The Daily Dish - April 24, 2012

What the heck are the Browns going to do Thursday night? It’s hard to say. With needs everywhere, three picks in the top 37, public pressure mounting on The Holmgren Regime due to a lack of results, and the organization (even though they won’t admit it) smarting from being unable to move up in the draft to land a franchise QB … anything could happen.

Here’s what I think they’ll do: take LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne #4, take a WR at #22, and then the best available running back/right tackle at #37.

Here’s what I wish they’d do: trade down. And I’m not one of these nuts that advocates trading down every year. They’re going to be sitting there at #4 with the top running back, wide receiver, and defensive player (Claiborne) all on the board. There should be people willing to move up. And I’m not ga-ga over any of those guys. If I was the Browns, I would look to either add another #1 next year (help them land the QB in next year’s draft) or to try and turn “three of the top 37” picks into “five of the top fifty”. They need A LOT of help offensively.

The fans want Trent Richardson. The only pick that would upset me would be Justin Blackmon. I feel like you can get a receiver just as good as him down at #22.

Someone sent this link into my e-mail. The top selling condiments in America. Hellman’s Mayonnaise = #1, and by a wide margin. Here’s the most recent official top ten list (2010 totals), listed by total sales revenue:

1. Hellmann’s Mayonnaise: $401M
2. Tostito’s Salsa: $286M
3. Heinz Ketchup: $278M
4. Best Foods Mayonnaise: $175M
5. Kraft Miracle Whip Mayonnaise: $163M
6. Kraft Mayonnaise: $159M
7. French’s Classic Mustard: $88M
8. Kraft Mayo: $79M
9. Pace Salsa: $74M
10. Hunt’s Ketchup: $73M

Hellman’s being #1 surprised me. The margin by which they are #1 surprised me even more. And I was floored by the overall dominant presence of mayonnaise in general. My Lord. We Americans love us some mayonnaise. Just don’t take away our guns or our mayonnaise … and it’s all good.

I’m more of a mustard guy personally. Like with hot sauce, always have 3-4 different bottles in the fridge. Always a bottle of Bertman’s Ballpark Mustard. Always a bottle of some kind of normal yellow mustard for when mustard lightweights are over the house. And these two right now as the others …

Quote of the Day …

“Accept the challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory.” ~ George S. Patton

Insane Fact of the Day …

There are 2,610 lobbyists for every one senator in Washington D. C.

Market …

BUSY day for the markets. Case-Shiller home price data gets the party started at 9 AM EST. We get consumer confidence and new home sale data at 10 AM. Treasury auctions off some 2-year notes after lunch. Apple releases earnings after the closing bell. And all the markets are just generally on edge ahead of tomorrow’s Fed announcement and subsequent presser from Big Ben Bernanke.

As predicted, it was a pretty quiet day yesterday. Stocks sold off right outta the gate and then traded flat, with the Dow falling below 13,000. News about the European debt crisis continues to drive stocks up and down. Bonds edged a little higher in seeming anticipation of the Fed starting to hint a little more tomorrow at the possibility of a QE3. The two day meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) begins this morning and culminates tomorrow afternoon with the 12:30 policy statement release and a 2:15 press conference held by Bernanke.

The earnings release calendar is also loaded today. The highlight? APPLE. Who reports after the close. Amid some concerns over this earnings release, Apple’s stock has suffered one of its worst falls … dropping from $644 a share to $577 over the course of the past two weeks. Most recently, rumors of a chip shortage that could delay the release of iPhone5, which is expected to launch later this year, has affected the stock price. Expectations are that Apple sold 31-32 million iPhones in the quarter, and 12-13 million iPads. They sold 37mm iPhones in 4Q 2011, and 15.4mm iPads.

News …

~ World Stocks Rise Ahead of Federal Reserve Meeting

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/world-stocks-rise-ahead-federal-091539752.html

~ Wall Street’s Economic Outlook Slipping Closer to Fed’s Pessimism

http://www.cnbc.com/id/47144430

~ Mortgage Rates Lowest Since February to Begin Potentially Volatile Week

http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/consumer_rates/256049.aspx

~ Three Hidden Costs of the Foreclosure Crisis

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/three-hidden-costs-foreclosure-crisis-040128777.html

~ Pressure Rises on Apple for Earnings Beat Tuesday as Market Wobbles

http://www.cnbc.com/id/47151382

~ Ohio Offers Tax Amnesty Program for First Time in Six Years

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2012/04/ohio_offers_tax_amnesty_progra.html