawsuits

The subject of how to fire someone with an eye on potential lawsuits starts when you first make the hire and employer/employee relations thereafter, while the employee is in your hire.

In brief: Do not discriminate. Be sure you are aware of legal hiring tenets. Also keep an employee manual that tells each employee his or her rights as well as obligations as an employee.

When you do the actual firing, give that employee written notice and reasons for the discharge. Be sure you have back-up evidence for your action. And I would suggest a witness attesting to that meeting and its procedure. (See the Earl J. Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole at twitter)

Government Statistics Manipulation-- Example: “Seasonal Adjustments”

 
The public is unduly influenced by the numbers the bureaucrats in Washington put out, whether on GDP, unemployment or other important statistics.
Few bother to learn how these numbers come about and the role of estimates, including the seasonal variety.Therefore, lots of bureaucratic mischief can be done with the process, some innocently, and others with a political purpose.
What I cannot understand  is why these estimates must be made. If they were not, the public would be forced to do a bit more thinking, especially with media assistance, which does such a poor job of it now. (See the Earl J. Weinreb NewsHole® comments and @BusinessNewshole at twitter)