We've added the following to items posted previously at http://profnet.prnewswire.com/organik/orbital/thewire/lst_leads.jsp?iLRTopicID=1233
**1. JAMES STEPHENSON, author of "202 Ways to Supplement Your Retirement Income": "Due to an increased life span, better health and a desire to earn more money, many people are working in their retirement years. Most of them, however, want to set their own schedule or work more flexible hours. I see a boom in retirees starting their own businesses, sometimes in an industry completely different from that in which they spent their working years." Stephenson's new book gives tips to these retirees looking to supplement their retirement income. (3/21/05)
_____LEADS
**1. AUTOMOTIVE: IS SAFETY FOR SALE? ROBERT E. AMMONS, attorney at THE AMMONS LAW FIRM, L.L.P.: "Recent crash test results from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety showing small cars performed poorly in side-impact accidents demonstrate that safety may be a benefit only the wealthy can afford, as small-car safety flaws more often affect less-affluent people. If you've got less money to spend, you're probably going to end up with a smaller car, but you shouldn't have to compromise your safety. Years ago, auto makers made improvements in cars that did poorly in head-on crash tests. Now they need to do the same with side protection." (3/21/05)
**2. BUSINESS: IGNORANCE IS NOT AN OPTION FOR CEOs. DAVID VANDAGRIFF, vice president of marketing at CORDA TECHNOLOGIES: "Recent reports show that CEO turnover is on the rise and increasing at a faster rate than ever before. CEOs are being replaced for a variety of reasons, including financial scandal, poor performance and inappropriate office romances. This week, former WorldCom CEO Bernard J. Ebbers was found guilty for his role in the well-publicized fraud case and faces sentencing in June. Ebbers's defense claimed he knew nothing about the law breaking that went on at WorldCom. Obviously, the jury wasn't swayed by this argument, and whether it is actually true or not, ignorance is no longer an option for today's CEOs. The best way to assimilate all the data and information involved in making decisions that affect the company direction is with an executive dashboard. A CEO can have at their fingertips the existing and real-time information about every aspect of the company that allows them to make fast and hard decisions." (3/21/05)
**3. BUSINESS: WEBMD ACQUISITION VALIDATES IMPORTANCE OF CONSUMER EMPOWERMENT. ANN MOND JOHNSON, CEO of Chicago-based SUBIMO, a provider of technology that organizes healthcare, hospital, physician and pharmaceutical data: "The announcement that WebMD has acquired Healthshare Technology documents the value of empowering consumers with information that will help them to make better health care choices." (3/21/05)
**4. BUSINESS: RISK-TAKING, COMPETITION CAN LEAD TO CORPORATE SCANDAL. DAVID SKEEL, professor of law at the UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, is the author of "Icarus in the Boardroom: The Fundamental Flaws in Corporate America and Where They Came From," which explores historic flaws in U.S. corporate culture over the past 150 years. Skeel says risk-taking and competition, which have made businesses successful, have also led to scandal, criminal activity and failure: "Excessive risk-taking often borders on, and spills into, fraud. Competition is what makes our markets great. But it also puts pressure initially on successful CEOs and businesses. Often they can't maintain their success, and they take more and more risks. When a corporation fails, the magnitude of the failure can be enormous. It can affect thousands of lives. The complexity of a corporation can be used to disguise what a corporation is doing." (3/21/05)
**5. ECONOMY: CHINA'S CURRENCY POLICY LEADING TO HOUSING BUBBLE IN U.S. JAMES BERMAN, president of JBGLOBAL: "China must buy our bonds to peg its currency in order to possess enough dollar-denominated assets to serve as a backstop to the Yuan. This gun to their head shanghais them into buying treasury bonds without regard to our deficits or low yields —- the type of thing a normal investor would care about. The artificial buying of our bonds without regard to price causes our yields to be lower than they would be in a truly rational market, which in turn keeps mortgage rates artificially. These low rates fuel our housing bubble in the U.S." (3/21/05)
**6. INSURANCE: CHANGING COMPANY POLICY CAN REDUCE WORKERS' COMPENSATION COSTS. TOM CARPENTER, co-founder and chief operating officer of CARPENTER, CAMMACK & ASSOCIATES, INC: "Insurance costs can be a concern to many business owners. Businesses should know that they can adapt their own company policy to help reduce the cost of workers' compensation insurance." Carpenter suggests instituting a post-accident drug-testing policy as one way to reduce workers' compensation costs. Carpenter has more than 20 years of commercial insurance experience and is an expert in helping businesses reduce costs related to workers' compensation insurance. (3/21/05)
**7. INVESTING: HEDGE FUNDS CAN PLAY ROLE IN MONEY LAUNDERING. CAROL R. VAN CLEEF, attorney at BRYAN CAVE's Washington office: "Hedge funds can play a very interesting role in money laundering. Under proposed regulations put out by Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and the United Sates Treasury Department, hedge funds outside of the U.S. would be required to have a full- scale, anti-money-laundering compliance program required under the U.S. Patriot Act. Hedge funds also need to do suspicious activity monitoring, but, in order to do it effectively, they need to know who and where their customer is." (3/21/05)
**8. MARKETING: THE BRAND OF BASEBALL. MORRIS L. REID, managing director of WESTIN RINEHART, a Washington D.C.-based branding firm, and former Clinton administration official: "Baseball has been plagued by strife for years, and its brand value is rapidly deteriorating. Let's face it -- Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco all went from meek to mass over the past six years and hit the ball farther than Mickey Mantle. It was obvious that something was going on. The fan-player trust relationship is forever tainted, and this professional sport needs a lemon law. George Steinbrenner paid Jason Giambi $120 million, and sponsors kick in additional millions, all of which was based upon past performance. He lied, cheated and effectively stole their money. The MLB will strike out if they do not force Giambi and all the other violators to step up, come clean and make restitution. It's the only way, or baseball will never get another shot to swing for the fences." (3/21/05)
**9. PERSONAL FINANCE: BEYOND INTEREST RATES -- SNAGGING THE BEST MORTGAGE. RON CHICAFERRO, president of THORNBURG MORTGAGE HOME LOANS: "The biggest mistake consumers can make in today's housing market is to only pay attention to the interest rate on their home loans. With so many mortgage brokers and lenders charging origination fees and selling balloon loans, today's consumer needs to ask mortgage lenders more than 'What's the best rate?'" Chicaferro can share with your audiences the questions they should be asking before buying or refinancing a home. (3/21/05)
**10. PERSONAL FINANCE: STUDENT-ATHLETES SHOULD DRAW UP PLAN FOR FINANCIAL FUTURE. ALLEN PINKETT, life sales representative and team captain for THE HARTFORD, is a former All-American running back at Notre Dame who played for the NFL's Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints: "It's never too early for student-athletes to draw up a game plan for their financial future. They've already got the skills to win -" discipline, teamwork and a competitive spirit; now they just have to apply them to a different field of play." (3/21/05)
**11. TAX PLANNING: LAST-MINUTE TAX PLANNING FOR INDIVIDUALS. MARY WILSON, senior tax manager at ROTHSTEIN KASS-CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS: "It's not too late to leverage the tax cuts outlined in the Working Families Tax Relief Act of 2004. Taking advantages of tax breaks, such as the marriage penalty relief and the child tax credit, can reduce your tax liability. In addition, there are several ways to boost your tax savings even if you don't itemize. It is important to understand which tax breaks are available to you in order to better plan for your returns, especially for high- net-worth individuals." (3/21/05)
**12. TECHNOLOGY: COMPANIES DON'T PAY ENOUGH ATTENTION TO IT SECURITY. GARY MORSE, president of RAZORPOINT SECURITY TECHNOLOGIES: "For years, cyber criminals have been snooping around corporate networks and individuals' PCs, easily obtaining confidential information without the users' knowledge, and companies are to blame because they don't pay enough attention to IT security. On a daily basis, it's possible that your computer is being scanned 20 to 30 times a day by cyber criminals looking for data through phishing, and companies need to realize that security is an ongoing process, not just a product. Companies and individuals are too passive, even complacent, when it comes to safeguarding their networks. Recent break-ins have occurred through fax machines and wireless home networks, and are becoming more prevalent targets." (3/21/05)
**13. WORKPLACE: EMPLOYEE MORALE REWARDS MISTAKES IN THE OFFICE. MARCIE BROGAN, managing partner of BROGAN & PARTNERS CONVERGENCE MARKETING: "Making employees feel comfortable in the office should be a top priority. When one of our team members makes a mistake, telling how it happened, what effect it had, how it was corrected and how to prevent it from happening again buys them a $50 reward. It's a fun way for everyone to learn and benefit from the experience." (3/21/05)
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