Endowments take hit - is there a broader association impact?

Saw this on the Web today about a decline in endowments for the University of Kansas, a story that revealed the sliding stock market has hurt The KU Endowment Association's ability to fund scholarships: From the story:
The association announced Thursday it would decrease monetary support to the University of Kansas by 10 percent for the 2009-2010 school year. The association’s president, Dale Seuferling, said in a letter that returns from the endowment’s long-term investment program declined by 26.6 percent from July 1 to Oct. 31, prompting the association to take dramatic action.

TK While this story would seemingly have no connection at all to trade associations, a common thread is the fact that many associations commonly hold securities (such as common stocks) in their portfolio of assets. While KU's endowment is a whopping $1.2 billion, produce associations may hold far smaller but still substantial holdings of U.S. securities.Falling stock prices combined with falling interest returns on cash savings hit not only well heeled individuals, but also associations of every type. Of course, how the economic crisis affects operations of associations may range from no impact at all to the scenario described above, where a decline in dividends and assets will play out with cutbacks in funded activities. Something to watch.....

Gee whiz - Fresh Talk visitors and where they are from

The sitemeter counter on Fresh Talk keeps track of the number of visitors, page views (the page views box is a quarter the way down the blog on the right) and also the locations of the IP addresses of the visitors. I've noted that other blogs don't often have visible counters (PP, for example), but my thought is - why not?

From time to time, it is also fun to see where Fresh Talk readers call home. Here is a listing of locations for the last few dozen visitors this weekend, excluding duplicates:

Muscat, Masqat, Oman
Jakarta, Jawa Barat
Windsor, Ontario
Duluth, Minnesota
Bangalore, Karnataka
Sweet Home, Oregon
Obregon, Sonora, Mexico
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Bakersfield, California
Seoul, Republic of Korea
Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Sandweiler, Luxembourg
Cranford, New Jersey
Bronx, New York
Fellbach, Baden-Wurttemberg
Tempe, Arizona
Staten Island, New York
Kirkland, Washington
Warwick, New York
Lake Mary, Florida
Brewster, Washington
Damascus, Maryland
Mississauga, Ontario
Sebastian, Texas
Chicago, Illinois
Parsippany, New Jersey
Woodbridge, Virginia
Harrisonburg, Virginia
Pompano Beach, Florida
Wilbraham, Massachusetts
Tucson, Arizona
Montreal, Canada
Haarlem, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
Detroit, Michigan
Orlando, Florida
Saint Louis, Missouri
Moncks Corner, South Carolina
Oakland, California
Silver Spring, Maryland
Des Plaines, Illinois
Lititz, Pennsylvania
Szczecin, Zachodniopomorskie
Atlanta, Georgia
Peoria, Arizona
Vancouver, British Columbia
Cherry Hill New Jersey
Boca Raton, Florida
Somerville, Ohio
Hawthorne, New Jersey
Kingsburg, California

Dec. 7 Top headlines

We remember Pearl Harbor today. My mother law is was in the Philippines when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and consequently invaded the Philippines. Then just a young teenager, she and her family were put in prison and remained their until the Americans liberated Manila years later. You will never meet a more patriotic woman than Betsy Heimke. I salute her and all who have endured much because they are Americans.

Top headlines today

Food banks feel the pinch Coverage of the issue in East Lansing, Mich.

Youthfulness an American obsession, but at what cost? AP article detailing all the things baby boomers are doing to stay youthful, from human growth hormone, botox, and happily, eat more fruits and vegetables. The article points out the quest for youth is not new. In 1,500 BC, tiger gonads were consumed to tap into the fountain of youth. But is all this effort and expense worth it?

Salmonella insurance policy For egg producers. What kind of coverage is offered or foodborne illness for U.S. produce marketers? Wasn't there an insurance company in Arizona offering a product like that?

Depth and severity of recession makes answers hard to come by This recession will be harder than 1990-1991 and 2001, says this story. Other recessions ocurred in 1973-1975 and 1981-1982, but this may be worse. All agree a big stimulus package is needed, because the contraction in consumer spending this year will be followed by a shrinkage in business investment next year. The other shoe will drop, but can Obama avoid a hard landing?

Climate change, the Colorado River and LA water