Sol Price, a retail magnate who three decades ago altered both the American landscape and the American way of shopping by founding Price Club, the first nationwide members-only discount warehouse, died on Monday at his home in La Jolla, Calif. He was 93.
With Robert, Mr. Price started the first Price Club in 1976 in a cavernous former airplane parts factory in an unfashionable part of San Diego. The business, which offered consumer goods as varied as tires, books and household appliances at extremely low prices, proved to be the leading edge in the multibillion-dollar influx of discount big-box stores, among them Costco, BJ’s Wholesale Club and Sam’s Club.
I am a couple of days late on this story, as I was busy swooping fly girls in the Caribe, getting mad shoulder rubs, while puffing on Marlboro Gold’s.
I was deeply saddened by the news of Mr. Price’s passing, as I have some ties to the family. My heart goes out to them.
A True G, top tier biz cat, Democratic powerhouse and always gave back. And did it with Style. People’s Champ if the ever was one.
The main lesson from him: Keep overhead to an absolute minimum.
You know your G when Sam Walton bites your steez:
One of the chief beneficiaries of Mr. Price’s legacy, Sam Walton, acknowledged the debt in his 1992 memoir, “Made in America” (Doubleday, 1992; with John Huey). Mr. Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club, wrote, “I guess I’ve stolen — I actually prefer the word ‘borrowed’ — as many ideas from Sol Price as from anybody else in the business.”
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
“It’s funny how the colors of the real world only seem really real when you viddy them on the screen.” – Alex
First off, what do we even call this decade? The zeros? The Aughts? The New Millennium? Secondly, this decade had a terrible start. Most people forget that we had two Wall Street Crashes during this decade. The NASDAQ hit an all-time high of 5049 on March 10, 2000. Peep it today.
Then we got wacked by 9/11.
This was followed by a retarded war in Afghanistan, a farce in Iraq, Enron, a stupid hick in The White House, WorldCom, Anthrax, and DC snipers, the Terminator getting elected, Hurricane Katrina, Asian Tsunami of 2004, median household income dropping, obesity skyrocketing, police state, more terrorist attacks, school shootings, Detroit, and another financial crash.
Weesh.
These are all pretty bad, but here are the Top 10 Reasons why this was the worst Decade ever:
Hip-Hop
Hip-Hop had its worst decade yet. The cats putting out the best music this decade were the same cats from the 90’s. Jay, Nas, Wu, Mobb Deep, AZ, Eminem, etc. Is there any doubt that Biggie and Tupac would have been the biggest stars out there today if they didn’t pass?
Boxing
Boxing was afflicted (and I don’t mean those gay Affliction Shirts either) with the same disease as Hip-Hop: a rehashing of 90’s stars. De La, Trinidad, Vargas, Sugar Shane, Bernard, Arturo Gatti, Roy Jones etc. Where are the 80’s babies? The only two fighters that made huge trax in the New Millennium that didn’t in the 90’s were Manny Pacquiao and Money Mayweather (both 70’s babies).
We can all look forward to them fighting in 2010.
Hurricane Katrina
I could think of many better cities for a “natural disaster” to ruin than New Orleans. LA perhaps? Orange County, maybe?
We really don’t have that many great cities in America. Why did Katrina have to wreck one with great Gentleman’s Club’s, smoking in bars, 24 drinking and Crab Maison, Shrimp Maison, Shrimp Remoulade?
9/11
9/11 sucked for many reasons. But one of the main reasons it sucked was it turned plane travel into a major pain like Damon Wayans. And it was low down dirty even, like his brother Keenan, Scheming.
This really affects the International Playboy and anyone who likes to swoop mad fly girls all across the bubble.
George Bush
I still can’t believe we elected this hick twice.
Then I look at a map of our country and I understand.
Bruce Jenner
No one has captured the essence of this decade better than Bruce Jenner.
When I was born, there wasn’t a baby G in the land that didn’t think Bruce Jenner was cool. He was like a pseudo super hero. Sure, I liked Roberto Duran, Marvelous Marvin Hagler and Jim McMahon way more, but Jenner was smooth. Just recently, on a hungover day, I caught the cat on TV. I was shocked.
He is now a plastic surgery, tranny looking, beta male. Went from first to worst. Kind of like America.
No smoking
The “no smoking” movement really caught speed during this decade. Thousands of years of tradition of smoking, drinking and swooping fly girls flushed down the toilet.
And the craziest thing is the only one who seems to care is your humble author.
Reality TV
I don’t really care about television, but you have to see these annoying people when you roll out at night. Just like school on a holiday. Whatever happened to shows like All in The Family? And people with style and taste?
Men’s Style
Where do I even start on this one? Trucker hats, shiny shirts, multicolored striped shirts, designer jeans, rhinestones, Affliction, Ed Hardy, Christian Audiger, tight jeans, glitter?
Technology
The incredible efficiency of Web-based communication and our Google-fueled appetite to know everything about everything (or everyone) right now are combining to make Tiger Woods the canary in the privacy coal mine. Expect personal privacy — or rather its continued erosion — to be a hot media topic of 2010.
If I see another person “twittering” on their IPhone at a bar or trying to film, I am going to slap it out of their hand. And shove a rocks glass in their mouth. Word life.
All in all, what we did this decade is change Main Street for Wall Street, Mom and Pop for Wallmart, and small farms for Factory Farms.
To the ruin of us all.
Keep the toaster in the shoulder holster; things are going to get interesting.
America is in a bad need of a rebirth, a renewal, and a rediscovery.
(And by “bad need”, I mean like a person who has been hit over the head with a Louisville Slugger is in bad need of a band-aid, some ice and a nice lie down.)
An American Renaissance (if you will) will be the only thing that will save us.
(Or you can just split. I am posting this poolside from the Caribbean).
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
I went to the Playboy Mansion back in 2001. Legit.
Alas, all good things must come to an end.
I don’t know if I have spent too much time in Southern California and Las Vegas or what, but the “completely fake body, vapid, idiotic, pseudo-p0rn star” girl is holding less and less appeal for me, beyond a night.
Especially when at a civilian gig. Gentleman’s clubs still hold their appeal.
Better off picking up a girl out of the Venetian Ocular Bar or the Rhino.
Same result, less headache.
But the amazing thing is that Hef’s gig looked to have B and C grade “completely fake body, vapid, idiotic, pseudo-p0rn star” girls.
Let’s give the cat credit where credit is due. He has had an amazing career. A living Legend.
It’s not my style to disrespect our elders in The Game. And it certainly isn’t my style to take shots at an aging icon.
Even though I didn’t consciously bite his stilo, I do find myself in a smoking jacket while rolling around my own crib. So I do have to give him mad props.
For the record, I do have a “technical” win over Hefner. I know a guy who defeated him. And I went like 22-0 (22 KO’s) VS that guy.
And that is all I am going to say about that. I don’t want to get “blackballed”.
(Hef, if you want some help re-jump starting the brand, put word on the Street. I will get back to you.)
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
Morrissey – Last of the Famous International Playboys
Women might claim they want caring, thoughtful types but scientists have discovered what they really want – self-obsessed, lying psychopaths.
A study has found that men with the “dark triad” of traits – narcissism, thrill-seeking and deceitfulness – are likely to have a larger number of sexual affairs.
Peter Jonason, of New Mexico University in Las Cruces, believes that these traits may have an innate, genetic component that explains why some men seem unable to stop themselves behaving badly.
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
I try not to give these guys much thought, but being an active participant in Nightworld, I have these guys constantly messing up my visuals while I am swooping fly girls.
I just cannot comprehend how the American male has slid so far. Think about it. Guys actually wear glitter on their shirts (Douchebags). And Guys actually wear super tight jeans (Hipsters).
If you are keeping score, it is certainly a sign that The Apocalypse is coming.
Anyways, I finally figured out (kind of) what it is all about.
Hipsters and Douchebags are a Modern Day Mods and Rockers. (Keep in mind, the Mods and Rockers were way doper than the Hipsters and Douchebags)
Back in the day, “The Rockers considered Mods to be weedy, effeminate snobs, and Mods saw Rockers as out of touch, oafish and grubby.” Source
The great part about the Mods VS Rockers was that the constantly brawled each other. Hipsters and Douchebags don’t really seem to cross paths.
Somehow we need to get Hipsters and Douchebags going head to head (so to speak) and eliminate each other.
Come to think of it, Ill get to work on that.
(Once it breaks out, the smart money is on The Douchebags.)
In The Beatles’ 1964 film A Hard Day’s Night, a reporter asks Ringo Starr, “Are you a mod or a rocker?”, to which he replies, “No, I’m a mocker.”
The Rest is Up to You…
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
Since I have no idea what Hipsters and Douchebags listen to:
