Ray Williams, III, PhD  “ Who else But? “

 

Former United Association of Equipment Leasing Executive Director Ray Williams

has accepted the position of Executive Director of the California Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians in Sacramento. 

 

The California Chapter was located in Manhattan Beach, but had elected to move

to Sacramento to be closer to other California medical associations. Dr. Williams

will assist in the move and setting up new staff. the management and oversight of the day to day administration is critical to the organization.  http://www.acep.org/

California Chapter: http://www.acep.org/1,37,CAL%2FACEP.html

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

    June 27, Wednesday, Escondido, California  United Association of Equipment Leasing

 

This Just Added!!

 

San Diego/Riverside/Orange County UAEL Region Presents:

 

An Opportunity We Couldn't Pass Up!

                                           DJ Harrington in San Diego

 

Tuesday, June 27, 2001 at 6:00 PM– 8:00 PM

          at the California Center for the Arts

340 N. Escondido Blvd., Escondido, CA  92025  (760) 839-4138

 Felicita Room

 

Join colleagues in your region and learn more from featured speaker D.J. Harrington about:

 

*  How to Sell in Tough Times             *    Keeping a Positive Image

*    Making a First Impression                    *   Telephone Skills for the Millennium

            *   Unique ways to Market Services

 

Don't miss this fabulous opportunity to hear new ideas and to get re-energized!  Bring your  office staff and let them experience this unique style of learning.  Registration is only $20.00 a person.

 

Here's more about our featured speaker:

 

DJ is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Phone Logic, Inc. an international training company based in Atlanta, Georgia.  Harrington serves as a consultant and trainer to over 1,000 privately owned businesses throughout the country, training personnel at all levels of the company – from the operator to the customer service reps, to the sales staff and the president of the company – over an 800 number, 52 weeks a year.

 

His years as a sales trainer and motivator for a variety of companies have provided DJ with an outstanding background which be brings – along with his energy and dynamic personality – to every clinic and seminar.

 

Harrington is a recipient of the Vicom Group Video Training Award.  He is a motivator, entrepreneur, and keynote speaker.  DJ has been a member of Georgia Speakers Association and the National Speakers Association since 1993, and a recipient of the coveted award of CSP (Certified Speaking Profession

onal).

 

Sign me up for the San Diego/Riverside/Orange County Regional Event!

 

Name:

Company:

Address:                                                                                                                                  

City/State/Zip:

Phone:

Fax:

Email:

Web Address:

 

$20.00 per person

 

(Circle One)  Check Enclosed     Visa/MC       Amex

Account Number:

Expiration Date:   

Name On Card:   

 

Signature:                                            

 

Joanie Dalton - Managing Director

UAEL - United Association of Equipment Leasing

520 Third Street, #201

Oakland, CA  94607

(510) 444-9235 x27

(510) 444-1346 fax

joanie@uael.org

www.uael.org

 

                 Nigeria Connection

 

I stumbled across this article in the current edition of Fortune magazine.

Enjoy.

Cary Downer Equipment Financing & Leasing

Corporation Rochester Hills, MI

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

WHILE YOU WERE OUT

 

                      This Just In From Nigeria

                    Who couldn't use a big chunk of nearly $30 million?

                                          by Stanley Bing

 

A host of individuals from Nigeria want me to help them extricate the sum of exactly $28.6 million dollars from strongboxes in their nation and bring the money back to the U.S. for a fee of 60% of the principal. I get one such offer every day, and sometimes two or three. For a while I found it sort of funny, in a slightly scary way. Then I found it odd. Now I'm intrigued. I mean, who couldn't use a big chunk of nearly $30 million?

 

"Compliment of the season and Happy Easter in advance!" This from a fellow I'll call Morton Jocomo, which I hasten to add is not his name. I'm going to change all names here, by the way. I'd hate to read in the newspaper that some guy I mentioned in this

space was found in a dumpster in Lagos.

 

"I don't know that you are such a wonderful creature," Mr. Jocomo continued, going on to invite me to Africa to pick up several strongboxes full of gold and cash. The lucre in question seems to have come from one Abdul Barando Elisha, "a very rich man

and a family member of late president of Nigeria, but murdered in Northern part of Nigeria during a clash between Christians and Muslims religion consigning the sharia law of the northern States of Nigeria, what a pity." The money in these e-mails, incidentally,

is often covered in blood or is the product of embezzlement, corruption, or outright theft.

 

Mr. Jocomo then launched into a somewhat complex set of duties I must perform as part of the deal, signing documents, traveling to "Abidjan in the Cote D'Ivoire," and then returning to the U.S. with my "truck boxes ($) and demurrage."

 

"This is an opportunity for us to be millionaires with our teamup," he concluded. "Since the owner is dead and nobody know about the consignment accept you and me, think about it personally."

 

I did think about it personally. I have always wanted a boat and a small island in the Caribbean to moor it. So after some consideration, I e-mailed Mr. Jocomo to ask for certain details. "MY DEAR BROTHER," came the reply the very next day.

"THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR E-MAIL MESSAGE WHICH WAS WELL NOTED. HOW ARE YOU AND YOUR FAMILY? I DO HOPE THAT EVERYBODY ARE PHYSICALLY FIT. I APPRECIATE YOUR INTEREST TO

KNOW THE MODELITIES TO FOLLOW UP THIS TRANSACTION SUCCESSFULLY."

 

I was then given a Nigerian phone number to call and instructed to say that I was the foreign partner of Elrama Abdul Sarzenko El-Rasha, who deposited three trunk boxes with a certain code number (which he gave) in a specified storage facility. I was then

to make arrangements for a trip to the Ivory Coast to pick up the gold for transfer to the U.S. In the meantime, I was to "SEND YOUR COMPLETE BIO-DATA AND PERSONNAL INFORMATIONS SO THAT I WILL USE IT TO REPLACE ALL

THE INFORMATIONS ON ELRAMA ELRASHA AS HIS NEXT OF KIN." The e-mail ended with a plea for me to maintain "THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF THIS BUSINESS BEFORE AND AFTER THE TRANSFER OF THESE CONSIGNMENTS," and concluded warmly, "PLEASE ENDEAVOUR TO GIVE ME A CALL AFTER YOUR

CONFIRMATION."

 

There were certain aspects of this whole thing that kind of made me nervous. But some things recommended themselves to me. There was the money, of course, which would have come to nearly $15 million dollars. On the other hand, there was all that

travel, and the fact that I was purporting to be the next of kin of someone who was murdered in Nigeria over some religious question. Might there be danger?

 

Deep in these considerations, yet somewhat flattered by the international attention, I was very surprised to receive the following letter just a few days later. "REQUEST FOR URGENT CONFIDENTIAL TRANSFER OF US$28.6M AMERICAN

DOLLARS INTO YOUR ACCOUNT." Hmm, I thought. Do these people think in increments of 28.6? And what's with all the uppercase letters?

 

"AFTER DUE DELIBERATION WITH MY COLLEAGUES, I DECIDED TO FORWARD TO YOU THIS BUSINESS PROPOSAL. WE WANT A RELIABLE PERSON WHO COULD ASSIST US TO TRANSFER THE SUM OF

TWENTY-EIGHT MILLION, SIX HUNDRED THOUSAND US DOLLARS (US$28.6 MILLION) INTO HIS/HER ACCOUNT." This individual then went on to identify himself as a "TOP OFFICIAL EXECUTIVE SECRETARY/CHAIRMAN, TENDER BOARD COMMITTEE" of a huge nigerian corporation, and went on to assure me

that "THIS TRANSACTION IS VERY MUCH FREE FROM ALL SORTS OF RISK HENCE THE BUSINESS WAS CAREFULLY PLANNED BEFORE IT WAS EXECUTED."

 

This reassured me. Still, I was a little dubious about the particulars. Once again I was instructed to supply my banker's name and address, my account number and the bank's telephone, fax, and telex numbers, and my private telephone and fax number. "LET

HONESTY AND TRUST BE OUR WATCH-WORD THROUGHOUT THIS TRANSACTION," the letter, signed by one Willard Q. Jeffries, concluded.

 

I was now completely confused. Why was the offer from Willard Q. Jeffries so similar to that from Morton Jocomo? The first offer was generous. The second was equally so, down to the penny. Which deal should I go with? Then an idea struck me: If I

was going to schlep all the way to the Ivory Coast, why not try to do both at once? Wow, I thought. This was starting to look like a very profitable trip.

 

That was last month. Today the letters keep on coming. At this writing I figure my 60% of the 18 stashes of $28.6 million comes to more than $150 million. It would take me a couple of years to earn that kind of money. But I'm not buying any tickets yet.

There's something a little squirrelly about the whole thing, don't you think?

 

Which gets to my reason for writing this column. I'd like to hear from anybody who has actually done the whole thing, you know. Given your personal information? Gone to Abidjan? Taken the strongboxes home and all. Did it work out okay? Did you get

your money? What kind of restaurants do they have over there? Did you need a gun? Thanks, guys. With your help, I figure I'll eventually be able to make up my mind about what to do.

 

Oh--and until then, will you dudes stop writing me these stupid e-mails? I wasn't born yesterday, you know.

##### ############# #################

 

GATX Corporation Establishes New $425 Million Credit Facility For GATX Capital

 

 

CHICAGO,  -- GATX Corporation (NYSE: GMT) today announced that GATX Capital signed a new $425 million credit agreement, comprised of a $283 million three-year facility and a $142 million 364-day facility.  This new agreement represents an increase over GATX Capital's previous $300 million credit agreement.

 

William J. Hasek, treasurer of GATX Corporation, stated, "We are very pleased to complete the new facility and to have increased it substantially from previous levels.  This new facility, complemented by GATX Rail's existing $350 million credit agreement (May, 2003 maturity), provide GATX with $775 million of committed backup credit lines.  The expanded credit availability, combined with the benefits realized from the substantial cash generated through the sale of GATX Terminals Corporation, further underscores our strong liquidity position."

 

The Chase Manhattan Bank acted as administrative agent, with Citibank, N.A. acting as syndication agent.  Additional parties to the agreement include co-documentation agents Bank of America, N.A., Fleet National Bank, and Credit Lyonnais.  Co-agents include Bayerische Landesbank and Deutsche Bank AG,  and participants include Bank One, N.A. and Firstar Bank, N.A.

 

J.P. Morgan Securities Inc., and Salomon Smith Barney Inc., acted as joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners.

 

COMPANY DESCRIPTION  

 

 

Received this from Arlene Woody today:

 

  “Please unsubscribe me for a short time.  I'm leaving CIT. 

  When new e-mail address know, I will definitely re-subscribe.  Have enjoyed your    

   newsletter.”

 

 

 

Tyco Lays Off 300 People at CIT

 

By Robert Tomsho, Wall Street Journal

 

Tyco International eliminated about 300 jobs, or about 5.6% of the workforce, at CIT Group, which the conglomerate acquired on June 1 for about $10 billion.

 

A Tyco spokeswoman said the layoffs will affect about 170 of 1,200 employees at CIT's Livingston, NJ, headquarters and about 130 employees in other locations, including New York, Michigan and Canada. Prior to the layoffs, CIT, a commercial finance concern, had about 5,300 employees worldwide.

 

(Tyco spokeswoman Maryanne Kane said the layoffs involve managerial and administrative positions that duplicated jobs being done at Tyco headquarters.

Kane said the restructuring would make the CIT organization "leaner and in a better position to grow."

 

She said Tyco did not expect to record any related charges, and said she was not aware of any other planned layoffs at CIT.

 

Tyco, based in Bermuda but run from Exeter, NH, is a conglomerate whose business interests include fire safety, home security and electronics. The company has more than 220,000 employees worldwide.

 

 ( They always say there will be no changes, no layoffs, just to keep employees active,

   until they are replaced. editor. )

 

### ############ ###################

 

Compaq Financial Services Launches Comprehensive Repair and Replacement Program for Leased Technology

 

 

Advantage Protection Plus Ensures Business Continuity If Leased Solution Is  

                       Damaged, Destroyed, Stolen or Lost 

 

MURRAY HILLS, N.J.,  -- Compaq Financial Services (CFS) launched a repair and replacement program today that will help customers keep their business up and running in the event that leased information technology is damaged, destroyed, stolen or lost.  Advantage Protection Plus is the most comprehensive program in the IT equipment leasing industry to help companies safeguard their IT investments and ensure quick access to critical data in the event of a negative incident.

 

Customers obtain Advantage Protection Plus by simply indicating they choose Advantage Protection Plus during the lease process and paying a low monthly fee of .2% of the total equipment cost.  The program fulfills the risk coverage requirement of lease contracts under $500,000 and has no deductible. Advantage Protection Plus covers all hardware including non-Compaq equipment for immediate repair or replacement.

 

"There's no room for downtime in today's 24x7 world," said Irv Rothman, president and chief executive officer of Compaq Financial Services. "Customers need peace of mind and the means to get up and running quickly if their information technology is damaged, destroyed, stolen or lost.  Through Advantage Protection Plus, CFS assumes responsibility for repairing or replacing customers' technology."

 

Small and medium businesses are key market segments for the repair and replacement program.  They typically have fewer financial and insurance resources to draw upon when adding additional assets to their enterprise, and are less prepared than large companies with contingency plans in the event of a negative incident.

 

"Small and medium enterprises have the same needs as multinational corporations when it comes to business continuity measures and disaster planning," said Rothman.  "Advantage Protection Plus provides them with a cost-effective solution for protecting their assets and for providing them with access to the data they need to run their businesses."

 

CFS promptly sets the service process in motion after being notified of a claim.  A local, authorized Compaq Service team is dispatched to repair or replace damaged, destroyed, stolen or lost equipment.  Compaq installs, configures and tests the new or repaired system and handles critical aspects of the service effort, including equipment procurement, system restoration and vendor relations.  Equipment covered under Advantage Protection Plus is repaired or replaced in a priority status.

 

About Compaq Financial Services  

 

Compaq Financial Services Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of Compaq Computer Corporation (NYSE: CPQ).  Compaq established Compaq Financial Services in January 1997 to provide information technology leasing and financing solutions for Compaq customers around the world.  Today, Compaq Financial Services is the sole authorized provider of Compaq-branded financing, serving customers in 41 countries from regional headquarters in Dublin and Sydney, as well as from its worldwide headquarters in Murray Hill, N.J., which covers the Americas.  The company serves all of Compaq's individual and business customers, including small and mid-sized businesses, government agencies, educational institutions and large, multinational corporations.  Typical transactions range in size from $499 to $100 million. Additional information on Compaq Financial Services' financing and leasing programs is available at http://www.compaq.com/financialservices.

 

Company Background  

 

Compaq Computer Corporation, a Fortune Global 100 company, is a leading global provider of technology and solutions.  Compaq designs, develops, manufactures, and markets hardware, software, solutions, and services, including industry-leading enterprise computing solutions, fault-tolerant business-critical solutions, and communications products, commercial desktop and portable products, and consumer PCs that are sold in more than 200 countries.  Information on Compaq and its products and services is available at www.compaq.com.

 

Financing available through CFSC to qualified customers in the U.S. Financing is subject to credit approval and execution of standard CFSC documentation.  Other restrictions may apply.  CFSC reserves the right to change or cancel this program at any time without notice.  This program cannot be combined with any other special discounting without Compaq's permission.

 

### ############ #########################

 

 

 

Forbes: Gates Still the Wealthiest, Thomas Depping Does Not Make the List

                  by ALAN CLENDENNING

 

NEW YORK (AP) -- There's new proof that Warren Buffett's value-oriented investing strategy pays off: He slipped by one of Microsoft Corp.'s co-founders to become the world's second richest man, according to Forbes magazine.

Microsoft's Paul Allen lost to Buffett after the net worth of the ''Oracle of Omaha'' increased $4 billion, to $32.3 billion.

Allen, who was tied with Buffett for third place last year, had $30.4 billion, and came in third again, according to list results released by Forbes Thursday.

But Buffett didn't come close to Microsoft's other co-founder, Bill Gates, the richest man on the planet. Gates -- with a net worth of $58.7 billion, down from last year's $60 billion -- easily retained his No. 1 position on Forbes magazine's 15th annual list of the world's billionaires.

The bursting of the Internet bubble knocked a number of billionaires down a peg or two, or off the list entirely.

But the billionaire club swelled to 538 members this year, up from 482 last year, because Forbes decided for the first time to include all billionaires. Previously, the magazine counted only ''working rich'' billionaires to differentiate between those who ran businesses and those who simply lived off their wealth.

Because of the new entries, some year-to-year comparisons are difficult. For example, the overall number of billionaires would have dropped this year under the old parameters, and Forbes wasn't able to provide a comparable number. The problem should be resolved when next year's list appears, said Kerry Dolan, a senior Forbes editor who co-edited the rankings.

''What we decided to do is give the people what they want,'' she said. ''Everybody wants to know who are the richest people in the world, and how they rank.''

The rankings appear in the July 9 issue of Forbes, which reaches newsstands Friday.

Oracle Corp. founder Larry Ellison, last year's second-richest man, saw his net worth plummet from $47 billion to $26 billion. But that was still good enough to make him No. 4.

German retailers Theo and Karl Albrecht had the fifth spot and Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud, a global investor from Saudi Arabia, came in sixth.

Three heirs of the Wal-Mart fortune created by founder Sam Walton took the No. 7 through No. 9 spots, and two more Waltons tied for 10th place. Several Waltons who made the list this year were not included last year because they were no longer active in the business.

 

The stock market shakeout over the past year hurt several on the list. ''Call it the worldwide humbling of the billionaires,'' the magazine said.

 

For example, the net worth of Japanese software magnate Masayoshi Son, founder of Softbank, dropped from $19.4 billion to $5.6 billion, putting him in 55th place. Last year he was eighth.

 

Amazon.com's Jeff Bezos saw his net worth fall from $6.1 billion to $2 billion, still good enough for a tie for 234.

 

German media mogul Thomas Haffa, whose conglomerate owns the rights to the Muppets, dropped from the list, however, after his net worth dropped from $4 billion to $250 million.

 

The list was set using share prices and exchange rates as of May 21.

 

 for the full list, go to: http://www.suntimes.com:80/output/news/list1.html