Boryeong Mud Festival

(via Wiki) The Boryeong Mud Festival is an annual festival which takes place during the summer in Boryeong, South Korea. The first Mud Festival was staged in 1998 and, by 2006, the festival attracted 1.5 million visitors to Boryeong. The mud is dug up near Boryeong, trucked to the Daecheon beach area, and dumped at a 'Mud Experience Land'. The mud is considered rich in minerals and used to manufacture cosmetics. Most of the participants are foreign tourists, attracted by clever marketing by the town who discovered that it is more lucrative as a tourist attraction than using the muddy fields for agriculture. The economy generated from the festival supports the many hotels and restaurants along the waterway and several blocks inland.

Useful link:
www.mudfestival.or.kr

A must-visit.

Green Festivals

(via Guardian) Leo Hickman writes: A survey of 1,407 festival goers earlier this year by AGreenerFestival.com and Buckinghamshire New University found that 80% considered noise at festivals had an environmental impact, 82% thought waste had a negative impact, 56% thought festivals had a negative carbon footprint, 60% were worried about water, 53% were concerned with land damage and a whopping 84% thought travel and transport had a negative environmental impact.

Useful links:
www.agreenerfestival.com
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/ethicalliving/2008/06/heading_for_the_green_fields.html

Leo Hickman was spot on.

Fake Fabergé Easter Egg

Maev Kennedy writes about a Fabergé fans nightmare: The shatteringly bad news was that it was not the gem of a lifetime's collecting - a genuine Fabergé Easter egg, one of the jewelled toys of the Russian Imperial court and worth up to £10m - but a copy, worth at most £100,000, roughly twice its original price at auction.

Go to http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/news/story/0,,2288006,00.html for further information.

Diamond Rough Imitations

Jewelry Insurance Issues writes about new trends in prized uncut diamonds in jewelry + 4C's issues + the scams + other viewpoints @ http://jcrs.com/newsletters/2008/2008_05.htm

Useful link:
www.jcrs.com

Random Thoughts

Berkshire has a policy started in 1965, when I became involved, to acquire terrific companies run by terrific people. And then I don't have to do anything. But it's worked. We don't ever sell companies. A lot of private equity firms, they talk about buying something with an exit strategy. Well, we have an entrance strategy, but we have no exit strategy. The idea is to build and build and build, whether it's GEICO, whether it's Dairy Queen, whether it's, you name the company. We have 76 of them now. We trust our managers. They've earned that trust. They've delivered over the years, and we let them run their businesses. I take no credit for any of their successes, and I take no blame for any of their failures.

- Warren Buffett

Montreal Jazz Festival

The 29th annual festival, from June 26 - July 6, 2008, features 11 days of non-stop entertainment, from noon to midnight, right in the heart of downtown Montreal. It’s the summer celebration par excellence for people of all ages and origins, a cultural breath of fresh air, and a place for incredible musical discoveries with influence such as Jass, Blues, Latin-Jazz, Brazilian, Cuban, African, Reggae, Contemporary, Electronica ... It's the best in the world. You don't want to miss it!

Useful link:

www.montrealjazzfest.com

Spore Creature Creator

Electronic Arts has released the so-called Spore Creature Creator, which allows players to generate infinitely varied 3D critters and interact with them. It's fun.

Useful links:

www.ea.com

www.spore.com

Enhancing The Industry’s Capital Base

Chaim Even Zohar writes about the world's first listed polished diamond fund (approximately 60 percent of white diamonds + 40 percent of rare colored diamonds) + the impact + other viewpoints @ http://www.idexonline.com/portal_FullEditorial.asp

Useful links:
www.diapasoncm.com
www.ubs.com

If the business is successful, expect to see more copycats.