Mother of All Bombs. The NBA is a Tough Go. The $5m Re-Accommodation. Incentive Compensation.
It was directed at an ISIS stronghold in Afghanistan. “It” is a MOAB, the most powerful non-nuclear weapon ever developed, weighing 21,600 lbs. The MOAB, the “Mother of All Bombs”, is officially called the GBU-43/B and was first tested 17 years ago. The MOAB creates a devastating impact zone a mile-wide and has to be carried and deployed by a C-130 cargo plane. The Pentagon said that last week’s use of the MOAB was not in response to one of our soldiers being killed in Afghanistan but a direct attack on an ISIS stronghold. I don’t have a clue of how many MOABs we have in our arsenal but I guess the message to ISIS was delivered. More importantly, the world, including Kim Jong-un, witnessed first-hand the MOAB’s ability to wipe out one-square mile at a time. For me, Pyongyang looks like another good test site.
The Atlanta Hawks, led by CEO Steve Koonin, overcame a very long season and untimely injuries to again make the NBA playoffs. Eighty-two regular season games can take a toll on the players, coaches and staff and these Hawks, with their backs against the wall, went on a timely winning streak at the end of the regular season. Two weeks ago the season went to hell with two losses against a terrible Brooklyn team. Then, with some lineup changes and Paul Millsap returning from injury the Hawks turned the season around by beating Boston and then Lebron and the Cavs. Maddening inconsistent but it seems like the Hawks have come together and are peaking at the right time. Later today, the Hawks and Wizards open up their playoff series in D.C. TNT has the game at 1pm.
Last week’s United Airlines debacle should not have been worldwide news. There are daily passenger issues and disturbances that are usually handled in a calm and professional manner. In last Sunday’s incident all parties handled the situation poorly resulting in a passenger being manhandled out their seat and dragged off the plane. The first issue is United Airlines’ policy and protocol for “re-accommodating” passengers. Second, the passenger should have complied when ordered off the plane. And the third and most important issue, the Chicago Aviation Police, who obviously felt it necessary to remove the passenger in a manner that resulted in a broken nose and broken teeth. Yes, I realize that the passenger should have obliged the request to leave his seat and get off the plane but the end result was ridiculous. To top things off, Oscar Munoz, United Airlines’ CEO, quickly tweeted after the incident and his message was absurd. His PR blunder and the viral outreach of video from the incident resulted in United Airlines’ market cap dropping by $700m. The passenger’s attorneys are positioning the incident for a massive lawsuit that United, to mitigate anymore negative publicity, will settle out of court. Most pundits guess a payout to the passenger between $3-$5m. Weird from hell.
Random Thought: Incentive compensation works – the I-85 repairs will be completed very quickly due to a $3.5m bonus for hitting a mid-June target. Atlanta United has now played three straight games on the road with one more before they play at home on April 30…….speaking of incentive compensation, maybe it is time for Mr. Blank’s organization to dangle a big bonus carrot to the Mercedes Benz stadium contractors to hit the early July completion date (yes, early July as it will take 20-30 days for security, vendor, and staff training). Fingers crossed that United does play in the Mercedes Benz on July 30.
Have a Funday Sunday and Happy Easter!