Blog Archives

Herbalife is Building a 1.34 Million Dollar Lobby in Washington D.C.

Source – Herbalife is spreading around the cash to beat back Bill Ackman’s claim it is a pyramid scheme.

The controversial protein shake seller this year for the first time spent more than $1 million lobbying in Washington, DC.

The multilevel marketing (MLM) company has long been known for its strong presence in the nation’s capital — but the $1.34 million it spent in 2013, as of Oct. 28, dwarfs its typical spending, records show.

The previous record was in the election year of 2008, when it spent $880,000, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. It spent $810,000 in 2012.

Herbalife’s largesse exceeds that of other companies in its industry, including the biggest MLM, Amway, which spent $330,000 last year.

It even surpasses pharmaceuticals, whose need for regulatory drug approval keeps them forking over the cash.

For example, Herbalife outspent McKesson Corp., whose $37 billion market cap is more than quadruple Herbalife’s $7.9 billion. McKesson spent only $1.13 million, records show.

Herbalife also outspent its foe, Ackman’s Pershing Square, almost tenfold. Pershing Square, which has a $1 billion short bet on Herbalife, spent $138,000 lobbying this year.

Herbalife denies Ackman’s charges. It began increasing its lobbying efforts as three Democratic Hispanic lawmakers in Washington joined Ackman in calling for an investigation of the company by the Federal Trade Commission.

In a recent letter to investors, Ackman criticized Herbalife’s lobbying efforts, saying its “response to Pershing Square is unprecedented in the history of short selling,” including “in the halls of Congress.”

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I guess it was only a matter of time before Herbalife stepped up to the big boys league. Any company who wants to make a big splash on the market builds a million dollar lobby. Caesar’s Palace. Trump Towers. Enterprise. All beautiful lobby’s. Now we can add Herbalife to that exclusive list. The difference between Herbalife and those other companies is that Herbalife actually helps people. For a small fortune they put you on a weight loss program that will have you feeling blessed and grateful in no time. Add in their new lobby, and you have a recipe for success.

– Ryan

It’s All About the New Benjamin’s, Baby!

new-100-dollar-bill

Benjamin Franklin is getting a makeover with the new 100 dollar bills. Apparently they spent over a decade perfecting the security to make it near impossible for counterfeiters to replicate the new bill. The advanced security features include a 3-D Security Ribbon and the Bell in the Inkwell.

“These offer a simple and subtle way to verify that a new $100 note is real.”
-newmoney.gov

“Subtle”? I think that big blue stripe is anything but subtle. But what do I know, i’m not a money designer.

-MattyV

PS- The only question I have is, will it affect my ability to make it rain? That’s my main concern.

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Google, Take My Money – Chromecast Edition

unnamedGoogle just made some announcements live over its YouTube channel that I am particularly excited about.  Along with the new line of Nexus 7 tablets (which are still, by far, the best bang-for-buck tablet going) Google announced something called ‘Chromecast’.  It is essentially a HDMI flash drive that puts the power of google chrome into your TV.  Now you can stream: videos, pictures, music, web browsing (across all devices) to your TV! But wait…isn’t that kind of what the Apple TV and Roku do? Yes it is, and it does it for the fraction of their prices.  $35 gets you everything you need, PLUS 3 months free of Netflix.  Need I say more? Google, you know the drill, TAKE MY MONEY!

Here is a video better depicting this ground breaking tech. (ground breaking in the sense of how cheap it is)

Buy it here > Chromecast

-MattyV

PS- It turns your TV on and automatically switches to the right input. BOOM ROASTED

Is 60m Dollars for a High School Football Stadium Too Much?

The people of Allen, Texas have agreed to she’ll out 60 mil for a high school football stadium. Which begs the question, is 60 mil a reasonable amount of doll-hairs? The answer is absolutely not. In the words of Happy Gilmore “the price is wrong bitch!”

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The citizens are proud of their field because it is “the finest high school football facility in the country”. No shit, did you need 60 mil to accomplish that? My school’s field was a collection of lines in the dirt and some glorified benches to sit on. I guess there’s no denying it Allen, Texas has the best field in the country.

I just can’t stop thinking of everything a community could do with 60 mil. And none of them is build a ridiculous football stadium.

-Sean Lite-

P.S. What will the ticket prices be?

P.P.S. okay it’s kinda sweet…

Marijuana is About to Go Corporate

The big story today is marijuana is about to become that much closer to full legality. Not sure if that’s a real phrase but it is now. A 100 million dollar marijuana company is about to form in Washington state and I am going to buy stock pre-immediately (I’m killing it with new phrases today). Right now its being called ‘Big Marijuana’ which is an obvious spin off of ‘Big Tobacco’ (which is probably not the best marketing choice) but they plan to change it’s name as the company comes to fruition.

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And the mastermind behind all this? A guy named Jamen Shively, no idea how to say that but I’m going to with Jammin’ because that’s both awesome and, when referred to the Bob Marley song, very appropriate. Oh and by the way he’s been endorsed by Vicente Fox, another awesome name, who happens to be an ex-Coca Cola exec; but then he got bored of heading up one of the worlds biggest Fortune 500 companies and decided to retire and become the president of Mexico. An obvious next step.

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(Jamen kinda looks like a hippie Bill Gates right? How many signs of success do you need?)

I’ve never been so sure that a company is going to experience so much success. Marijuana + Jamen + 100 mil. How can you go wrong? Except maybe your product is still mostly illegal. But who’s counting. I’m excited!

-Sean Lite-

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