January 12, 2010

The May Report: 1/12/2010: Advanced Equities faces its greatest challenge to
date; Groupon has one year anniversary party at Carnivale which draws 400; In
praise of oxygen or what a difference a day makes!

Editor and publisher: ron@themayreport.com, ronaldmay@aol.com,
www.themayreport.com, 773-525-3944.

If you missed an article, go here:
www.tmronline.com/A55951/tmrarticles.nsf/vwFullNewsletter
______________________________________
********************************************

Is Not GTD getting you down?

Resolve to join us in January!
Co-working at Milwaukee & Montrose
Great location: Just off 90/94 Junction

Near Blue Line, Metra, Lawrence Ave bus terminal etc.
Plentiful Restaurants and Bars for lunch and after hours

Membership options start at $150/mo.

Floaters, Dedicated Desk and optional Private Offices

Casual Environment – Serious value!

Great Light with 10 Foot ceilings (Light=Joy!)
FREE Onsite Parking
New Furniture
Conference
Room Internet
VOIP
Color Laser Printer
Swimming Pool (just kidding!) and more…

Call Garnet: 312-925-6911 or garnet.steen@gmail.com
****************************************
_____________________
*******************************
What a better way to start 2010 than with an innovative gift that will last all
year and recognize the “Excellence” of your top performer, key contributing
employee, other valued individual or yourself.. Let them enjoy 24/7 attended
parking privileges at the Field Harbor Condominium located at 165 N. Field
Drive right across from Millennium Park on Randolph St. — Pocket Change of
$.22 per hour or $5.33 per day — won’t measure the appreciation you will
receive from this gift. Call John Golde at
847-477 -9465 or e-mail: goldebus@att.net
*********************************
_______________________________________
TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Scoop section:

— Advanced Equities, Inc., having lost many brokers who sold a substantial
percentage of the funds raised in the last five years, faces financial
uncertainty, by Ron May
— Tarkus: Slowpoke Stimulus? The InformationSuperglcier(TM) notices something
even slower
— Tarkus: Winter thaw on the Information Superglacier(TM)
— A note that warms Ron’s heart
— More pearls of wisdom from Bob Geras
— A Note From Gary Teuber of Abacus Business Leaders
— Tom Flangan, former Partner in charge of the Deloitte office in Chicago,
tied to plenty of scandals?
— Tuesday, January 19: MIT-EF: Economic Outlook 2010
— Tuesday, January 19: ASP – Chicago
Presents “Annual Economic Forecast with David Hale and Andy Busch
— Briefly noted, by Ron May
_______________________________________
*******WIRTH BUSINESS CREDIT – ACQUIRE EQUIPMENT – SAVE ON TAXES*******

Section 179 of the IRS tax law allows for accelerated depreciation on up to
$250,000 of equipment for small businesses. In most instances, this applies to
financed equipment, as long as the equipment is put into use before the end of
the year. That means that you can lease up to $250,000 worth of equipment and
immediately take up to a $250,000 tax deduction for 2009. Check with your tax
advisor and if you qualify, call us to finance the equipment you need today!

WIRTH Business Credit ( www.wirthchicago.com ) is a local equipment
financing company available to help you finance IT, computers, phone systems,
networking equipment, office equipment, furniture, retail fixtures, point of
sale systems and other business critical equipment. WIRTH is backed by a
public company and provides leases for transactions as small as $5,000.
Although the credit market is tight, we are still working with startups and
less than perfect credit. We are direct lenders (not brokers) and we never
sell our leases, so you will always deal with us and not pay any fees to
middlemen.

Take a look at our one page application: (
wirthchicago.com/Wirth_Lease_App_41.pdf) and call us today!

Frank Rogers
WIRTH Business Credit
frank@wirthchicago.com
wirthchicago.com
630-325-1458
*******************************************************
________________________________________
********************************************************
FREE SEO ANALYSIS FOR YOUR SITE TODAY

Expert team of SEO professionals offering FREE site analysis and
evaluation providing
a picture of current SEO site strength. Also, all new clients in
January will receive 25 high back-links in Google Page Ranked sites.

We Offer

* Search Engine Ranking Boosts
* PPC Campaign Management
* Organic SEO
* Domain Name Analysis
* Offsite SEO
* Social Media Marketing

For your site evaluation please email mike@intelseo.com with your site
url and target keywords.
***************************************************
_______________________________
The Scoop section:
_________________________________
Advanced Equities, Inc., having lost many brokers who sold a substantial
percentage of the funds raised in the last five years, faces financial
uncertainty, by Ron May

* I got a call from an anonymous caller at about 1pm Monday afternoon, and for
this call at least we had a conversation. The caller said that he is “pi**ed.”

The reason is that he feels that Advanced Equities, Inc. has had some of the
best sales people and brokers in the business and nine of them have left in the
last sixty days or so, plus many more over the last nine months.

Independently I have confirmed that some of the brokers left of their own
accord and some did not.

The caller told me that the brokers who have left constitute about 90% of the
funds that have been raised by the firm in the last five years!

The caller also said he thinks I am wrong about the VCs having some kind of
sweetheart deal with Advanced Equities. The deals were often good deals, he
said, and Advanced Equities was just paying too much for them, he said.

The caller told me that the entire New York office walked out, the London
office and the San Francisco office and the Chicago office is just a shell of
its former self.

The reason the brokers are leaving and that includes high producers like J. G.
is that none of them saw one share of stock or one warrant on their deals which
is what they were promised.

All of the brokers are litigating and all of them are represented by major law
firms, the caller told me.

He added that he does not know how long Advanced Equities, Inc. can last but he
said we will know more in about thirty days. I gather that the courts may have
something to say about it.

He also said that Crain’s and Forbes are back in on the story.

Why the warrants and stocks were not paid, I do not know, except that this is
SOP at AEI, but the caller did say that they may have pledged those warrants
away to garner some kind of line of credit.

It is also my understanding that a VC firm may have lent AEI some funds in the
recent past.

My information is that no one is happy these days and everyone is waiting to
see what happens. I have also found out that many of the previous cases brought
by brokers against AEI have been settled and are now history. The departure of
general counsel Erhard Chorle can’t be construed as good news by principals
Dwight and Keith.

I also got this note last Friday.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
From: E-mail address withheld although not requested
Subject: (no subject)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 2010 20:14:12 EST
To: ron@themayreport.com

if you only knew what was going on at advanced equities these days…
__________________________________________
Tarkus: Slowpoke Stimulus? The InformationSuperglcier(TM) notices something
even slower

From: Tarkus tarkus@ripco.com
Subject: Slowpoke Stimulus? The InformationSuperglcier(TM) notices something
even slower.
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:33:53 -0500
To: ‘The May Report’ ron@themayreport.com, tarkus@ripco.net, RONALDMAY@aol.com

Ron, unless my math is off, the FIRST announcement (below) for $183 M, to be
followed by other announcements over the next 75 days for another $2 b. The
second round was delayed and will be rolled into the third round (is that where
the other $5 B is released?). In Round 1, there were $28 B in requests and $10
B in matching capital (leverage, which is cash over match – was probably not
counted). It’s quite possible total project costs for round one represented
$50M.

Seems to me that there are more good ideas seeking stimulus than all of the
available stimulus. I’m sure there are a few bad ideas in the mix, but I
choose to look at the more optimistic side of the story.

I owe you a few InformationSuperglcier(TM) stories in the New Year. I’m hoping
that each will begin their Illinois chapters by early to mid 2010.

Tarkus

DAWSONVILLE, Ga. – Vice President Biden today kicked off $7.2 billion in
Recovery Act broadband grant and loan programs, of which $2 billion will be
made available on a rolling basis over the next 75 days to bring high-speed
Internet to communities that currently have little or no access to the
technology. At an event at Impulse Manufacturing in Dawsonville, Georgia, with
Governor Sonny Perdue (R-GA), he announced an initial $183 million investment
in eighteen broadband projects benefiting seventeen states which has already
been matched by over $46 million in public and private sector capital. The
awards are not only expected to provide initial job opportunities in
infrastructure and manufacturing, but help bridge the digital divide and boost
economic development for communities held back by limited or no access to the
technology.

www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/vice-president-biden-kicks-72-billion
-recovery-act-broadband-program
______________________________________
Tarkus: Winter thaw on the Information Superglacier(TM)

Subject: Winter thaw on the Information Superglacier(TM)
Date: 1/12/2010 11:35:26 A.M. Central Standard Time
From: tarkus@ripco.com
To: RONALDMAY@aol.com, ron@themayreport.com
CC: tarkus@ripco.com

Hey Ron,

I’ll have a few more meetings to go before I can give you an update from the
Information SuperGlacier(TM).

I may have one or more articles of interest. At least one of the companies has
some data center / healthcare / public safety ideas that will also be offered
as services in Illinois under a Stimulus concept known as Sustainable
Broadband.

Speaking of Glaciers, the telecommunications stimulus is nearly completely
frozen, Although the first $ 2.x billion was announced last summer, Only the
.x portion of the $7.2b has been allocated. The next round of funding is
imminent, but they have not completed the announcements on the first round,
they extended due diligence on $28 BILLION dollars worth of requests and
another $10 Billion in match funds. The first round was for the $2.x. The
next (consolidated) round is for the remaining $5B. The rules for the
consolidated rounds 2&3 will change from round one.

I used to do grant writing as a part of business development. I started
working for educational, governmental and not for profit groups under
contract. Even these companies have taken on business clients (more fun to
write sustainability sections when the company has a profit motive and a
business plan.

The work has actually accelerated my own knowledge curve. While the task may
seem one of carrying the water for others or reading instructions to very smart
people, I gain rapid exposure to the ideas matched to a particular project. I
spend a few weeks to a month developing the project into the terms of an agency
or charity which meets the objective of the requesting group. Most Federal
grants require sustainability and a strong focus on work plan, talent and
budget with a focus on deliverables, leading to evaluation and dissemination.
Add to that the added pressure of file completeness and strict deadlines and
you get a schedule for crazy hours.

When the year was over, my “you are only a grant writer” job crested a billion
dollars in total project costs. At the same time, my transportation (commute,
travel) costs diminished substantially. The educational position still
requires travel.

What little suit time I have had is in bringing some of the grant award winners
to the Information SuperGlacier(TM) to kick the tires on setting up a business
in the hinterlands. By the time that they complete a grant request, they have
already stated a business case for sustainability to be of interest to the
economic developers

I have not figured out how to accomplish knowledge transfer to a 24x7x365
mechanical “brain,” so that I can get out and walk the dog. I wonder if there
is a grant for that.

Hope all is well.

Tarkus
____________________________________
A note that warms Ron’s heart

Subject: Re: You are supposed to be on the list already since Oct. 2009
Date: 1/11/2010 11:51:35 P.M. Central Standard Time
From: gprenterp@yahoo.com
To: ronaldmay@aol.com

Sorry!
panic set in over the holidays when I didn’t receive the report.

Glenn Ragans
Technician
Gpr. enterprises
Chicago, IL
_____________________________________
More pearls of wisdom from Bob Geras

Subject: worth remembering
Date: 1/10/2010 9:41:38 A.M. Central Standard Time
From: bob@vcbob.com
To: ronaldmay@aol.com

“What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for
others and the world remains and is immortal.” — Albert Pike

Bob Geras
_____________________________________
A Note From Gary Teuber of Abacus Business Leaders

From: Gary J. Teuber Sr. gteuber@abacusbl.com
Subject: A Note From Gary Teuber of Abacus Business Leaders
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:14:08 -0800 (PST)
To: ron@themayreport.com

Dear Ron:

I wanted you to be aware of a recent Abacus press release. Thank you for your
interest!

Abacus Locates to Deerfield, IL;

Helps Smaller Companies Build Value,

Craft Growth and Exit Strategies

December 15, 2009 ? Abacus Business Leaders, LLC (Abacus) announced it has
located its office at 500 Lake Cook Road, Suite 350, Deerfield, IL 60015.
Abacus has also established a new toll-free phone number, 877.412.2228, and an
improved website will be released soon at www.abacusbl.com.

The company was launched in 2008 by five founding principals: Matt Prazenka,
Gary Teuber, Bob Genc, Tim Knaus and C.J. Ritterbusch. Each principal has
experience leading businesses, managing change and, most importantly, valuation
improvement for stakeholders of lower middle market companies. According to
Abacus, today?s economy presents both opportunities and challenges for business
owners.

The recent recession has made developing deliberate growth or exit strategies
for business owners even more essential. The combination of reduced sales
activity in a tough business environment has complicated growth planning, while
lower market prices for businesses has threatened the exit plans for many
owners wanting to sell.

Abacus applies its extensive senior leadership experience to the problems of
strategic realignment, financial restructuring and turnaround management.
Abacus leaders bring decades of experience in preparing small businesses for
growth, transition, or the scrutiny of lenders, investors and buyers.

Hands-On, Flexible Offering

What sets Abacus apart is the hands-on and flexible nature of its service
offering. Abacus is unique in how they provide business owners with access to
seasoned, small company business leaders who work in the manner that is best
for a particular need, whether that be a full-time, part-time or project
engagement.

Business owners and managers want help building business value, not creating
plans that stand little chance of being put into practice. Abacus Business
Leaders work with stakeholders to develop and drive key strategies that can
actually be implemented.

About Abacus

Abacus works with private equity firms, families and individuals that own small
companies with revenues between $3 and $50 million in the manufacturing,
distribution and services industries. Abacus is also a trusted partner of
CPA?s, attorneys, commercial and investment bankers and their client companies.
The firm provides high-level services focused on the following areas:

* Strategic Growth Planning Customized for Small Companies

* Interim or Project Leadership

* Preparation for Business Sale, Exit or Transition

* Creation and Implementation of Sales Growth Strategies

* Analysis of Strategic Acquisitions

* Operational and Process Improvements

Abacus is headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois and works on-site with companies
throughout the Midwest. The firm was launched by founding principals Matt
Prazenka, Gary Teuber, Bob Genc, Tim Knaus and C.J. Ritterbusch. Bios on the
team can be found at www.abacusbl.com.

—————————–
Best Regards,

Gary Teuber

Abacus Business Leaders, LLC
500 Lake Cook Road
Suite 350
Deerfield, IL 60015
877.412.2228 x1010
gteuber@abacusbl.com
www.abacusbl.com
_________________________________________
Tom Flangan, former Partner in charge of the Deloitte office in Chicago, tied
to plenty of scandals?

From: Name withheld upon standing request
Subject: RE: The May Report: 1/08/2010: Ophir Frieder, star comp. sci. prof. at
IIT, bolts Chicago for Georgetown; Abdur Chowdhury, his preeminent doctoral
student, is chief scientist at Twitter — did you know that the search engine
Summize came out of their lab?
Date: Sat, 9 Jan 2010 18:05:43 -0600
To: ‘The May Report’ ron@themayreport.com

Ron,

Have you written about Tom Flanagan, former Partner in charge of the Deloitte
office in Chicago? Lots of good stuff and scandal here. He really misbehaved
and has embarrassed Deloitte big time.

Name withheld
______________________________________
Tuesday, January 19: MIT-EF: Economic Outlook 2010

From: MIT Enterprise Forum of Chicago mailer@mail2.clubexpress.com
Sender: mailer@mail2.clubexpress.com
Subject: MIT EF Jan. 19 Event: Economic Outlook 2010
Date: Wed, 30 Dec 2009 10:34:10 -0600
To: claire@themayreport.com

The Global Entrepreneurial Network: Connect. Inspire. Succeed.

Economic Outlook 2010, Jan 19

www.mitefchicago.org
Our Host Sponsor

For more information, please visit www.klgates.com.
Membership

Become a Member

Renew Membership

Send email to: info@mitefchicago.org

Become a Volunteer

Our Sponsors

A very challenging 2009 is over. Now what? What will the economy be like in
2010?

Are you prepared? What plans have you made?

Join MIT Enterprise Forum Chicago as we look at what the New Year holds for the
economy, your business, and your assets.

Expect a lively discussion between the panelists from a diverse group of
financial firms based not only here in Chicago but on Wall Street and in
Europe, moderated by Tim Curley of UBS Global Wealth Management:

Bryce Bulman, PIMCO/Allianz Investment Management

Mark Keeley, Keeley Investment Management

Adolfo Laurenti, Mesirow

Angela Librizzi, Goldman Sachs Asset Management

Audience questions will be entertained as well.

This is a popular event so register early:

REGISTER NOW
www.mitefchicago.com/

When
Tuesday January 19
5:00-6:15 pm Networking
6:30-8:00 pm Program

Where
At our host sponsor K & L Gates LLP
70 W. Madison St., Chicago

Cost

Free to members; $30 advance payment for non-members/guest
______________________________________
Tuesday, January 19: ASP – Chicago
Presents “Annual Economic Forecast with David Hale and Andy Busch

From: ASP – Chicago
Subject: Annual Economic Forecast – A Joint Program Hosted by ASP – Chicago
Chapter & the Harvard Business
Date: Tue, 29 Dec 2009 08:25:46 -0800 (PST)
To:

ASP – Chicago
Presents

“Annual Economic Forecast – A Joint Program Hosted by the ASP Chicago Chapter &
the Harvard Business School Club”

with David Hale and Andy Busch

Dear Colleague,
On behalf of ASP – Chicago, we extend a special invitation to join us for what
we know will be an interesting presentation and conversation with David Hale of
David Hale Global Economics and Andy Busch of BMO Capital Markets.

Register Now
Thank you. We look forward to meeting you on Tuesday, January 19th 2010.

Rick Kaufmann, President

With 2009 behind and while the U.S. economy still faces some significant
challenges including high unemployment, can we begin to feel optimistic in
2010? Join us for this annual program and hear the insights into the coming
year from two exceptional and world renown economists, David Hale and Andy
Busch.

Registration

$40.00 Member Advanced Registration
$50.00 Member Registration Onsite
$50.00 Non-member Advanced Registration
$60.00 Non-member Registration Onsite
$0.00 Student Advanced Registration
$0.00 Student Registration Onsite
$40.00 Affiliate Advanced Registration
$50.00 Affiliate Registration Onsite

Agenda

05:15 PM to 06:00 PM Registration & Networking Reception
06:00 PM to 06:15 PM 1-1-15 Overview
06:15 PM to 07:30 PM Presentation and Q&A

Reservations are requested by end of business, January 11th.

• Advanced registration ends at midnight Monday, January 11.

• For more information contact: Christine Glatz – 815-806-4908

“Annual Economic Forecast – A Joint Program Hosted by the ASP Chicago Chapter &
the Harvard Business School Club”

Tuesday, January 19th 2010
5:15 pm to 7:30 pm

The Standard Club
320 S. Plymouth Court
Chicago, IL 60604
815-806-4908

Register Now
eventling.com/index.php?file=event_details&companyId=7&event_id=415

Sincerely,

Event Services
Association for Strategic Planning – Chicago

Think Plan Act

Email: cglatz@managementservices.org
Phone: 815-806-4908
Web: www.strategyplus.org/

ASP is committed to respecting the privacy and confidentially of our members
and guests. Therefore our mailing lists are the sole property of ASP and are
not sold to outside organizations. Additionally, during ASP meetings, members
and guests are encouraged to network, participate and interact with each other
without overt selling

About Our Speakers
David Hale
Chairman,
David Hale Global Economics

David Hale is the founding chairman of David Hale Global Economics and China
Online. Mr. Hale serves as the Global Economic Advisor to the Commonwealth
Bank of Australia. He formerly worked as chief economist for Kemper Financial
Services and Zurich Financial Services.

Mr. Hale is a member of the Academic Advisory Board of the Federal Reserve Bank
of Chicago and the National Association of Business Economists. He was
recently appointed to the Competitive Markets Advisory Council of the Chicago
Mercantile Exchange and is the recipient of the William F. Butler Award in
recognition of his outstanding contribution to the field of business
economics.

Mr. Hale holds a B.Sc. degree in international economic affairs from the
Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and a M.Sc. degree in economics
from the London School of Economics.
———————

Andy Busch
Global FX Market Strategist & Senior Fellow on Economic Issues for the Illinois
Policy,
BMO Capital Markets

Andy Busch is the Global FX Market Strategist for BMO Capital Markets’
Investment Banking Division in Chicago and is a senior fellow on economic
issues for the Illinois Policy Institute. Mr. Busch consults with the staffs
from the US Treasury, Congress, and the White House on economic and financial
market issues. He was an adviser on the economy and the financial markets to
US Republican Presidential nominee John McCain. He is a recognized expert on
the world financial markets and how these markets are impacted by political
events.

Andy recently spoke at the Pacific Economic Conference in Russia on the global
credit crisis. He met and consulted with the governor of Primorsky Territory
and the mayor of Vladivostok over the future direction of the global economy.
Andy has appeared for the last five years on CNBC’s The Closing Bell with Maria
Bartiromo, he is a CNBC contributor, and his blog is number one for CNBC.

Andy graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a BA in Economics from Ohio Wesleyan
University in 1983, and received his MBA from the University of Chicago in 1988.

Chapter Details
___________________________________________
Briefly noted, by Ron May

* Wally Cornett used to quip that an entrepreneur, in seeking funds, would go
to such extraordinary lengths as to find a Port Au Potty in Port Au Prince.
Well, tonight Wally, sadly, with news of the earthquake in Haiti, your words
come to mind.

* The Groupon party last Thursday night had great food, and the booze was paid
for by a sponsor, I hear. The party was held at Carnivale at 702 W. Fulton and
it was packed with no room to sit. www.carnivalechicago.com/

Very few of the people were recognizeable by Jeff Willinger who is obviously
well connected in the tech and social media space. Jeff told me that he
recognized only about ten people out of 400. So, it was not the ITA or TC
crowd.

The attendees were by and large Groupon users — translation, bargain hunters.

As I understand it, Groupon is already in twenty to thirty cities and the staff
is well in excess of 100.

Groupon is getting into Twitter and a product called fourSquare.com.
foursquare Is the New Twitter at SXSW
www.appscout.com/2009/03/foursquare_is_the_new_twitter.php

london-twitter.posterous.com/why-foursqure-rummble-bitly-twitpic-dabr-wil
l
Why Foursquare, Rummble, bit.ly, Twitpic & dabr Will #Fail

Twitter Inventor Invests in Foursquare
mashable.com/2009/09/28/twitter-foursquare/

Cafes, Twitter and Foursquare
By James Hoffmann | Published: November 24, 2009
www.jimseven.com/2009/11/24/cafes-twitter-and-foursquare/

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
foursquare.com/learn_more

Get foursquare on your phone!
First things first – let’s get foursquare on your phone. Your best bet is to
download either our iPhone app or Android app. If you have a Blackberry or
another phone with a web browser, you’re best off using mobile website (and
yes, a Blackberry app is in the works!)

If you have a phone that doesn’t have a web browser, you can use our SMS
shortcode to check-in by sending messages to 50500 (like this: @ Ace Bar !
enjoying happy hour). Sorry, but this works in the US only for now.

Check-in to places
People use foursquare to “check-in”, which is a way of telling us your
whereabouts. When you check-in someplace, we’ll tell your friends where they
can find you and recommend places to go & things to do nearby. People check-in
at all kind of places – cafes, bars, restaurants, parks, homes, offices.

You’ll find that as your friends use foursquare to check-in, you’ll start
learning more about the places they frequent. Not only is it a great way to
meet up with nearby friends, but you’ll also start to learn about their
favorite spots and the new places they discover.

Share your experiences with friends
Think of foursquare as an “urban mix tape.” We’ll help you make lists of your
favorite things to do and let you share them with friends. Think beyond your
standard review – we’re looking less for “The food here is top notch” and more
for “Go to Dumont Burger and try the most amazing Mac and Cheese ever.”
Foursquare will keep track of the things you’ve done, help you create To-Do
lists and even suggest new experiences to seek out.

As you check-in around the city, you’ll start finding tips that other users
have left behind. After checking-in at a restaurant, it’s not uncommon to
unlock a tip suggesting the best thing on the menu. Checking-in at a bar will
often offer advice on what your next stop should be. Every tip you create is
discoverable by other users just by checking-in.

Earn points and unlock badges!
Every foursquare checkin earns you points. Find a new place in your
neighborhood? +5 points. Making multiple stops in a night? +2 points. Dragging
friends along with you? +1.

And as you start checking-in to more interesting places with different people,
you’ll start unlocking badges. There are badges for discovering new places and
for traveling to far away places. Spending too much time singing karaoke or
been hitting the gym consistently? Yes, there are badges for those too

Become the mayor! Unlock some freebies!
We all have our local hangouts and foursquare keeps tabs on who’s the most
loyal of all the regulars. If you’ve been to a place more than anyone else,
you’ll become “the mayor”… until someone else comes along and steals your
title.

It may sound a little silly until you see the list of places that are offering
freebies to our mayors – free coffees, free ice-cream, free hotel stays – it
pays to be a foursquare loyalist and check-in whenever you go!

And so that’s about it – ready to sign up?
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

* Late Sunday night, I got a call from Jackie Quinn of the AP Radio network and
she was trying to track down Paul Lasiuk whose name she had found while
googling on the TMR site.

Paul Lasiuk, it turns out, was on the United Airlines Airbus A319 flight from
Chicago’s O’Hare airport which had to make an emergency landing because only
two of the three landing wheels on the Airbus A319 deployed as the plane was
making its final approach into Newark, New Jersey’s Newark Liberty
International Airport.

And Jackie Quinn found Paul on google appearing in TMR from his days at
Lifeserv which was way back in 2001.

My question is, does anyone know where Paul Lasiuk works today?

This is probably the umteenth time I have gotten a call like that and it only
underscores how powerful a tool Google is.

en.wikinews.org/wiki/United_Airlines_flight_makes_rough_emergency_landing
_at_Newark_Airport?dpl_id=147467

Wikinews will be holding a writing contest starting on January 25. Please sign
up if you’re interested in participating.
United Airlines flight makes rough emergency landing at Newark Airport
From Wikinews, the free news source you can write!
Jump to:navigation, search
Monday, January 11, 2010

Related news
Aviation on Wikinews

11 January 2010: United Airlines flight makes rough emergency landing at Newark
Airport
10 January 2010: Two charged in Heathrow bomb threat
10 January 2010: US warns of attacks on Sudan-Uganda flights
9 January 2010: ‘Not guilty’ plea from Abdulmutallab on Detroit jet bombing
charges
6 January 2010: Explosives pass security checks in Slovakia, arrive in Ireland
in failed test
Collaborate!
Newsroom
Style Guide – how to write
Content Guide – what to write

A United Airlines Airbus A319, similar to the one involved in the incident.
Image: Bill Abbott.United Airlines Flight 634 made a very rough emergency
landing yesterday morning when only two of the three landing wheels on the
Airbus A319 deployed as the plane was making its final approach into Newark,
New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport. After multiple attempts to
fix the problem failed, the pilot decided that an emergency landing was the
only remaining choice.

Only the plane’s nose gear and left landing gear had descended. The right
landing gear would not release. The airliner made a go-around as the crew
attempted to fix the problem. Passenger Jim Falk knew something was wrong
saying, “Normally a big plane like that doesn’t do a bypass, so we knew
something was wrong.”

However, the pilot decided that nothing could be done to bring the gear, an
emergency landing was declared. “We are going to have an unusual landing,” the
pilot calmly announced to the 53 passengers seated on the plane, according to
passenger Moritz Loew. Another passenger, Paul Lasiuk said he was more shocked
than scared, telling himself, “You have no choice. You’re going to go through
this.”

“Brace! Brace! Brace!”, the pilot announced over the plane’s public address
system, calling for passenger to enter the brace position as the plane made a
rough touchdown on the runway at Newark. The plane touched down on the nose
wheel and left rear wheel before lurching to the right causing sparks to fly as
the right engine skidded along the runway. Eventually, the plane came to stop
at 9:27 A.M. EDT.

Afterward, passengers and crew evacuated the plane by sliding down the
evacuation slides and moving quickly away from the plane due to fears it might
explode. They were then taken by bus to the airline’s lounge were they told
their stories to investigators and waited for their luggage. Three passengers
reported minor injuries but refused treatment.

The emergency landing caused the airport to shut down for 20 minutes, but
service quickly resumed on two of the airports three runways. The plane
remained on the runway throughout the afternoon as investigators determined the
cause of the landing gear failure.

This is in contrast to last week, when the airport was shutdown for six hours
after a young man named Haisong Jiang breached security by passing through an
exit to kiss his girlfriend goodbye.

According to passengers, the crew remained calm during the ordeal. Jim Falk
said, “They did a great job. There was no yelling, screaming, panicking or
anything.” Falk said he wanted to buy a bottle of Champagne to the currently
unnamed pilot. Falk added, “The pilot did a beautiful job. He didn’t put it in
the water like the other pilot did, but he should be commended.”

What’s a great landing? One that you walk away from.
-Moritz Loew, passenger on United Airlines Flight 634

Martin Trebino, a spokesperson for United Airlines said they would not release
the pilot’s name on Sunday, but did not indicate when his name would be made
available either.

Paul Lasiuk said, “I’ve had a lot of worse landings at Newark before. It was
unbelievably smooth.”

Moritz Loew joked with himself afterward saying, “What’s a great landing? One
that you walk away from.”

The flight, which left Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport early Sunday
morning around 6 A.M. reported no other problems during the flight up until the
incident. According to United Airlines spokesperson Robin Urbanski, it remains
unclear why the landing gear failed to deploy. Urbanski added that passengers’
tickets would be refunded and that they would receive vouchers and credit
towards any future flight.

* Well, this has been a red letter day for Ronald P. May. On this, the 53rd
year, eighth month and twenty ninth day of my life, I have now taken another
big step toward being dependent on technology to live.

As you know, I have been sick in some way since December 20th. I spent five
days in the hospital and was released on December 31st in the afternoon.

At the time of my discharge from NMH, 16th floor, we did not know if I had a
bacterial or viral infection and we still don’t. None of the blood cultures
showed any signs of growth.

That did not stop them from bombarding me with antibiotics, however.

We knew that I had fevers between 101 degrees and 103 degrees. We knew that I
had low blood pressure with typical readings being 75/40. We knew that I had a
bad hacking cough which was treated effectively with Robitussin and codine.

We know that these symptoms went away and we also know that the anti-biotics
may or may not have worked. I was given heavy doses of Zosyn and vancomycin.

The permacath in my groin was removed on Tuesday, December 29th and we still
don’t know if that tube contributed to the problem or not.

I got home and was wiped out. I had no energy and it took all my energy just to
stay awake for four or five hours.

I was constantly taking naps, and I also had no appetite. I was easily racking up about 14 hours a day sleeping.

I have also continued to have fevers, but low grade, and they have been mostly
between 99.5 degrees and 99.9 degrees. I sweated a lot and soaked four or five
T-shirts a day — or night — in sweat.

That brings us to today, January 12, 2010.

I could barely walk to the cab to get to dialysis. I have a huge problem
walking and am out of breath. When I got to the clinic, I asked for a wheel
chair.

I am back to coughing.

I’ve been having big trouble sleeping.

But now we have some real numbers to explain what is up.

My hemoglobin is 8.3 which is severely low.

That explains my fatigue, anemia, sleepiness, low energy, etc., etc.

But there is more. I am on Coumadin which is a blood thinner invented at
UW-Madison many years ago. My PT INR should be between 2.0 and 3.0. But it is a
whopping 7.5!

That means my blood is very thin and there could be internal bleeding.

And there is more. My phosphorus is low, at 1.5 when it should be 3.5 to 5.5.

That means I am not eating much.

Because of my breathing problems, they put me on oxygen during dialysis today.

I could not have imagined at 11am that by 5pm my life would be changed and the
oxygen tube is now a 24×7 reality.

The chief technician from the pulmonary company whose name is also Ron
delivered the equipment and gave my helper Carlos and me all the gory details.

The portable canisters are good for four hours each. For long meetings, I will
carry two of them.

There are tubes galore, and things have to be changed every two or six weeks,
etc. Distilled water and absolutely no smoking.

There go the cigars which I have not been smoking much of anyway. My last cigar
was a few months ago.

After all this, there is good news.

I already feel much better and I have only been on the machine since 4:30pm.

So, don’t be surprised when you see at meetings with a tube in my nose and a
canister on my arm.

One day can be a life changer.

I already find it easier to get up from chairs and it is easier for me to walk.

I had always thought that my walking problems were due to high fluid retention.
But it turns out that the big problem is saturation, I believe the technician
said. Saturation refers to oxygen and every time you use your muscles, you
require energy and that requires oxygen.

In other words, it is all about oxygen.

Ain’t life grand! When you wake up in the morning, you have no idea what life
has in store for you.

One last thought. Had it not been for my getting the oxygen equipment at home,
I would probably be in the hospital tonight rather than sitting comfortably at
home!
______________________________________
END OF REPORT