Digital Ink Los Angeles

According to the NY Times article on February 1, 2009, ExxonMobil:

“…beat its own record for the highest profits ever recorded by any company, with net income rising 3 percent to $40.6 billion, thanks to surging oil prices. The company’s sales, more than $404 billion, exceeded the gross domestic product of 120 countries.“

With the onset of the worst domestic economy in 80 years, and plunging balance sheets at Wall Street banks, ExxonMobil managed to return “highest profits ever recorded by any company.” They must be great businessmen and astonishingly good at their jobs.

Bernie Madoff was arrested on December 11, 2008, for charges of securities fraud and outright theft, constituting the largest investor fraud ever perpetrated in history, to the tune of almost $65 billion.

Bernie Madoff had a keen business mind and was really good at his job: theft. On June 29, 2009, Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison, the maximum allowed. At the rate of ExxonMobil‘s current profit return, by the time Madoff gets out of jail, they’ll have profited $65 trillion from consumers. Profiteering is good. America was founded on this, right Mr. Gecko?

“The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA. Thank you very much.“
– Gordon Gecko, Wall Street (1987)

Pumping Profits or Ponzi Ploys, which is worse?

Sweet. Sexy. Pretty. Dirty. Fun. Young. Nasty.

Fetish. Underwear. Cotton. Fashion. Sex. Fantasy.

American. Erotic. Apparel.

What exactly is for sale, here?

A recent out-of-court million-dollar settlement between “sweat-shop free” American Apparel CEO Dov Charney and Woody Allen (defamation of character) hasn’t hurt their sprouting business.

Their retail stores are opening up at the same kinetic pace that potential “underwear” models send in nude body shots to possibly gain access to the controversial world of the Models of American Apparel. Goodness.

Judge for yourself. Almost a perfect melding of Larry Flynt‘s “girl next door” vision, Calvin Klein‘s “sexy youth” fashion, and America‘s “reality TV” voyeurism.

American Apparel is currently trading at $3.01 (AMEX: APP).

Sex sells. Online. Offline. On TV. At American Apparel. On this blog.

Sure beats the old Fruit of the Loom Fruit Guys, huh dudes? Form-fitting comfort.

The wealthiest guy in your town? Wanna know? If it’s not you, chances are Business Week has an idea with their new coverage of the “The Richest Man (or Woman) in Town.”

The New American Economy is an interesting animal in the sense that there’s an overall decrease in the global wealth structure, with almost half the world’s wealth concentrated in an elite group of the world’s wealthiest 1%.

Some of the elite athletes of the world nearly qualify, but they would be near the bottom of the wealthier of our universe. For professional athletes, $100 Million is a lot of money. For the world’s wealthiest 1%ers, that’s what they pay in taxes.