The bucolic meme of cloud computing

I have it on good authority, the economy is experiencing a mild downturn.

Massive speculation, rabid schemes, unhinged leveraging and ill conceived real estate acquisitions, have conspired to tender the butcher's bill; and this was just Frank Stronach.

Nobody has experienced a crisis of this magnitude but the so called stewards of this game allowed it to deteriorate to the point where it needs an obscene makeover. It is telling when the agency, created to inform the public of the facts, can't get out of its own way to present the truth. I second Handride in his assessment of the talent on CNBC but I would head the list with Larry Kudlow.



The NTRA Alliance Code of Standards is a positive start but the question remains, why was this not policy instead of a reactionary measure? The initiatives are sound but how will they be enforced?

A. Uniform Medication Rules and Penalties

Members shall insist that local regulatory authorities regulate drugs and therapeutic medications consistent with ARCI Model Rules, ARCI-011-010, ARCI-011-015, and ARCI 011-020 based on RMTC recommendations. Further, Members shall insist that local regulatory authorities adopt uniform minimum penalties consistent with ARCI Model Rules, ARCI-011-020 (B), based on RMTC recommendation. To the extent the regulatory authorities do not so regulate drugs and therapeutic medications, the Members shall advocate the adoption of such rules and penalties by the regulatory authority.

Members shall insist...; ...Member shall advocate... How, exactly, will members insist? What is the grace period for members who do not adhere to these recommendations? States can't fund fire departments and schools, any bets on where regulating drug use in horse racing will fall on that list?

What happens next? What is the end game? I fully appreciate the theory of fighting the alligator closest to your ass, but at some point one has to come out of zugzwang. The past eighteen months oversaw a basal zeitgeist shift and it will be at least a generation before-to paraphrase the philosopher, Pete Townshend-we get fooled again.

Racing needs a mission statement. It needs an identity that resonates with the public and can, once again, draw them into the fold. A Noblesse oblige for parimutuel events.

What will that mission be? How do we complete it?

Back when the S&P was at the hypoxic heights of 913, I wrote a couple of ill conceived posts on how racing should position itself as a green venture. The possibilities for this concept are myriad.

Time banking, city farming, self-sustained energy production through solar panels and wind turbines, hosting farmers markets and anything else you can think of.

The track could be a destination. An experience beyond torn mutuel tickets and stale beer.

Financial constraints being what they are, some changes will not be cheap but they are affordable, when one considers the long term ramifications of this concept. Government subsidies are available for energy efficient construction; green building is the new black.

Cloud computing and virtual reality are technologies in their infancy and could prove invaluable in bringing together the disparate factions that grouse over a diminishing pie.

Virtual Worlds would bring collaboration to the fore. While it can be difficult for
disparate work groups in a firm to collaborate, Virtual Worlds would create secure sites where teams within a firm or teams combining expertise from a number of firms might work together. This would mean that experts at different locations could focus on a single task, such as creating a new product, testing new designs, or fleshing out a marketing campaign.
By enhancing and strengthening design and development operations, Virtual Worlds have the potential to enhance levels of competence, which could reduce the need for close management and time-consuming controls over various business segments. In fact, by providing for improved collaboration, Virtual Worlds might strengthen design and development operations and improve firms’ economic performance. This could lead firms to respond more rapidly to changes in customer preferences or to regulatory requirements as well as to incorporate enhancements that would save money or improve product quality.
In essence, by mirroring the gains that social networking makes possible and by
incorporating a social networking–like structure within parts of the corporation, Virtual Worlds can significantly change the behavior of modern firms. (Full PDF doc. here. Worth the read.)

The NTRA could use this forum to combine the research at the Grayson Jockey Club, Rood and Riddle, New Bolton and any other institution, into a monolithic institution.

As businesses experiment, for instance, running the complex tests used to evaluate new auto designs or evaluating alternative investment strategies in 3D space, they will see firsthand the important benefits of using Virtual Worlds.

Bone impact research performed at a fraction of the cost and all the information shared freely. Track surface analysis and composition testing. Trainer and emergency response team training.

The possibilities are endless.

The only thing required is vision.