Page 4 July 6, 2017 TORRANCE TRIBUNE Politically Speaking One Man’s Opinion Another Man’s Opinion Time to Trumpet Wins of the Trump Administration: A Positive Column! By Duane Plank Starting to write as I watch a riveting TV show on the Clinton News Network regarding President Richard Millhouse Nixon. Tapes heretofore unreleased, regarding his tenure as POTUS, and his botching of the Watergate debacle which led to his resignation. Labeled “Our Nixon.” Like Nixon or hate him, or don’t even know who the heck he was because you are a millennial who just racked up a ton of college debt and moved back into the basement and don’t really care, the program is worth watching because no CNN shills interject their biased opinions. Looking forward to the CNN documentary on the Bill Clinton years. They could call it “Shades of Blue.” Which is the color of the infamous Monica Lewinsky dress, which came to prominence when she was…interning at the White House. Watch “Our Nixon,” if possible. Though uneasy to stomach Nixon’s obstructions, at least the documentary was straight and honest, with no talking heads opining, and no Mika or Joe to comment. Unfiltered Nixon. BTW, I wish Mr. Trump would shut down his Twittering. I think it is, at best, embarrassing to the POTUS. However, I think I may resurrect my Twitter account. As soon as I can figure out what my handle is, I shall inform you. I have been penning this column for about a month. Sent the first three columns up to the Kid, Phillip, for his thoughts. He was not impressed, opining that I was way too negative and said I should write about the positive things that Trump has accomplished. I replied, facetiously, that if I could ferret out something positive that the Trump administration had accomplished, I would be glad to triumph it. So here we go. Because Trump has accomplished a boatload of positives since his inauguration, even with the resistance out there. Mainly he has over-ridden a bunch of the executive actions that Mr. Obama signed because they wouldn’t get passed by the duly elected officials. Loosening the onerous strains that have lassoed American business entities for the past eight years. America first, right? Nixon said that too, by the way. Trump helped get Gorsuch seated on the Supreme Court, his travel ban is now (mostly) in place, and have you checked the numbers in your 401K? Kate’s Law is moving forward towards implementation. Business is booming. And he has streamlined the red tape at the Veteran’s Administration, an overwrought bureaucracy that has shamefully continued to hose our returning war veteran heroes. He will also be meeting with Rasputin Putin this weekend. And the wall has been built! Okay, maybe not that one. Getting to work on my application to gain employment with the mismanaged LA DWP. Because recently the powers that be, led by ambitious LA Mayor Eric Garcetti, just granted an outrageous pay bump to DWP workers. Some of these folks, tasked with keeping the water running in our faucets, collect more than 100K a year. And receive incredible health and retirement plans. Gads, man, I need to hook in to this gravy train. Now wasn’t that an uplifting column? • Celebrate Independence Day by Honoring That Fighting Spirit By Cristian Vasquez That time of year to host cookouts and enjoy fireworks in celebration of our nation’s independence has once again arrived. Fourth of July Weekend has come and what better time to enjoy America’s pastime with the midsummer classic around the corner. As we enjoy our nation’s birth and independence, we should also remember the reason such a celebration is even possible: our unwavering spirit to seek and fight for justice. At the risk of sounding like a cliché, it is a divisive time in our country. While true that the nation is in the midst of a left versus right battle, one can make the argument that there hasn’t been a time in our country when political differences have not caused tension between liberals and conservatives (Civil War, Civil Rights Movement). While tensions and conflicts aren’t the ideal circumstances for any nation, these difficult times will make us grow and in the end we can come out a better society. So when we see our fellow Americans protesting, rather than discrediting their message and villainizing the messenger, we should listen. I’m not asking that we just agree. Furthermore, I’m not suggesting that we don’t respond to what is being said, but never should we tell people to go away, be quiet and not protest. For one, we should not just listen to the message— it’s also crucial to understand the reasons behind the grievance. I’m not African-American, so who am I to discredit their grievances? I am not a woman, so how can I argue that their concerns are unfounded? I am not a Trump supporter in deep-blue California, so how can I dismiss their feeling of disenfranchisement in a state that leans completely to the left? Every demographic deals with issues that unless you are part of that group, you won’t understand. Simultaneously, some issues are universal and we shouldn’t dismiss them simply because we don’t identify with the messenger (women and equal pay). Second, we all have a right to assemble, protest and voice our opinions, but that right comes with the responsibility of dealing with the backlash--hence why protestors should never be silenced. In 2000 I lived in Tulsa, Oklahoma and during my time there members of the local KKK decided to host a rally at city hall. The sparsely attended event drew plenty of local media coverage. My memory could have faded a bit, but I don’t recall a counter protest trying to silence these morally questionable individuals. Yet, what I do recall is that the next day a much larger crowd of loving and caring Americans, led by a local church, showed up to city hall to sweep away the hate and spread love. So in honor of our nation’s birth and that spirit of fighting for justice, next time a group of people voices its grievances, listen and try to understand. If even after that, their message rings untrue and wrong, then you have your own gathering and spread some truth. It’s the American way… • Rite Aid from front page ”I would like to thank our entire Rite Aid team for their extraordinary efforts during this process and their tremendous focus on taking great care of our customers and patients,” said Rite Aid Chairman and CEO John Standley. Rite Aid bought the Thrifty Drugstore chain in 1996 and rebranded all of its stores in Southern California. Much of the delight of ice cream lovers, Rite Aid preserved the ice cream counters in the retail drugstores it bought from the Thrifty PayLess Corporation. When Walgreens and Rite Aid announced two years ago the chains would merge, Thrifty Ice Cream’s future again was in doubt. The iconic ice cream brand, founded in Southern California, is remembered by longtime South Bay locals for serving single scoops for a nickel and triple-scoop cones for 15 cents. Today, cone prices start at $.1.99 for a single scoop and come in popular flavors called Chocolate Malted Krunch, Butter Pecan, Medieval Madness, and Circus Animal Cookies, made with real Mother’s Cookies. The 2,186 stores included in the agreement are primarily located in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States. For now, it appears the South Bay Rite Aid stores in El Segundo, Inglewood, Torrance, Redondo Beach and Rolling Hills Estates will get a reprieve. The company said it will use the proceeds from the Walgreens deal to strengthen its finances and to pay down existing debt. Because Walgreen backed out of the original merger deal, it agreed to pay Rite Aid a $325 million termination fee, the company said. “While we believe that pursuing the merger with [Walgreens] was the right thing to do for our investors and customers, this new agreement provides a clear path forward and positions Rite Aid as a strong, independent, multi-regional drugstore chain and pharmacy benefits manager with a compelling footprint in key markets,” Standley added. Rite Aid said it expects the scaled-back merger to be approved by federal regulators, and that the deal should close by year’s end. Financial analysts said in the days leading up to the Walgreens-Rite Aid announcement that online retail giant Amazon is interested in entering the retail pharmacy business, and that Rite Aid’s remaining 2,100 stores could be an acquisition target for Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, who just purchased the Whole Foods grocer. Walgreens is among the top-five largest U.S. drugstore chain in prescription drug sales and has more than 8,000 stores nationwide. CVS has 9,600 stores nationwide and is pushing Walgreens, which until last year was the top-grossing U.S. retail pharmacy. Rite Aid, which had ranked next in retail pharmacy sales through its 5,200 stores, dropped last year to fourth place behind Wal Mart, according to 2016 industry data. Rite Aid’s presence in the South Bay is much smaller than Walgreens or CVS. However, the former Thrifty Drugstore chain and its iconic ice cream brand have a long history in the Los Angeles area. Brothers Harry and Robert Borun in 1929 opened their first Thrifty Cut Rate store in downtown Los Angeles. The original Thrifty’s was located across the street from the original B Thrifty Cut Rate. The brothers opened five more downtown-area stores, and then expanded beyond the city center to the Mid-Wilshire district in 1931. By the early 1940s, Thrifty Drug Stores operated 58 stores, and the Southern California-based chain opened its 100th store in 1950. Thrifty stores dotted cities between Santa Rosa and San Diego and ran a radio commercial that was a staple on L.A. stations for a decade. “Save a nickel, save a dime. Save at Thrifty every time,” the jingle said. The Rite Aid chain started as the Thrif D Discount Center in 1962 and within three years added 21 retail stores. The 22nd store added a pharmacy, changing its name to Rite Aid, and the entire company officially adopted that name in 1968. Two years ago, it ranked as the largest drugstore chain on the East Coast, and the third-largest nationwide, with 4,600 stores in 31 states, according to Investopedia. So, what’s likely to happen to your friendly neighborhood Rite Aid store now that it won’t be swallowed up as planned by the much-larger Walgreens? One financial analyst writing for The Motley Fool thinks Walgreens’ decision to call off the mega-merger hurts Rite Aid’s prospects of hanging on in the competitive retail-pharmacy landscape. “There’s a lot of bad news for Rite Aid. The most obvious is that its stock took a shellacking, with shares plunging nearly 30 percent after the announcement that the acquisition wouldn’t happen. Rite Aid stock is now trading at its lowest level since the middle of 2013,” analyst and contributor Keith Speights wrote on June 30. Because Rite Aid will emerge from the latest agreement as a much smaller company, it will have significantly less revenue and cash flow. Speights says that shoppers might feel the pinch on drug pricing and elsewhere in the chain’s remaining stores. “The worst thing about its size being pared down is that Rite Aid must still compete against big pharmacy retailers like Walgreens,” he wrote. “Lower volume from fewer stores could put Rite Aid at a disadvantage in negotiating for prices. The company could also have less money to fund new initiatives to remain competitive with larger rivals.” Standley, the Rite Aid chairman, in a statement about the restructured deal, sought to assure customers that it would be business as usual in all of the stores, including those properties changing ownership in the next six months. “We have an outstanding team of associates and, with their continued support, we will work together to deliver a great customer experience, improve our business and deliver value to all of our stakeholders,” he said. Wall Street reacted negatively to the news of a slimmed-down Rite Aid chain. Its shares fell 30 percent to a near four-year low after last week’s announcement. One retail analyst said it was his opinion that Rite Aid has a long climb ahead to remain “relevant” in the retail pharmacy sector once the deal closes. Rite Aid’s pharmacy business has reported declining profits recently, and being smaller will make it tough to negotiate lower drug prices with wholesalers, most analysts believe. • Visit us online: www.heraldpublications.com
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