Tuesday, February 9, 2010

“It’s All About Schools - New York Times” plus 3 more

“It’s All About Schools - New York Times” plus 3 more

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It’s All About Schools - New York Times

Posted: 09 Feb 2010 09:00 PM PST

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Sana, Yemen

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Thomas L. Friedman

I took part in a "qat chew" the other day at the home of a Yemeni official. Never done that before. Qat is the mildly hallucinogenic leaf drug that Yemeni men stuff in their cheek after work — and sometimes during. My hosts insisted that qat actually makes your senses sharper and that you could chew and chisel the top of a mosque minaret at the same time. I quit after 15 minutes, but the Yemeni officials, lawmakers and businessmen I was with chewed on for three hours — and they made a lot of sense along the way.

Most had been educated in America or had kids studying there, and they were all bemoaning how the decline of the Yemeni education system, the proliferation of exclusively religious schools here and the falloff in scholarships for Yemeni kids to study in America were producing a very different Yemeni generation than their own. They spoke fondly of U.S. schools that were based on merit, taught them to think freely and prepared them with the skills to thrive.

So here is my new rule of thumb: For every Predator missile we fire at an Al Qaeda target here, we should help Yemen build 50 new modern schools that teach science and math and critical thinking — to boys and girls.

If we stick to something close to that ratio of targeted killings to targeted kindergartens, we have a chance to prevent Yemen from becoming an Al Qaeda breeding ground. Because right now there are some 300,000 college-educated Yemenis out of work — partly because of poor training and partly because there are no jobs — 15,000 schoolchildren not attending any classes, 65 percent of teachers with only high school degrees and thousands of kids learning little more than religious doctrines.

And no wonder. Beginning in the 1970s, the trend in Yemen, Morocco, Egypt and the Persian Gulf "was to Islamicize education as a way to fight the left and pro-communists — with the blessing of the U.S.," explained Lahcen Haddad, a professor at the University of Rabat in Morocco and an expert on governance with Management Systems International, a U.S. development contractor. Then, in 1979, after the Saudi ruling family was shaken by an attack in Mecca from its own Wahabi fundamentalists, the Saudi regime, to fend off the anger of its Wahabis, "gave them free rein to Islamicize education and social life in Saudi Arabia and neighboring states."

"Missions — cultural and religious, semi-official and private — roamed Islamic countries to spread the word," said Haddad. "Cheap books followed, and students were brought to Saudi to learn from Wahabi preachers and teachers in the different religious universities that mushroomed in the '80s."

Small, economically deprived Yemen was an easy target. Uncritically accepting of the "truths" of Wahabism became the core curriculum in many Yemeni schools, Haddad added, and "it destroyed the opportunity to build the basic skills necessary to train the right labor force — skills like problem-solving, communication, critical thinking, debate, organization and teamwork."

America's last great ideological foe, Soviet Marxism, produced its share of violent radicals, but it also produced Andrei Sakharov and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn — because it believed in science, physics, math and the classics of literature. Islamism is not producing any Sakharovs.

May Yamani, the author and daughter of the former Saudi oil minister Ahmad Zaki Yamani, minced no words, writing in The Beirut Daily Star: "Saudi Arabia exported both its Wahabism and Al Qaeda to Yemen by funding thousands of madrassas, where fanaticism is taught."

Ahmed Sofan, a Yemeni parliamentarian, told me that back in the 1970s if you visited a village in his rural constituency, most of the women would be unveiled and working alongside the men. No more, he said, "because we now have this Wahabi sense of religious conservatism where women are supposed to be inside and be veiled."

Added Abdul Karim al-Iryani, a former prime minister: Growing up, "we studied Darwinism in my high school without challenge." Not anymore. "The East Asian miracle," he added, "wasn't possible without women. In the Arab world, if half our society is excluded, how will we ever catch up with those new tigers?"

The Yemeni journalist Mohammed al-Qadhi reported in The National newspaper that there may be 10,000 religious-based schools educating Yemeni youth today. He quoted a top Yemeni education official as saying, "We are now obliging these schools to teach moderation to protect our students against extremism."

In other words, we are now fighting for the Middle East of the 2020s and 2030s. Huge chunks of this generation are lost. When I went to see Yemen's president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, at his Sana palace, he was in a reflective mood: "I would wish that this arms race could end and instead we could have a race for development."

It is the only way Yemen will have a future. So, yes, fire those Predators where we must, but help build schools and fund scholarships to America wherever we can. And please, please, let's end our addiction to oil, which is what gives the Saudi religious ministry and charities the money to spread anti-modernist thinking across this region.

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Changes proposed in how psychiatrists diagnose - San Francisco Chronicle

Posted: 09 Feb 2010 09:07 PM PST

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The American Psychiatric Association is proposing major changes Wednesday to its diagnostic bible, the manual that doctors, insurers and scientists use in deciding what's officially a mental disorder and what symptoms to treat. In a new twist, it is seeking feedback via the Internet from both psychiatrists and the general public about whether the changes will be helpful before finalizing them.

The manual suggests some new diagnoses. Gambling so far is the lone identified behavioral addiction, but in the new category of learning disabilities are problems with both reading and math. Also new is binge eating, distinct from bulimia because the binge eaters don't purge.

Sure to generate debate, the draft also proposes diagnosing people as being at high risk of developing some serious mental disorders — such as dementia or schizophrenia — based on early symptoms, even though there's no way to know who will worsen into full-blown illness. It's a category the psychiatrist group's own leaders say must be used with caution, as scientists don't yet have treatments to lower that risk but also don't want to miss people on the cusp of needing care.

Another change: The draft sets scales to estimate both adults and teens most at risk of suicide, stressing that suicide occurs with numerous mental illnesses, not just depression.

But overall the manual's biggest changes eliminate diagnoses that it contends are essentially subtypes of broader illnesses — and urge doctors to concentrate more on the severity of their patients' symptoms. Thus the draft sets "autism spectrum disorders" as the diagnosis that encompasses a full range of autistic brain conditions — from mild social impairment to more severe autism's lack of eye contact, repetitive behavior and poor communication — instead of differentiating between the terms autism, Asperger's or "pervasive developmental disorder" as doctors do today.

The psychiatric group expects that overarching change could actually lower the numbers of people thought to suffer from mental disorders.

"Is someone really a patient, or just meets some criteria like trouble sleeping?" APA President Dr. Alan Schatzberg, a Stanford University psychiatry professor, told The Associated Press. "It's really important for us as a field to try not to overdiagnose."

Psychiatry has been accused of overdiagnosis in recent years as prescriptions for antidepressants, stimulants and other medications have soared. So the update of this manual called the DSM-5 — the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition — has been anxiously awaited. It's the first update since 1994, and brain research during that time period has soared. That work is key to give scientists new insight into mental disorders with underlying causes that often are a mystery and that cannot be diagnosed with, say, a blood test or X-ray.

"The field is still trying to organize valid diagnostic categories. It's honest to re-look at what the science says and doesn't say periodically," said Ken Duckworth, medical director for the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, which was gearing up to evaluate the draft.

The draft manual, posted at www.DSM5.org, is up for public debate through April, and it's expected to be lively. Among the autism community especially, terminology is considered key to describing a set of poorly understood conditions. People with Asperger's syndrome, for instance, tend to function poorly socially but be high-achieving academically and verbally, while verbal problems are often a feature of other forms of autism.

"It's really important to recognize that diagnostic labels very much can be a part of one's identity," said Geri Dawson of the advocacy group Autism Speaks, which plans to take no stand on the autism revisions. "People will have an emotional reaction to this."

Liane Holliday Willey, an author of books about Asperger's who also has the condition, said in an e-mail that school autism services often are geared to help lower-functioning children.

"I cannot fathom how anyone could even imagine they are one and the same," she wrote. "If I had put my daughter who has a high IQ and solid verbal skills in the autism program, her self-esteem, intelligence and academic progress would have shut down."

Terminology also reflects cultural sensitivities. Most patient-advocacy groups already have adopted the term "intellectual disability" in place of "mental retardation." Just this month, the White House chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, drew criticism from former GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin and others for using the word "retarded" to describe some activists whose tactics he questioned. He later apologized.

___

AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner in Chicago contributed to this report.

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DVD REVIEWS: PBS films 'Endgame' and 'Emma' both excellent - Reading Eagle

Posted: 09 Feb 2010 09:07 PM PST

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Since even TiVo owners can't watch everything worthwhile on Sunday-night television, the DVD release this week of "Endgame" and "Emma" - presentations on PBS' "Masterpiece Contemporary" and "Masterpiece Classic," respectively - is good news indeed.

"Endgame" (Monterey Video, $26.95, rated PG-13) is part of a growing body of movies (including "A Dry White Season," "Cry Freedom," "Mandela and de Klerk" and "Invictus") about the popular revolt against apartheid in South Africa and the efforts of freedom fighter-turned-president Nelson Mandela to unite his racially fragmented country. "Endgame" made its international debut at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival before airing on British TV in May 2009 and on PBS last October. It also had a limited theatrical run at the end of last year.

Director Pete Travis ("Vantage Point") and screenwriter Paula Milne skillfully turn what is essentially a movie about two sets of negotiations into a tense political thriller. "Endgame" begins in 1985, when black resistance to white minority rule is growing, as are international sanctions against the apartheid regime. The government of President P.W. Botha maintains its repressive policies, but, in an effort to divide the outlawed African National Congress, has its head of national security, Dr. Neil Barnard (Mark Strong), begin secret discussions with Mandela (Clarke Peters of HBO's "The Wire"), the still-imprisoned ANC leader.

At the same time, some forward-thinking international businessmen come to the conclusion that if apartheid's fall is inevitable, they must do something to protect their future business prospects in a country with new leaders and a new government. Michael Young (Jonny Lee Miller), the public-relations adviser for Consolidated Gold Fields, a British-owned mining company that made its fortune in South Africa by cooperating with the white regime and relying on exploited black labor, decides that trust must be developed between the opposing sides before a meaningful and peaceful transition to democracy can take place.

Young manages to bring representatives of the two sides together for a series of discussions in an English manor house. Representing the ANC is its young information officer (and the future successor of Mandela as president of South Africa) Thabo Mbeki (Chiwetel Ejiofor). The Afrikaaner delegation is headed by a respected university professor, Will Esterhuyse (William Hurt), a man known for both his opposition to apartheid and his commitment to protecting his own people and culture. Hurt and Ejiofor both give excellent performances as two protagonists attempting to understand each other's motives and desires in this high-stakes drama.

"Emma"

"Emma," the latest TV miniseries or movie adaptation of a Jane Austen novel, takes place half a world away and 170 years before "Endgame." The four-part historical drama, which offers a keen view of the role of women in the socially stratified world of English country society of the early 19th century, is available this week in a two-disc DVD boxed set (BBC Worldwide, $34.98, not rated).

But "Emma" does share more with "Endgame" than its relationship to PBS, which aired the final episode this past Sunday evening. Actor Jonny Lee Miller, who adeptly plays the crucial, facilitating role of Michael Young in the apartheid drama, appears in "Emma" in the even more important role of Mr. Knightley. Miller's earnest and steadfast performance works in perfect balance with Romola Garai's terrific turn in the title role. Garai captures the intelligence, vivaciousness and sweetness of Emma Woodhouse, as well as her inveterate gossiping and inept matchmaking.

(DVD featurettes on locations, costumes and music offer illustrative background.)

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Q&A: Kelley Earnhardt opens up on JR Motorsports' growth - USA Today

Posted: 09 Feb 2010 08:32 PM PST

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Nine years later, under the guidance of Kelley Earnhardt, all of Earnhardt Jr.'s business affairs have moved under the umbrella of JR Motorsports. The organization, which also fields Nationwide cars, is housed in a gleaming 40,000-square-foot shop that opened in Mooresville, N.C., two years ago. JRM has ballooned to a staff of 85, and its ambitions have multiplied, too.

"I feel like we're a company that's a farm team, but we have all these Derek Jeters working for us," Earnhardt Jr. says. "I've got Kelley, who is incredible as a business person. (Vice president of licensing) Joe Mattes, that guy belongs at the top of some … 100-story skyscraper somewhere. Tony (Eury) Sr. and Tony (Eury) Jr. are Cup-level crew chiefs running my Nationwide teams. We're real fortunate in that regard."

The next step would be to elevate the team, which won four races with Brad Keselowski, to Sprint Cup because as Earnhardt says "it's like a drug. Once you get a taste of success, you want more of it. You just got to keep doubling the doses. Eventually we have to take the program to Cup to get that enjoyment and exhilaration. "

Bolstered by an engine supply and technical alliance with powerhouse Hendrick Motorsports, JRM eventually could become a mirror image of what DEI, which many expected would have been passed on to Earnhardt's children had the seven-time champion not been killed on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500.

"Definitely that intention is there," Kelly Earnhardt says. "Not to be DEI, but for Dale, JR Motorsports is a driving force to be successful — very much in the way that we were moving for Dale Earnhardt Inc. The vision that we know my dad had, and what he put into it to be successful is very much carried along the JR Motorsports way. Very much so. It's where we learned it from."

Still, the going isn't always easy for the Earnhardt siblings, who have had to deal with being teased since elementary school because of their surname.

"I don't know why this sticks out in my brain, but there was an accident where Bobby (Allison)'s tire blew, and he spun and hit the wall," Earnhardt Jr. says. "My dad was running behind Bobby five car-lengths. Some kid at school the next day was trying to tell me that my dad almost killed somebody. That was normal. I don't look back and think, 'All that stuff was abnormal,' or 'Woe is me for being a damn Earnhardt.' That was normal, and how things work. You dealt with it, and I never complained about it. I never made it an excuse."

Says Kelley Earnhardt: "When our dad was popular in the late '80s and the '90s, we went to school being called names. We've dealt with this type of stuff all our life. We're prepared."

Earnhardt, 37, abandoned a promising racing career after graduating from the University of North Carolina Charlotte in 1995 with a degree in business administration and a concentration in production and inventory management. In charge of day-to-day operations at JRM, Earnhardt recently moved from general manager to a co-ownership role with her brother and Tony Eury Jr.

Following a morning of nonstop business meetings in late January at Hendrick Motorsports, she sat down for an interview with USA TODAY in the business office of Jeff Gordon:

Q: What's the general state of JR Motorsports?

A: I feel good about our team and ability to be competitive on the track and pick up where we've been in competition. From a business perspective, 2010 will be a year to build on '11 for sponsors. We've exhausted our efforts on sponsorship for 2010. We're going into the year with the prognosis that we have 13 to 14 races sponsored for Kelly (Bires), and that's all we're going to get. If we luck out and get more down the line, that's fantastic because we need it to compete. At some point, we made the decision we're going to stop focusing on '10 and get our cars out there and really focus on '11. With the economy somewhat taking a turn for the better, not that it's where it needs to be, companies can start focusing on having a little more wherewithal to put dollars in places. They'll be looking at it in a different way, which is good for us.

Q: Are you where you thought you'd be after four full seasons?

A: We're where I thought we'd be competitively. I don't think anybody wants to be where we are in sponsorship when you've got anywhere from two to five to seven to 10 brands on a car. It's definitely not where we want to be. It's not consistent, and it doesn't help with your communication to the fan. They're looking and wondering, "What does the 88 car look like this week?' It's definitely not the message that will help you with consistent branding. But with the economy the way it is, it is what it is. I'm hoping that we can get back on a more consistent path with a few key partners. But the economy has to help us with that, and we need to look at our costs on the team side and have NASCAR's help to make things better. If it took $5-6 million to run a competitive Nationwide team, that'd be fantastic. That's where we need to be when you consider our purses and all that stuff. That model makes sense. We're above that model.

Q: What about on the competitive side?

A:  We're definitely there competition-wise. Absolutely. We're very satisfied with that. When Dale came over to drive for Hendrick Motorsports, and we were able to utilize some of the resources here from their engines, their chassis and engineering support, it really helped us get there quicker on the competitive side. But it's still tough to go out and compete.

It all worked out. I can't say we had a five-year plan in the sense of we're going to run one car and then merge with Hendrick. We knew we'd be a single-car team and throw everything at it we could. Dale's reasons for doing it that way was driver development. After we went through a couple of drivers and a couple of million dollars in losses in trying to run, that strategy changed. We said we're going to have somebody in the car who can take it home every week and perform for the sponsor. Within the last year, we've really looked at what is the three- or five-year plan? Is it the right decision to stay in the Nationwide Series? We've looked at the Sprint Cup Series and what that could mean for us. What do we have to invest to become a Cup team owner, and what's the payout in Cup vs. Nationwide? We started looking at that driven by the new car (in Nationwide), and whether financially was it worth it to build new Cup cars or Nationwide cars because there's so much disparity in the winnings. Most people sponsorship-wise say there's much more value to be in the Cup series (with) the TV package, the amount of people who attend the races. That's why GoDaddy decided to go there, that's where the eyeballs are. NASCAR and Nationwide have been talking about ways to help (the series), and Nationwide is very passionate about making it a series that will stand out. It just takes time to get there. It's not an overnight thing. The costs have to come more in balance so it levels out, and we can do it like we did eight years ago.

Q: Did the team lose money in its first couple of years?

A:  Oh, absolutely.

Q: Has it balanced out?

A:  We haven't recouped our money yet. But it is nicer going year to year and not having to pull millions out of your pocket to run that series. Even for Cup teams, they're constantly taking money and putting it back in to stay competitive or keep up with changes like the spoiler. We didn't have that ability because we were losing money. It's not fun.

Q: So now you can run it in the black?

A: Absolutely, we're definitely recovering from the first couple of years. And we wrote that off in our mind. We're not in it to say, 'We've still got a lot of money to make up from way back here.'

Q: So what is the plan for moving to Sprint Cup?

A: We're still evaluating it. Our initial thought process was three to five years from this past year to go in that direction. I think depending on how Danica (Patrick) progresses and what her desires are, we'd want to look at whatever situation to keep her at JR Motorsports. If she does well enough to move to the Cup series, we'd want the opportunity, just like with Brad. We looked at that scenario with Brad, and we just didn't have enough time. Being a first-year Cup team isn't easy, and you have to have the confidence in the driver to pull that off, too. That's something that Brad or Danica or someone in that position has to have confidence in us to pull that off. Obviously, being aligned with Hendrick, just like Stewart-Haas and getting a good driver in Tony (Stewart) and good infrastructure in place, that helps. It could be escalated with those factors in mind. We signed Kelly for two years in Nationwide so we could give ourselves time to think about Cup. We haven't drawn a conclusion on what's the right thing to do. There's been a lot of talk in the Nationwide Series about how to make it stand out, so some of that is coming to fruition. I think Nationwide has done a really good job of marketing the series. You want to see what some of that translates to before you want make a decision.

Q: In what ways has the team had to adapt to the sponsorship challenges created by the economy?

A: Luckily we have a staff that is experienced and seasoned. I think that really helps because they're not turned upside down in tough times. They can stay focused and think through things creatively. Just having the wherewithal that making minor changes, whatever it might be, like spending less on our Christmas party. That's the biggest thing, is having that flexible staff that's can adapt to changing times. We haven't laid off people. There's been things, like at every company, where our bonus program was different. Our raises were different. Even to that extent, we don't try to send anyone backward. When it came time to renew our health insurance, it was a 12% increase for our company. I don't want to pass that onto people. That's very negative in itself. That's going to change the way my people want to work and give the company in terms of dedication and effort. I think these days people are glad they've got a job and seeing a lot of friends unemployed and their neighbors' houses get foreclosed on. If you've got a job where you're making ends meet, people are happy about that these days, where before it wasn't enough and still might not be enough.

Q: Is there a family atmosphere at JRM that provides Dale with a comfort zone similar to what he had at DEI?

A:  I think the culture is the same at Hendrick that we all do it together. We all win together, we all lose together. We don't pick certain people that get this or that. It's all for one and one for all. People just love to come to work there. We treat everyone like family, and I think that's very important. And I know that's what Hendrick Motorsports does. But Dale Jr. can't get to know 550 people here. At DEI, he grew up in that. The people who were on his Nationwide team (in 1998-99), half of them were on my dad's Nationwide team when he was running. As new people were brought in, he was able to build a rapport with them off the bat. When he was there, that was all comfort. Coming over (to Hendrick), people have been employed 15, 20, 25 years here, and he's the outsider. And to make relationships with those people is harder for him. It takes time.

Q: On top of that, he's also shy and introverted, right?

A:  He's very shy. And he's very sincere. But he's extremely shy. He'll open up once he can get familiar and learn something about you that he can connect with, but in his personality, to do that with tens of thousands of fans or hundreds of employees is difficult. It's not difficult for me. My personality is completely different. I can stand in front of 2,000 people and accept that they want me to be there and talk to them. It's just the way I am. He's shy at family functions. It's all about relationships with him and building that relationship.

Q: Not to psychoanalyze, but is he his mother's son and you're more daddy's girl as far as personality?

A:  We definitely have those traits. Definitely.

Q: Why is it hard being an Earnhardt?

A:  There's a perception of what you're supposed to be because of what my dad was. I think it's hard being anyone famous because you're asked to participate in a lot of different things because of your influence and how your influence can impact whatever they're asking you to do. If it's donating to a charity or being on a board of something in the community … if it's a person wanting to open a business and because you're successful at your business, they want to call you and talk to you about it. I could give you situation after situation in which you're tugged on. And there's not enough time or mental capacity to do it for everybody. You've got a mayor calling because they want to be involved in X, Y, Z. You've got a person writing a book because they want some of your pictures. It's just all over the place. I think it's hard to be famous, and it's hard to be an Earnhardt because our dad was very successful. You're compared to that, and for Dale Jr., you can't get a break that you're not like your daddy. Who said that it had to be that way? Why is the same scrutiny that's put on Dale Jr. not put on the other 42 people? They've got daddies. Some of them have daddies that race. They weren't as famous as our daddy. They didn't win seven championships. And that's what's difficult about it. I don't have to live up to my daddy. I'm not on the track trying to do that. That's Dale Jr. and what he is forced to live up to with people, whether it's media, fans, the naysayers, whatever. For me, it's, "Hey, we want you on this board because you're in the NASCAR community, and your name will lend a lot to get peoples' eyes on us." Or, "I read an article about you and what you said from a business perspective and the way you run your business, and I'd like to talk to you about how you start a business." You just get asked to do that stuff all the time. I do have a day job that requires a lot of me, and I have two children that require a lot of me. And hey, I do want to do things that are fun now and then. Fitting the life category in there is difficult at times.

Q: How do you juggle that?

A: You have to learn to say no. You have to learn to prioritize. I will never be able to give back time to my kids. They're never going to be 4 again, they're never going to be 9 again. So it's juggling that with my job of what it requires me. You can't let it run over you. What I'm comfortable with allows me to prioritize and do what's important to me, which is mainly my kids. I don't want to miss out on their life. I had that philosophy a lot because I think my dad missed out on a lot with me and Dale.

Q: Why did you and Dale both go into this venture?

A:  It's what we grew up in, and Dale being a race car driver; obviously, that's what he knows. The only other passion he has is online racing and computers. That don't pay very well. He told us once, 'I don't care if I'm in a 10 X 10 wooden building. I need a computer and a T1 Internet line that can run my computer to allow me to do this racing.' Period, the end! A little refrigerator, and I'm good. For me, we grew up racing. We went to the races, we lived it. We walked around the house and looked at our dad's trophies. Everything revolved around racing and didn't revolve around anything else. I'm passionate about NASCAR, about the influence that we can make in it. It's our family history. Where more powerful can you be following up the legacy of our dad? I could go run a Fortune 500 company and be successful, but if I don't really have that passion about it, what fun is it? That's why we're doing what we do. If I couldn't work at JR Motorsports, I'd want to work at another race team. It's what I know and believe I can make an influence on.

Q: Not to cast aspersions on your team's efforts to find funding because it could be fully attributable to the economic downturn, but is it frustrating to have the sport's most popular driver yet not secure full-time sponsorship?

A:  The one thing I want to say is that the way we do business for JR Motorsports is to be the most competitive we can be. I believe we're on the higher side of sponsorship dollars than a lot of teams. We haven't discounted ourselves just to put a sponsor on the car. I don't think that's the approach you take just because you're under these conditions. Yeah, it is difficult being Dale Jr.'s team and not securing sponsorship. What I've heard in the industry, and we talk to a lot of teams doing the same thing, is at least we're fielding phone calls. A lot of people aren't fielding phone calls. And there's interest and conversation. Another reason is because we would not be in this situation if we were able to keep Brad. We had a solid, predictable situation with him. All our sponsors really embraced him. GoDaddy really liked him. He was their kind of guy on the technology side. He could be fun and have fun with the GoDaddy girls at the same time. They were really starting to embrace him, but because he was interested in pursuing the Cup path, and we couldn't provide that to him, that made a change for us. It's hard to sell Kelly (Bires)Bires I think he's talented, but people don't know about Kelly Bires. We'll make Kelly Bires hopefully into another Brad. But you can't keep cycling that every two years and expect it to be OK and consistent. We can after we do it a couple times, but we'd just done it with Brad. This is our fourth full year. We had Brad under our belt for two good years. If you're talking 10 years down the road, and that situation happened, and we'd showcased each and every time that this is what you get, then we'd have people looking our way and say, 'Yeah, that's a great place to sign up because you'll get the same thing every time.' It's all relative to the economic conditions, and if you're willing to discount what you're doing. I probably could sign a sponsor for half of what I need to go racing. But what good has that done me because that's what they're going to pay me the next three or four or five years?

Q: So you're not only selling a team but protecting a brand with Dale Jr.?

A: That's the hardest part. I have Cup sponsors that I have to answer to, and it's no different than if a race fan was saying they've got something in their house to sell and have in their mind that it's worth $100. And somebody offers you $40. Well, what if you know you can get $100 in six months if you hold onto it. If I was in a situation where my doors are closing tomorrow, I'll take whatever someone will give me. But if you don't have to sell your house today, and you can hold on for however many years until the values climb back up, you want to maintain that value. That's the mentality we have for what we're doing because we are selling Dale Jr. as a Cup driver. We have sponsors on that side that pay for that value they get in the Cup series, and we certainly don't want to discount that on the Nationwide side, so we have to be careful with that.
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