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1. Re: Timing is everything...
able123 Dec 8, 2011 10:47 AM (in response to davidbeisner2010)====
The "declared value" of the new drive (same model number) which WD is shipping me via the warranty service is $100 even. Leads me to wonder if the price increases we're seeing are driven by the sales companies or the manufacturers... surely the cost of the RMA'd drive to Western Digital isn't less than half the cost of that drive on the market???
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the important thing is what you call the " warranty " in this case.
In essence the warranty is underwrited and that 'party' ( whether oem or some extended warranty by a 3rd party. which gets convoluted cause even oem warranties are underwritten in the background not by the oem ).. is paid for up front when you buy the drive originally at that price.. so that the essential price ( or " cost " ) of that item is based on the purchase price no matter what happens to the 'market" afterward. Its a contract and the numbers are baked into it.
If, on the other hand, your drive in the real world is now worth 20 cents, the people involved with the warranty are still going to deal with the cost of the insurance ( warranty) and provide you with the replacement... you as the consumer have nothing to do with this... its the deal made re: warranty at time of purchase and replacement is the 'bet' they make ... whether it is worth insuring the product and what the ultimate cost is if they all fail the next year etc etc.
the trouble with housing today is similar with regard to homeowner insurance, assessed property values in the towns with a lot of foreclosures and so on.... the value of real things fluctuate and the insurers make 'bets' on the value vs the 'claims' made on those items... to replace or fix or whatever.
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2. Re: Timing is everything...
davidbeisner2010 Dec 8, 2011 10:56 AM (in response to able123)Make's sense...
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3. Re: Timing is everything...
able123 Dec 8, 2011 11:07 AM (in response to able123)to take that to another level... theres insurance and then there's re-insurance.. and I guess someone like Lloyd's Of London is a good example ( shipping insurance re: hulls and cargo etc )... and credit default swaps ( another form of insurance sorta ) and hedging short selling vs long positions on various items.. ( if peanuts get hit by bad weather maybe soy beans will be OK ? )
usually prices dont fluctuate that much where a warranty of a hard drive makes such a big difference.. but obviously the country of Thailand getting totally flooded made hard drives more expensive and prostitutes way LESS expensive.
its called the global economy !
ps.. using the word " hard " drive in same sentence as "prostitute' was unintentional !
pps
ITS BEER THIRTY ! YIPEE ! (burp, scuse me ! )
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4. Re: Timing is everything...
able123 Dec 8, 2011 11:14 AM (in response to able123)plus.. moving onto yet ANOTHER LEVEL of convoluted insurance and re-insurance and "investment" contracts ( derrivatives etc ).. you will notice that MF Global doesnt know what happened to 1.2 billion dollars.
Have you wondered like... what would YOU do if you personally lost 1.2 billion dollars invested in that company? You would be going bonkers ! I know I would ! The trouble is.. there is NO PERSON involved with that loss.
There is not one single human being involved with the lost 1.2 billion dollars. Trust me.. if there was you'd hear that person all over CNN telling stories about how terrible it is that they just became homeless overnight.
makes you wonder who the 'players' are... if you think about it.
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5. Re: Timing is everything...
able123 Dec 8, 2011 11:34 AM (in response to able123)and now moving on to the subject of 'bankruptcy" just for fun.. ( burp , scuse me )...
corporations ( inc. etc ) and even sole proprietorships to some extent ( like when we have our own little companies making videos etc ).. use bankruptcy proceeding when liabilities = way less than assets and you are making gargling dying duck noises in your throat ...
it freezes things ... to the extent that all ( ALL ) your creditors ( people you owe money to including suppliers of stuff like film, photo paper, rentals you made, etc ) have to sit on their hands and stop making nasty phone calls etc cause your bill is over 30 days late getting paid.... the bankruptcy 'absolves you' of any more of that nonsense... your creditors might as well say " well, we wont be seeing THAT money any time soon ".
in business this is normal and practiced a lot ! really ! once the thing is either dissolved or restructured, its a new deal.. credit flows again, new accounts are opened for credit etc etc.
on a personal level ( WE, The People ) bankruptcy is really hard to get done ( and recently the laws made it even harder than before to actually do it ). Why? Cause the companies and banks and so on dont want just any moron consumer to say , " hey, your credit card rates have screwed me and I cant survive any more like this ". They want you to pay up ! Period ! Not only that...but they will ruin your LIFE... and the life of your partner ( spouse )... by giving you a bad credit score that lasts for 10 years !!!!!
So the bottom line.. incorporate and get yourself set up as a real " business" cause then you can screw anyone you want .... just dont admit you remember what happened etc if you get called to testify in congress.


