text:
Deere Reports Net Income of $757 Million for Fourth Quarter, $2.751 Billion for Year
MOLINE, Ill., Nov. 25, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --
Fourth-quarter net income rises 5% aided by strong execution and disciplined cost management.
Improving fundamentals in agricultural sector setting stage for stronger demand in year ahead.
Earnings for 2021 forecast to be $3.6 to $4.0 billion.
Deere & Company (NYSE: DE) reported net income of $757 million for the fourth quarter ended November 1, 2020, or $2.39 per share, compared with net income of $722 million, or $2.27 per share, for the quarter ended November 3, 2019. For fiscal 2020, net income attributable to Deere & Company was $2.751 billion, or $8.69 per share, compared with $3.253 billion, or $10.15 per share, in 2019.
Worldwide net sales and revenues decreased 2 percent, to $9.731 billion, for the fourth quarter of 2020 and declined 9 percent, to $35.540 billion, for the full year. Equipment operations net sales were $8.659 billion for the quarter and $31.272 billion for the year, compared with corresponding totals of $8.703 billion and $34.886 billion in 2019.
"John Deere delivered another quarter of strong performance and a solid year despite the challenges associated with managing the pandemic," said John C. May, chairman and chief executive officer. "In this regard, I would like to pay tribute to the thousands of John Deere employees, dealers and suppliers throughout the world who have helped us safely maintain our operations and serve customers. Because of their contributions, Deere was able to complete a successful year and is positioned to continue providing differentiated solutions and unlocking even greater value for customers."
Company Outlook & Summary
Net income attributable to Deere & Company for fiscal 2021 is forecast to be in a range of $3.6 billion to $4.0 billion.
In the year ahead, Deere expects to benefit from improving conditions in the farm economy and stabilization in construction and forestry markets, according to May. "Higher crop prices and improved fundamentals are leading to renewed optimism in the agricultural sector and improving demand for farm equipment," he said. "At the same time, we are looking forward to realizing the benefits of our smart industrial operating strategy, which is designed to accelerate the delivery of solutions that will drive improved profitability and sustainability in our customers' operations."
$ in millions
Net sales and revenues
Fully diluted EPS
Net income in the fourth quarter and full-year 2020 was negatively affected by impairment charges and employee-separation costs of $211 million and $458 million after-tax, respectively. For the same periods in 2019, the similar charges were $74 million and $82 million. In addition, net income was unfavorably affected by discrete adjustments to the provision for income taxes in both periods of 2020 and favorably impacted in both periods of 2019.
Equipment Operations
Net income*
* Includes equity in income (loss) of unconsolidated affiliates.
For a discussion of net sales and operating profit results, see the Agriculture & Turf and Construction & Forestry sections below.
Agriculture & Turf
Agriculture & Turf sales increased for the quarter due to price realization and higher shipment volumes, partially offset by the unfavorable effects of currency translation. Operating profit rose primarily due to price realization, lower research and development expenses, reduced selling, administrative, and general expenses, improved shipment volumes / mix, and lower warranty expenses. These items were partially offset by employee-separation expenses and impairments.
Construction & Forestry
Construction & Forestry sales moved lower for the quarter primarily due to lower shipment volumes, partially offset by price realization. Operating profit declined mainly due to lower sales volume / mix, impairments, and employee-separation expenses. The decrease in profit was partially offset by price realization, lower research and development expenses, reduced selling, administrative, and general expenses, lower warranty expenses, and improved production costs.
The increase in financial services net income for the quarter was mainly due to lower impairments and reduced losses on operating-lease residual values and favorable financing spreads, partially offset by a higher provision for credit losses, and employee-separation expenses.
Market Conditions and Outlook (Annual)
John Deere Financial
Market Conditions & Outlook
Agriculture & Turf. Deere's worldwide sales of agriculture and turf equipment are forecast to increase by 10 to 15 percent for fiscal-year 2021, including a positive currency-translation effect of 1 percent. Industry sales of agricultural equipment in the U.S. and Canada are forecast to rise 5 to 10 percent driven by gains in larger models. Full-year industry sales in the EU28 member nations are forecast to be flat to up 5%. In South America, industry sales of tractors and combines are forecast to be up about 5 percent while Asian sales are expected to be slightly lower. Industry sales of turf and utility equipment in the U.S. and Canada are forecast to be flat to up 5 percent.
Construction & Forestry. Deere's worldwide sales of construction and forestry equipment are anticipated to be up 5 to 10 percent for 2021 with foreign-currency rates having a favorable translation effect of 1 percent. The outlook reflects some degree of recovery from the pandemic in construction equipment, continued strength in compact construction due to residential building activity, and expected growth in the roadbuilding sector. On an industry basis, North American construction equipment sales are expected to be down about 5 percent with sales of compact equipment up about 5 percent. Global forestry industry sales are forecast to be flat to up 5 percent for the year.
Financial Services. Fiscal-year 2021 net income attributable to Deere & Company for the financial services operations is forecast to be approximately $630 million. Results are expected to benefit from favorable financing spreads, lower losses on operating-lease residual values, and income earned on a higher average portfolio, partially offset by a higher provision for credit losses.
John Deere Capital Corporation
The following is disclosed on behalf of the company's financial services subsidiary, John Deere Capital Corporation (JDCC), in connection with the disclosure requirements applicable to its periodic issuance of debt securities in the public market.
Ending portfolio balance
Net income for the current quarter was higher than in the fourth quarter of 2019 primarily due to lower impairments and reduced losses on operating-lease residual values, favorable financing spreads, and a lower provision for credit losses, partially offset by employee-separation expenses. Full year 2020 net income was about the same as in 2019 with lower impairments and reduced losses on operating-lease residual values, and income from a higher average portfolio, largely offset by a higher provision for credit losses and unfavorable financing spreads. The full year 2019 was also affected by favorable discrete adjustments to the provision for income taxes.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements under "Company Outlook & Summary," "Market Conditions & Outlook," and other forward-looking statements herein that relate to future events, expectations, and trends involve factors that are subject to change, and risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. Some of these risks and uncertainties could affect particular lines of business, while others could affect all of the company's businesses.
The company's agricultural equipment business is subject to a number of uncertainties including the factors that affect farmers' confidence and financial condition. These factors include demand for agricultural products, world grain stocks, weather conditions, soil conditions, harvest yields, prices for commodities and livestock, crop and livestock production expenses, availability of transport for crops, trade restrictions and tariffs (e.g., China), global trade agreements, the level of farm product exports (including concerns about genetically modified organisms), the growth and sustainability of non-food uses for some crops (including ethanol and biodiesel production), real estate values, available acreage for farming, the land ownership policies of governments, changes in government farm programs and policies, international reaction to such programs, changes in and effects of crop insurance programs, changes in environmental regulations and their impact on farming practices, animal diseases (e.g., African swine fever) and their effects on poultry, beef and pork consumption and prices and on livestock feed demand, and crop pests and diseases and the impact of the COVID pandemic on the agricultural industry including demand for, and production and exports of, agricultural products, and commodity prices.
Factors affecting the outlook for the company's turf and utility equipment include consumer confidence, weather conditions, customer profitability, labor supply, consumer borrowing patterns, consumer purchasing preferences, housing starts and supply, infrastructure investment, spending by municipalities and golf courses, and consumable input costs. Many of these factors have been and may continue to be impacted by global economic effects, including the downturn resulting from the COVID pandemic and responses to the pandemic taken by governments and other authorities.
Consumer spending patterns, real estate and housing prices, the number of housing starts, interest rates, commodity prices such as oil and gas, the levels of public and non-residential construction, and investment in infrastructure are important to sales and results of the company's construction and forestry equipment. Prices for pulp, paper, lumber and structural panels are important to sales of forestry equipment. Many of these factors affecting the outlook for the company's construction and forestry equipment have been and may continue to be impacted by global economic effects, including the downturn resulting from the COVID pandemic and responses to the pandemic taken by governments and other authorities.
All of the company's businesses and its results are affected by general economic conditions in the global markets and industries in which the company operates; customer confidence in general economic conditions; government spending and taxing; foreign currency exchange rates and their volatility, especially fluctuations in the value of the U.S. dollar; interest rates (including the availability of IBOR reference rates); inflation and deflation rates; changes in weather patterns; the political and social stability of the global markets in which the company operates; the effects of, or response to, terrorism and security threats; wars and other conflicts; natural disasters; and the spread of major epidemics (including the COVID pandemic) and government and industry responses to epidemics such as travel restrictions and extended shut down of businesses.
Uncertainties related to the magnitude and duration of the COVID pandemic may significantly adversely affect the company's business and outlook. These uncertainties include: prolonged reduction or closure of the company's operations, or a delayed recovery in our operations; additional closures as mandated or otherwise made necessary by governmental authorities; disruptions in the supply chain and a prolonged delay in resumption of operations by one or more key suppliers, or the failure of any key suppliers; the company's ability to meet commitments to customers on a timely basis as a result of increased costs and supply challenges; the ability to receive goods on a timely basis and at anticipated costs; increased logistics costs; delays in the company's strategic initiatives as a result of reduced spending on research and development; additional operating costs at facilities that remain open due to remote working arrangements, adherence to social distancing guidelines and other COVID-related challenges; increased risk of cyber attacks on network connections used in remote working arrangements; increased privacy-related risks due to processing health-related personal information; legal claims related to personal protective equipment designed, made, or provided by the company or alleged exposure to COVID on company premises; absence of employees due to illness; the impact of the pandemic on the company's customers and dealers, and their delays in their plans to invest in new equipment; requests by the company's customers or dealers for payment deferrals and contract modifications; the impact of disruptions in the global capital markets and/or continued declines in the company's financial performance, outlook or credit ratings, which could impact the company's ability to obtain funding in the future; the duration and impact of the resurgence in COVID cases in any country, state, or region; and the impact of the pandemic on demand for our products and services as discussed above. It is unclear when a sustained economic recovery could occur and what a recovery may look like. All of these factors could materially and adversely affect our business, liquidity, results of operations and financial position.
Significant changes in market liquidity conditions, changes in the company's credit ratings and any failure to comply with financial covenants in credit agreements could impact access to funding and funding costs, which could reduce the company's earnings and cash flows. Financial market conditions could also negatively impact customer access to capital for purchases of the company's products and customer confidence and purchase decisions, borrowing and repayment practices, and the number and size of customer loan delinquencies and defaults. A debt crisis, in Europe or elsewhere, could negatively impact currencies, global financial markets, social and political stability, funding sources and costs, asset and obligation values, customers, suppliers, demand for equipment, and company operations and results. The company's investment management activities could be impaired by changes in the equity, bond and other financial markets, which would negatively affect earnings.
The withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union and the perceptions as to the impact of the withdrawal may adversely affect business activity, political stability and economic conditions in the United Kingdom, the European Union and elsewhere. The economic conditions and outlook could be further adversely affected by (i) uncertainty regarding any new or modified trade arrangements between the United Kingdom and the European Union and/or other countries, (ii) the risk that one or more other European Union countries could come under increasing pressure to leave the European Union, or (iii) the risk that the euro as the single currency of the Eurozone could cease to exist. Any of these developments, or the perception that any of these developments are likely to occur, could affect economic growth or business activity in the United Kingdom or the European Union, and could result in the relocation of businesses, cause business interruptions, lead to economic recession or depression, and impact the stability of the financial markets, availability of credit, currency exchange rates, interest rates, financial institutions, and political, financial and monetary systems. Any of these developments could affect our businesses, liquidity, results of operations and financial position.
Additional factors that could materially affect the company's operations, access to capital, expenses and results include changes in, uncertainty surrounding and the impact of governmental trade, banking, monetary and fiscal policies, including financial regulatory reform and its effects on the consumer finance industry, derivatives, funding costs and other areas; governmental programs, policies, and tariffs for the benefit of certain industries or sectors; sanctions in particular jurisdictions; retaliatory actions to such changes in trade, banking, monetary and fiscal policies; actions by central banks; actions by financial and securities regulators; actions by environmental, health and safety regulatory agencies, including those related to engine emissions, carbon and other greenhouse gas emissions, noise and the effects of climate change; changes to GPS radio frequency bands or their permitted uses; changes in labor and immigration regulations; changes to accounting standards; changes in tax rates, estimates, laws and regulations and company actions related thereto; changes to and compliance with privacy regulations; changes to and compliance with economic sanctions and export controls laws and regulations; compliance with U.S. and foreign laws when expanding to new markets and otherwise; and actions by other regulatory bodies.
Other factors that could materially affect results include production, design and technological innovations and difficulties, including capacity and supply constraints and prices; the loss of or challenges to intellectual property rights whether through theft, infringement, counterfeiting or otherwise; the availability and prices of strategically sourced materials, components and whole goods; delays or disruptions in the company's supply chain or the loss of liquidity by suppliers; disruptions of infrastructures that support communications, operations or distribution; the failure of customers, dealers, suppliers or the company to comply with laws, regulations and company policy pertaining to employment, human rights, health, safety, the environment, sanctions, export controls, anti-corruption, privacy and data protection and other ethical business practices; events that damage the company's reputation or brand; significant investigations, claims, lawsuits or other legal proceedings; start-up of new plants and products; the success of new product initiatives; changes in customer product preferences and sales mix; gaps or limitations in rural broadband coverage, capacity and speed needed to support technology solutions; oil and energy prices, supplies and volatility; the availability and cost of freight; actions of competitors in the various industries in which the company competes, particularly price discounting; dealer practices especially as to levels of new and used field inventories; changes in demand and pricing for used equipment and resulting impacts on lease residual values; labor relations and contracts; changes in the ability to attract, train and retain qualified personnel; acquisitions and divestitures of businesses; greater than anticipated transaction costs; the integration of new businesses; the failure or delay in closing or realizing anticipated benefits of acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures; the implementation of organizational changes; the failure to realize anticipated savings or benefits of cost reduction, productivity, or efficiency efforts; difficulties related to the conversion and implementation of enterprise resource planning systems; security breaches, cybersecurity attacks, technology failures and other disruptions to the company's and suppliers' information technology infrastructure; changes in company declared dividends and common stock issuances and repurchases; changes in the level and funding of employee retirement benefits; changes in market values of investment assets, compensation, retirement, discount and mortality rates which impact retirement benefit costs; and significant changes in health care costs.
The liquidity and ongoing profitability of John Deere Capital Corporation and other credit subsidiaries depend largely on timely access to capital in order to meet future cash flow requirements, and to fund operations, costs, and purchases of the company's products. If general economic conditions deteriorate or capital markets become more volatile, including as a result of the COVID pandemic, funding could be unavailable or insufficient. Additionally, customer confidence levels may result in declines in credit applications and increases in delinquencies and default rates, which could materially impact write-offs and provisions for credit losses.
The company's forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions relating to the factors described above, which are sometimes based upon estimates and data prepared by government agencies. Such estimates and data are often revised. The company, except as required by law, undertakes no obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new developments or otherwise. Further information concerning the company and its businesses, including factors that could materially affect the company's financial results, is included in the company's other filings with the SEC (including, but not limited to, the factors discussed in Item 1A. Risk Factors of the company's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q).
Fourth Quarter 2020 Press Release
(in millions of dollars)
Twelve Months Ended
Net sales and revenues:
Agriculture and turf
Construction and forestry
Total net sales
Total net sales and revenues
Operating profit: *
Total operating profit
Reconciling items **
Net income attributable to Deere & Company
* Operating profit is income from continuing operations before corporate expenses, certain external interest expense, certain foreign exchange gains and losses, and income taxes. Operating profit of the financial services segment includes the effect of interest expense and foreign exchange gains or losses.
** Reconciling items are primarily corporate expenses, certain external interest expense, certain foreign exchange gains and losses, pension and postretirement benefit costs excluding the service cost component, and net income attributable to noncontrolling interests.
STATEMENT OF CONSOLIDATED INCOME
For the Three Months Ended November 1, 2020 and November 3, 2019
(In millions of dollars and shares except per share amounts) Unaudited
Finance and interest income
Costs and Expenses
Selling, administrative and general expenses
Other operating expenses
Income of Consolidated Group before Income Taxes
Income of Consolidated Group
Equity in income (loss) of unconsolidated affiliates
Less: Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests
Per Share Data
Average Shares Outstanding
See Condensed Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
For the Years Ended November 1, 2020 and November 3, 2019
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET
As of November 1, 2020 and November 3, 2019
(In millions of dollars) Unaudited
Receivables from unconsolidated affiliates
Trade accounts and notes receivable - net
Financing receivables - net
Financing receivables securitized - net
Other receivables
Equipment on operating leases - net
Property and equipment - net
Investments in unconsolidated affiliates
Other intangible assets - net
Short-term borrowings
Short-term securitization borrowings
Payables to unconsolidated affiliates
Long-term borrowings
Retirement benefits and other liabilities
Redeemable noncontrolling interest
Total Deere & Company stockholders' equity
Noncontrolling interests
STATEMENT OF CONSOLIDATED CASH FLOWS
Cash Flows from Operating Activities
Provision for credit losses
Provision for depreciation and amortization
Impairment charges
Share-based compensation expense
Loss on sales of businesses and unconsolidated affiliates
Undistributed earnings of unconsolidated affiliates
Credit for deferred income taxes
Changes in assets and liabilities:
Trade, notes, and financing receivables related to sales
Accrued income taxes payable/receivable
Cash Flows from Investing Activities
Collections of receivables (excluding receivables related to sales)
Proceeds from maturities and sales of marketable securities
Proceeds from sales of equipment on operating leases
Proceeds from sales of business and unconsolidated affiliates, net of cash sold
Cost of receivables acquired (excluding receivables related to sales)
Acquisitions of businesses, net of cash acquired
Purchases of marketable securities
Cost of equipment on operating leases acquired
Collateral on derivatives - net
Cash Flows from Financing Activities
Decrease in total short-term borrowings
Payments of long-term borrowings
Proceeds from issuance of common stock
Repurchases of common stock
Effect of Exchange Rate Changes on Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Restricted Cash
Net Increase (Decrease) in Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Restricted Cash
Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Restricted Cash at Beginning of Year
Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Restricted Cash at End of Year
Condensed Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)
In September 2020, the Company sold its German lawn mower business. At the time of the sale, total assets were $26 million, which were recorded in "Other assets" and total liabilities were $5 million, which were recorded in "Accounts payable and accrued expenses." No cash proceeds were received, resulting in a loss on sale, including transaction costs, of $24 million pretax and after-tax. The loss was recorded with a $24 million pretax and after-tax accrual recognized in the third quarter of 2020 when a definitive sale agreement was finalized. The loss was recorded in "Other operating expenses" in the agriculture and turf operations.
In the fourth quarter and full year 2020, the Company recorded impairments and other charges as follows:
Three Months Ended November 1, 2020
Twelve Months Ended November 1, 2020
and Turf
and Forestry
Factory closure
China – agriculture
equipment *
Fixed asset and lease
impairments
German asphalt plant
factory *
Brazil construction
equipment factory *
fixed assets ****
Equipment on operating
leases **
inventory **
Affiliate company
Minority investment in
company headquartered
in South Africa ***
joint venture located in
Brazil ***
* Recorded in "Cost of sales"
** Recorded in "Other operating expenses"
*** Recorded in "Equity in income (loss) of unconsolidated affiliate"
****Recorded $15 million in "Cost of sales" and $4 million in "Selling, administrative, and general expenses"
1 The after-tax effect was $62 million and $180 million in the fourth quarter and full year 2020, respectively.
2 The non-cash charges were $72 million and $194 million in the fourth quarter and full year 2020, respectively.
During first and fourth quarters of 2020, the Company implemented employee-separation programs for the Company's salaried workforce in several geographic areas, including the United States, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. The programs' main purpose was to improve efficiency through a leaner, more flexible organization. The programs were largely voluntary in nature with the expense recorded primarily in the period in which the employees irrevocably accepted a separation offer. For the limited involuntary employee-separation programs, the expense was recorded when management committed to a plan, the plan was communicated to the employees, and the employees were not required to provide service beyond the legal notification period. The programs provided for cash payments based on years of service, and in some countries, subsidized healthcare for a limited period and outplacement services. The total pretax expenses for the fourth quarter and full year of 2020 were as follows:
Research and
development expenses
Selling, administrative
and general expenses
Total program payments will be $301 million with $166 million paid in 2020 and $135 million to be disbursed over two years. Included in total pretax expense are non-cash charges of $13 million and $34 million in the fourth quarter and full year 2020, respectively, resulting from curtailment losses in certain OPEB plans that were recorded outside of operating profit in "Other operating expense." Annual savings from these programs are estimated to be approximately $250 million, of which approximately $85 million was realized in 2020.
In September 2020, the Company acquired Unimil, a leading Brazilian Company in the after-sales service parts business for sugarcane harvesters, which is based in Piracicaba, Brazil. The total cash purchase price before final adjustments, net of cash acquired of $5 million, was $66 million with $6 million funded to an escrow account to secure certain indemnity obligations. In addition to the cash purchase price, $14 million of liabilities were assumed. The preliminary asset and liability fair values at the acquisition date assigned to the assets and liabilities were approximately $5 million of trade accounts receivables, $2 million of other receivables, $10 million of inventories, $22 million of property and equipment, $28 million of goodwill, $13 million of other intangible assets, $5 million of accounts payable and accrued expenses, and $9 million of net deferred tax liabilities. The goodwill is not expected to be deducted for tax purposes. Unimil is included in the Company's agriculture and turf operating segment.
Dividends declared and paid on a per share basis were as follows:
The calculation of basic net income per share is based on the average number of shares outstanding. The calculation of diluted net income per share recognizes any dilutive effect of share-based compensation.
The consolidated financial statements represent the consolidation of all Deere & Company's subsidiaries. In the supplemental consolidating data in Note 8 to the financial statements, the "Equipment Operations" represents the enterprise without "Financial Services", which include the Company's agriculture and turf operations and construction and forestry operations, and other corporate assets, liabilities, revenues, and expenses not reflected within "Financial Services".
(8) SUPPLEMENTAL CONSOLIDATING DATA
STATEMENT OF INCOME
EQUIPMENT OPERATIONS 1
ELIMINATIONS
Selling, administrative and general
Interest compensation to Financial
Income before Income Taxes
Income after Income Taxes
Equity in income (loss) of
unconsolidated affiliates
Less: Net income attributable to
Net Income Attributable to
The supplemental consolidating data is presented for informational purposes. Transactions between the "Equipment Operations" and "Financial Services" have been eliminated to arrive at the consolidated financial statements.
1 The Equipment Operations represents the enterprise without Financial Services. The Equipment Operations includes the Company's agriculture and turf operations, construction and forestry operations, and other corporate assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses not reflected within Financial Services.
2 Elimination of Financial Services interest income earned from Equipment Operations.
3 Elimination of Equipment Operations' margin from inventory transferred to equipment on operating leases.
4 Elimination of intercompany service fees.
5 Elimination of Equipment Operations interest expense to Financial Services.
6 Elimination of Financial Services lease depreciation expense related to inventory transferred to equipment on operating leases.
SUPPLEMENTAL CONSOLIDATING DATA (Continued)
Interest compensation to Financial Services
Receivables from unconsolidated
Trade accounts and notes receivable
Financing receivables securitized -
Investments in unconsolidated
Liabilities and Stockholders'
Total Deere & Company stockholders'
Financial Services equity
Adjusted total stockholders' equity
Total Liabilities and Stockholders'
7 Elimination of receivables / payables between Equipment Operations and Financial Services.
8 Reclassification of sales incentive accruals on receivables sold to Financial Services.
9 Reclassification of net pension assets / liabilities.
10 Reclassification of deferred tax assets / liabilities in the same taxing jurisdictions.
11 Elimination of Financial Services equity.
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash
provided by operating activities:
Loss on sale of businesses and unconsolidated
Undistributed earnings of unconsolidated
Provision (credit) for deferred income taxes
Trade, notes, and financing receivables related
to sales
Collections of receivables (excluding receivables
related to sales)
Proceeds from maturities and sales of marketable
Proceeds from sales of equipment on operating
Proceeds from sales of businesses and
unconsolidated affiliates, net of cash sold
Cost of receivables acquired (excluding
receivables related to sales)
Increase in investment in Financial Services
Decrease (increase) in trade and wholesale
Change in intercompany receivables/payables
Capital investment from Equipment Operations
Net cash provided by (used for) financing
Effect of Exchange Rate Changes on Cash,
Cash Equivalents, and Restricted Cash
Net Increase (Decrease) in Cash, Cash
Equivalents, and Restricted Cash
Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Restricted Cash
at Beginning of Year
at End of Year
12 Elimination of depreciation on leases related to inventory transferred to equipment on operating leases.
13 Reclassification of share-based compensation expense.
14 Elimination of dividends from Financial Services to the Equipment Operations, which are included in the Equipment Operations net cash provided by operating activities, and capital investments in Financial Services from the Equipment Operations.
15 Primarily reclassification of receivables related to the sale of equipment.
16 Reclassification of lease agreements with direct customers.
17 Reclassification of sales incentive accruals on receivables sold to Financial Services.
18 Elimination and reclassification of the effects of Financial Services partial financing of the construction and forestry retail locations sales and subsequent collection of those amounts.
Other Financial Information
For the Twelve Months Ended
Equipment Operations*
Construction and Forestry*
Dollars in millions
Net Sales - excluding Roadbuilding
Average Identifiable Assets
With Inventories at LIFO
With Inventories at LIFO - excluding Roadbuilding
With Inventories at Standard Cost
With Inventories at Standard Cost -
excluding Roadbuilding
Operating Profit - excluding Roadbuilding
Percent of Net Sales - excluding Roadbuilding
Operating Return on Assets - excluding Roadbuilding
SVA Cost of Assets - excluding Roadbuilding
SVA - excluding Roadbuilding
Average Equity
Cost of Equity
The Company evaluates its business results on the basis of accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. In addition, it uses a metric referred to as Shareholder Value Added (SVA), which management believes is an appropriate measure for the performance of its businesses. SVA is, in effect, the pretax profit left over after subtracting the cost of enterprise capital. The Company is aiming for a sustained creation of SVA and is using this metric for various performance goals. Certain compensation is also determined on the basis of performance using this measure. For purposes of determining SVA, each of the equipment segments is assessed a pretax cost of assets, which on an annual basis is approximately 12 percent of the segment's average identifiable operating assets during the applicable period with inventory at standard cost. Management believes that valuing inventories at standard cost more closely approximates the current cost of inventory and the Company's investment in the asset. The Financial Services segment is assessed an annual pretax cost of approximately 13 percent of the segment's average equity. The cost of assets or equity, as applicable, is deducted from the operating profit or added to the operating loss of each segment to determine the amount of SVA.
* The results and assets related to the Company's Roadbuilding product line are excluded from the calculation of SVA to allow time for integration and assimilation of the 2017 acquisition of Wirtgen Group Holding GmbH's operations.
SOURCE Deere & Company
www.deere.com
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Cycling Across Southern Denmark - Part 1
We left off our last blog episode at the border of Denmark on August 8 (yes, we've been a bit neglectful about getting back to finish this year's episodes). We found ourselves here because in reading up on cycling in Europe over the years, we kept seeing Denmark consistently ranked, together with the Netherlands and Germany, as one of the most bike-friendly countries in the world. It was time to see for ourselves.
Denmark is a country of modest size. It's 8% bigger than the Netherlands, but only 1/8 as large as its neighbor Germany. If you combine New Hampshire and Vermont, then take away a county or two, you've got the area of Denmark. As for population, its 5.8 million people are almost 3 times as many folks as you'd find in New Hampshire and Vermont combined, but less than a third the number of inhabitants of the Netherlands.
About 60% of Denmark's land area is on the large peninsula that connects Denmark and Germany, called Jutland in English or Jylland in Danish. Except for the first 40 km of our travels in Denmark, we were not in Jutland but rather on 9 large and 3 small islands in the southeastern part of the country. Indeed, all of Denmark except for the Jutland peninsula is on islands, 422 named ones and another 1,000 unnamed ones 100 square meters or larger (about the size of a school classroom). Although advances in technology have enabled the Danes to connect many of these by impressively long bridges, there are nonetheless many large gaps that can only be 'bridged' by ferry, and we ended up taking ten of them in our month there.
In today's blog entry we'll cover the mostly eastward part of our trip, from the German border across that corner of Jutland, then the islands of Als, Funen, Aero, Tåsinge, Langeland and Lolland. This was precisely half of our 880 km / 550 mi. in Denmark. We'll head north in the next blog and do the other half.
Denmark has a national network of bike routes, and we mostly followed Route 8 as we headed east and 9 for the northward part of our trip, supplemented at times by regional routes marked by numbers from 20 to 99. We also had a map showing these, but two problems arose. First, the route had been shifted in at least 3 instances we encountered between the printing of the map and our arrival. Each time we followed the map rather than the signs. Second, while the map did distinguish between paved and unpaved roads, it did so only for those which were not part of a bike route. We were never sure what we would find. Our first 4 km in Denmark were a rude shock when we biked into a protected forest area at the Danish-German border in order to connect with Route 8, and found ourselves off pavement, not on packed limestone but on dirt. It would have been no problem for a single mountain bike, but our road tandem with luggage was not up to it (or more precisely its passengers -- us). We ended up walking half of the 4 km each time it went uphill or downhill. Hmmm, this is not an auspicious start!
When we exited the forest preserve, we next found that Route 8 had become not a bike path but rather the shoulder of a highway. It was not a major highway, but the shoulder was only about 2 feet / 60 cm wide. Again, not what we've encountered in Germany and the Netherlands, where bike lanes on the side of a road are less common and much wider when they do occur. However . . . halfway to our destination of Sønderborg we had a surprise that was as pleasant as the first two had been disappointing. We were on a section of a quiet side road when a cyclist approached us with a mobile visitor info bureau.
Her summer job is to bike along National Bike Route 8 and other bike routes leading into Sønderborg to welcome cyclists to Denmark and to provide maps, brochures and advice. We were actually adequately supplied with maps and had done enough research to know which tourist destinations we wanted to visit in that area, but she did provide us other useful advice such as how best to find lodging in Denmark, and she reassured us that we would find Denmark more credit-card friendly than most countries in Europe. In fact it was. Unlike almost every other European country we've biked in, Denmark does not use the euro but rather the Danish Krone. So we had to stop at the first ATM we encountered once we crossed the border to get a supply of them. We usually find it necessary to get cash from ATMs every 2-3 weeks in the countries we've visited so far in Europe, but here the cash we took out at that first ATM was still mostly in our wallet at the end of our time in Denmark, and we had to find creative ways to spend it in the last two days. In any event, it was nice to have such a personal welcome to cycling in Denmark.
Our route was mostly along the shore, and we stopped once to photograph a pair of city-block-sized islands. It seems so romantic to have a house on your own private island, but we wonder how the residents feel about the trip home on dark and stormy nights?
There aren't quite as many castles and manor houses in Denmark as islands, but the number of them is still impressively large. We encountered our first one only 40 km in, Sønderborg Castle. The oldest part of it dates to 1158, with major expansions in the 14th and 16th centuries. It was the prison home of King Christian II of Denmark for 17 years in the 1500's after he was deposed.
Today the castle is a museum of local culture and history, mainly focusing on the complex history of the area known as Schleswig-Holstein. As in many parts of Europe, Schleswig and Holstein were inhabited for centuries by people from multiple language groups, here largely Danish and German. In the mid-1800s the area was considered the property of the Danish king but not part of the nation of Denmark. In the 1860s there were two wars fought over these lands between Denmark and Prussia. In the first, the Prussians were the aggressors, and England, France and Russia forced Prussia to back down. That emboldened the Danish king who, 2 years later, announced that the area was in fact part of his nation. Prussia went to war again to protect the German-speaking inhabitants from this Danish "aggression," and the rest of Europe this time stayed out of the dispute. Prussia easily defeated the Danes and annexed the whole area in 1864, even though there were relatively few German-speaking inhabitants in the northern part of Schleswig. Jump forward to WW I and the defeat of Germany, of which Prussia was a major part. The victorious Allies let Germany keep Holstein in the south, which was heavily Germanic, but held a plebiscite for north Schleswig and south Schleswig. The northern part voted to return to Denmark, the southern to stay German, and the border has not changed in the 99 years since then. But in Sønderborg (marked with a red dot on the map), feelings about this 56-year period of being involuntarily part of Germany are still intense. Many Danes have mixed emotions about Germany because of its 5-year occupation of Denmark during WW II, but here in north Schleswig the feelings seem definitely more pronounced.
We saw many homes, especially in smaller communities, that were wonderfully old and quaint, but Denmark also has a modernist streak as well -- just think of 'Danish Modern' furniture. Our first night in Denmark was in the decidedly modern Steigenberger Alsik Hotel and Spa on Als Island, across the narrow estuary that separates it from Jutland. The tall black box is the hotel, the lower area to the left the spa complex. From the viewpoint on the next-to-top floor we had a spectacular view of the city and surrounding countryside, including the modern campus of the Suddansk Universitet across the water to the west, and then to the south for a different perspective on Sønderborg Castle than our first view of it.
We visited the castle the next day and learned much about Schleswig-Holstein history but also saw the castle's medieval chapel that was redecorated soon after Lutheranism came to Denmark. One of Luther's main accomplishments was to publish the Bible in the vernacular, making it accessible to common folks for the first time, and there were panels all around the chapel with famous excepts from his German Bible. The first words of this one are "The Lord is my shepherd," and many of you can probably recite the rest of this verse even if you can't read Old German. In another room there were two samplers done by girls who were probably 12-15 years old when they stitched them. This one dates from 1870. Since our meeting 11 years ago with Stephen and Carol Huber, Connecticut antique dealers extraordinaire who specialize in this art form, we always perk up when we see a sampler anywhere.
We had gotten to Als Island on a fairly short drawbridge, but the gap from Als to Funen, our next island, was kilometers, not meters, so we had our first Danish ferry ride. This ferry like many others we took had a curious feature. The furthest lane is for tall vehicles such as the trailer you see, or tall trucks. The other lanes have a movable second level. It lowers somewhat then has a ramp that comes down to the car deck at the tip of the deck. Cars drive up the ramp onto this movable deck until it's filled, then the ramp retracts and the entire deck lifts up. Finally, cars drive in to the spaces underneath it, on the main deck. The headroom getting out of your car is not great but it's adequate, and this tight packing keeps the weight of vehicles in the ferry lower, giving the boat better stability.
We had a pleasant ride eastward with a tailwind still coming from the SW, as it had been doing for the past 2 weeks. We saw the small city of Faaborg well before we arrived for what we thought would be a 2-night stay in an apartment. It turned out to be very comfortable and right in the heart of the city, with a very nice supermarket only 4 minutes away by foot, and when the weather turned wet at the end of those 2 days we decided to stay on for 3 more nights. We enjoyed the whole stay.
The next morning we took a ferry to the small island of Bjørnø and explored the small village, the size of about 3 or 4 city blocks, and then took a walk 2 km along the south shore and back on the north shore. Here 's the Faaborg harbor as we left and then looking back from the island, plus various scenes on our walk.
That tall tower in Faaborg is known as the Belfry and is over 750 years old. In the reformation the church it was attached to was torn down, but the tower stayed since it was such a good landmark for sailors. On our return to town we climbed to the top of the Belfry, which still calls out the time four times an hour, then walked about Faaborg. It is quite a charming town.
The following day promised rain all day and our place was available so we stayed in except for a short trip to the grocery store. In the evening the rain let up in time for us to walk to the town museum where we heard a concert of music performed by a clarinet trio. It's always so nice to hear live music, one of the things we don't seem to be able to find in time most summers.
The rain let up for a day and we took a different ferry off to two more islands that were large enough to explore by bike, Lyø and Avernakø. The ferry does a triangular route, and the schedule allowed us to both see Lyø and have a great wood-fired pizza at the only place in this small town that serves food.
Besides the many quaint homes we passed, we also saw a windmill that was missing some important parts, an attractive village church and churchyard, a lost hedgehog, and a dolmen. This is the word in English for a prehistoric stone burial structure. We've seen others in the Netherlands, where they are called hunnebeden. This one is almost certainly older than Stonehenge, though a tad less impressive.
On Avernakø we saw more wonderful scenery, including this lonesome home looking out at the Baltic Sea. Nearby was one of the last roses of summer, with rose hips that looked like ripe tomatoes!
After one more rainy day that saw us catching up on reading and trip planning all day, we finally got back to biking and rode to our next destination, Svendborg, another small city on the south coast of Funen Island. And here we stayed for three nights as still more rain came in -- a total of 4 out of 6 days where the rain kept us in the better part of the day. But not totally inside -- during breaks in the rain we got out for a few walks, none more interesting than our walk through another cemetery. We have never seen cemeteries as well kept as we saw all along our route through Denmark, but this one was particularly attractive and lush with vegetation. Indeed, in some places we have no idea whether there are even any bodies below, it seems so much like a garden. Here are a few photos.
Two spots were particularly poignant. In the photo to the left, all the graves were those of Danish soldiers who died at the hands of the Germans during WW II. The death toll for the country was not large since the country saw that resistance by tiny Denmark to the Nazi juggernaut was pointless and surrendered quickly. But it was far from bloodless. The photo on the right is of one of the graves in a group of 7. All were Brits and Aussies, the entire crew of an RAF bomber shot down over Denmark as it headed toward naval facilities on Germany's Baltic coast.
Here are a few shots from our walk about the town, including a very dapper fox in one of the shop windows.
With all that rain delay, we were anxious to get moving again. We hopped on the ferry to Aerø Island and it looked like we were about to have another dismal day. The rain did come down in buckets, but only for a few minutes while we were on the ferry. We had an Airbnb apartment rented on the island for two nights and were anxious to see as much of Aerø as we could, since guidebook after guidebook described it as one of the best places to bike in Denmark. It was indeed scenic and bike-friendly.
We'll start with a shot of our ferry, now headed back, and then some very colorful shacks along the water. Danish homes tend to be quite colorful, but the palette is rarely this bold. In town we took photos of several streets with colorful homes in more of the usual colors.
Those bricks were rather bouncy to ride on, but not impossible. Outside the town the route was mostly on quiet paved roads, but bicycle route 8 did send us down one section of unpaved road for about 3 km. At the west end of Aerø we came to a small lighthouse which, for a few Krone, we were able to climb. A look back east shows some of the rolling terrain typical of Denmark.
On Aerø the challenge was the wind more than the hills. Luckily our Airbnb hosts, Janice and Nils, had been at home when we came by early, and we dropped off our panniers before going out onto the exposed point where the lighthouse was. The panniers are about 14 lbs / 6 kg each, but they also catch a bit of the wind, and it is much more fun to ride without them, when we can manage.
Our hostess Janice is a New Zealander, and it was fun to hear a Kiwi accent again, something we haven't heard much since our visit there in 2008-09. Their home here on Aerø dates to the late 1700s, and was something of a wreck before they renovated it. It's stunning now, and it was oh, so comfortable!
Although our place was in a tiny village with no stores, there was a supermarket a few km away where we were able to get fixings for supper each night. We had seen roughly half of the 90-km circular bike route around the island on day 1, so for day 2 we of course completed the loop. As we left our lodgings we paused to take a shot of one of the neighboring homes, and then a few km down the highway photographed a home that represents a style of older (as in a few centuries old) home that we have seen frequently, one long axis and two shorter axes at right angles, enclosing a central courtyard area.
Our guidebook strongly suggested we stop to see the Bregninge Kirke, the Lutheran church in the village of that name. It was worth doing so. And, of course, the churchyard had exceedingly well-tended gravesites.
By comparing a few maps we identified a few sections of bike route 8 that were unpaved, and avoided them. This was no problem, there really is not much traffic on Aerø. We once again had no luggage, so things looked great until we noticed an ominous cloud gaining on us from behind. We picked up the pace, to no avail. Since this is a very rural place, our refuge was underneath a tree. Luckily the storm, though intense, was brief, and the rain was just beginning to drip through the many layers of leaves above us when we were able to come out and resume our biking, mostly dry. Later in the ride we did have a section of gravel path but it was underlain by packed limestone and it was level, so the only challenge was for Jeff to navigate the fairly narrow route it cut along the shore.
The next morning we were back on the ferry. As it approached the bow section lifted up, a common feature of ferries we've seen on the Baltic. Inside the suspended second level was in place, here only a narrow one to one side.
Leaving Aerø we passed by the spit with all those colorful shacks. Our ferry's destination was Svendborg, with its scenic harbor, but we had already spent three nights here and from the ferry we circled back to the bridge we had just passed under on the ferry, and rode across to our fourth island, Tåsinge. Once again you can see that Denmark is not flat, but our route took us along the shore so we did not have to cycle up that hill in the distance. By the way, just over that hill is a church with the graves of Elvira Madigan and her tragic lover, Sixten Sparre. But we haven't seen the film, so weren't inspired enough to go see it.
Instead, we followed our guidebook's suggestion to explore the town of Troense, and in particular a street called Badstuen. Good call. Here are some handsome thatched homes, another one in the process of being rethatched, and a more modern home with an impressive garden.
On the edge of town is Valdemar's Castle (Valdemars Slot), built by King Christian IV for his son Valdemar. Unfortunately, Valdemar died in battle in Poland, and never saw his new digs. A later king eventually gifted it to a naval hero, and the 11th generation of that family still lives there, though parts of the castle and grounds are open for public tours, which we skipped. Besides the main house and what appear to be stables and a seaside guest house perhaps, there is an impressive gatehouse that the bicycle route passes right through.
After only 15 km of riding, we were already on the far side of Tåsinge and onto another bridge to our fifth large island, Langeland. As the name implies, it's long and narrow, roughly 50 x 10 km. We stopped briefly in the island's largest settlement, the small city of Rudekøbing, and took one photo on a street our guidebook thought was worth seeing, then dropped in at the tourist office to get a map of the island to supplement our bike map. Then it was off to yet another castle, Tranekaer Slot.
We didn't sleep at the castle but rather in an apartment a km. away, where we cooked our own dinner with groceries picked up an hour earlier -- the closest source. But breakfast was provided as part of the deal. and it was served in the castle's former stables! We had the stall previously reserved for the horse named Munne. Hey, it was a good meal.
Behind the castle is an unusual garden called TICKON, the Tranekaer International Center for Art (Kunst) and Nature. It consists currently of 20 installations that are a "gift to nature," as the guide puts it. They must be made with natural materials and left to change as nature alters them over time. Here are four: "Organic Highway" to the right, then "Between the Copper Beech and the Oak," "Moss Tumulus" and "Diamond Mines" (the low walls roughly define diamond shapes).
We were staying a second night in the same apartment so were able to do another ride without our panniers, but between strong winds, some fairly rolling terrain and a few unpaved portions of road that didn't thrill us, we cut the ride a little short after reaching a nice cafe for lunch and a small grocery store for dinner supplies. Having had a bad fall in May when the tandem hit a patch of spilled transmission fluid in Seattle, we are jittery about any road surface that looks like it could cause us to lose traction, and we're finding more dirt roads in Denmark than we expected.
Finally our last island for today's blog entry, Lolland, after an hour-long ferry ride from Langeland. The unpaved road in the first photo proved firm, and fairly soon we were on solid asphalt. Incidentally, good pheasant country, this.
Because Lolland is quite rural, it was hard to find lodgings. At last through Airbnb we found a bed and breakfast in an old farm on the edge of a nature preserve, and a grocery store not too far off our route where we could find supplies for a cold dinner salad. That's our go-to solution whenever our lodgings don't have a stove and there's no restaurant in walking distance. Our hosts were charming, and in the morning they showed us the editorial cartoon from their morning paper. Trump had just said he wanted to buy Greenland from Denmark, even though it's not for sale, an idea the Danish Prime Minister had called "Absurd." Trump's reaction was of course to label her a "nasty woman" (vaemmelige Dame). The cartoon pretty well sums up the view of Trump from every Dane we spoke to for the rest of our time there.
Our final destination on Lolland was the small city of Sundby and its Medieval Center (Middelaldercentret). On the way there we passed yet another castle, though these days it calls itself simply the Krenkerup Estate. Alas we did not know it at the time, but it is now a brewery! The same family has owned the estate since 1367, but the brew pub it's now known for seems to be a recent addition. We didn't time-travel quite as far at the Medieval Center, where we were transported "only" back to the year 1402.
We quite enjoyed our 5 hour visit here. As the sign indicated, some locations had crafts people doing or making things, at other times we could infer from the exhibits and buildings how shoes were made or multi-story houses put together.
Some of the pleasure was simply walking about, admiring the work that was done to create a believable medieval village, and the work still done each day to bring it to life.
We arrived just a little too late for the trebuchet demonstration, a type of catapult used before gunpowder came to Europe. It was capable of hurling moderately heavy rocks 100 m / 100 yds. or more, or of tossing burning material over the walls of a fortified town in the hope of catching the thatched roofs on fire. We did catch the archery demonstration, however, and watched several youngsters get rudimentary training on how to use a bow and arrow. Nearby in what they called their medieval 'Technology Park,' there were examples of an easily constructed bridge designed by Galileo, and of a scouting tower that could be raised up by cranking that wheel, both created for military use.
By far, the liveliest part of the visit was the daily joust. Much of it was a competition between our two knights at skills such as catching small rings on their lances as their horses galloped full tilt down the dirt track of our stadium. The climax was when the two knights ran at each other at full speed, the aim being to hit the opponent's shield in a way that the lance would shatter. As in a so-called professional wrestling match, there appeared to be great mayhem but both participants emerged unscathed.
After all this exposure to the Middle Ages, Jeff thought he ought to see how a jousting helmet works as a substitute for his bike helmet. The answer is, not well.
On our walk back to our hotel we looked across the water at the city of Nykøbing on Falster Island. That's where we'll head to in our next blog entry.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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This is why we have free speech laws in the U.S.
So that we can avoid a complete cluster-intercourse trial like this on in Canada.
Check out this article.
Or this earlier one.
Or this even earlier one.
Much of yesterday's proceeding was punctuated by angry shouts and taunts from a gallery packed with members of the Jewish and native communities. And many of the jeers were directed at Crown attorney Brent Klause, who was booed and called a racist several times.
"This isn't a circus. I've had enough. I just think it's time we had some decorum," Mr. Klause said, after he asked the judge to put a stop to the constant comments from the gallery.
Many of Mr. Ahenakew's supporters were angered that Mr. Klause had challenged the native leader's assertion that aboriginals aren't immigrants because they were born "here on this land."
"Your people came across the Bering Strait," Mr. Klause said to Mr. Ahenakew, which elicited jeers.
He later apologized to the court after suggesting Mr. Ahenakew was media savvy and not "an unsophisticated individual from some remote northern band."
"That's bullshit," one middle-aged aboriginal man said later as he demanded an apology from the Crown.
The guy was right about one thing. That's bullshit.
David Ahenakew made overtly anti-Semitic remarks. He did. He really did. Now, he is being made a martyr.
You want to expose the guy, embarrass him in the press, fine. But to have the freakin' state put the guy on trial....Things are not so bad that some ham-handed prosecution can't make it worse.
(Props/nod to JP)
An important figure in American history, and an incredibly energetic intellectual, will be visiting Duke next week. He is doing a book tour, for his new book, The Essential America: Our Founders and The Liberal Tradition. I have read parts of it, and while I think he is wrong he is hardly completely wrong, and always interesting.
For more info, see the news release.
But, the essentials....
Duke East Campus
White Lecture Hall
Followed by Q&A
(Books will be available for purchase, if you are interested)
Moron Intellectual Diversity
(I meant to write "More On Intellectual Diversity", but now that I look at the title I'll leave it. Freud smiles).
I found this, at Gadflyer:
In fact, liberal bias in the academy is a fiction based on the same sort of selective analysis used to "prove" bias in the media. While there are certainly plenty of liberal professors, never mentioned are inherently conservative departments like economics, right-leaning frats and student groups, the influence of campus ROTC or the fact that for every left-leaning Vassar or Oberlin there is an equally conservative Washington and Lee or BYU.
Instead, the focus is on departments like sociology or ethnic and women's studies where there's a lot of progressive thought. In those departments conservatives collect liberal professors' statements, take them out of context and use them to weave a circumstantial case of bias. The goal is not to promote diversity of opinion but to convince people that our nation's universities have been hijacked by, as the title of one book put it, "tenured radicals" who brainwash our youth with their crypto-socialist ideology.
ATSRTWT...
Well....thanks for playing, but no. Econ departments and Business schools are also mostly liberal in terms of affiliation. The ratio is 5-3, instead of 10-1, but still. Academic leftists are kidding themselves with this kind of crap. It is simply a fact that far and away most academics are liberal, and far too many have long ago stopped caring about honest intellectual discourse. They are so comfortable, and isolated from real debate, that they can't stand to have anyone disagree. When I tell colleagues that I am conservative, their response (seriously) is "But you seem smart."
Sure, lots of people do good teaching, and are honest intellectual brokers. But there is a real problem. The only solution is an intellectually diverse commitment to good pedagogy.
I was on an NPR show recently, where we talked about this. Interesting response from Judith Wegner: see no, hear no, say no, do no.
I try to be fair, but most faculty are just so sure that (1) There is no bias, and (2) Conservatism is to intellectualism as Creationism is to biology. If you believe #2, you can't argue #1 with a straight face. Unless you are a liar or a fool. And they are not fools.
1. On the documentary from AcademicBias.Com....A small role here for KGrease himself. I tell the drama of Robert Brandon, revealing all the facts for the first time. (Okay, no, but I do appear in the film for a few minutes).
2. NPR "State of Things" show on the subject
3. Duke's rather raucous forum (yes, I was brilliant. Thank you).
4. And then....Coturnix. An interesting and (for him) fairly balanced polemic. I think I disagree with him, but there are some good points here.
5. Poliblogger on Ward Churchill and academic freedom.
6. Post on MB article from the Chronicle
7. Ju-Gen on Western Culture
8. Finally, as I blogged before, here is Peter Lange (Duke Provost) addressing, if not quite answering, a difficult question.
9. Finally plus one (sue me): This.
Lange on "Biased" Teaching
Peter Lange, Duke Provost, was recently asked this question at an Academic Council meeting (March 24):
"In the Jan. 25 issue of the Chronicle, a Duke student complained about what he perceived as propagandizing in one of his classes: 'One of the most insulting moments of my Duke education occurred in an ancient Chinese history class in spring 2003, when the U.S. was preparing to invade Iraq. Our teacher took a break from Confucius and the Han Dynasty to stage a puzzling "teach-in" about Iraq in conjunction with some national organization. During this supposedly neutral discussion, she regaled us with facts and assertions suggesting that the Iraq war was scandalous, foolish and doomed to fail.' If the student's account provides to be accurate, do you think that the instructor's conduct was a legitimate use of class time? Or did it go beyond the limits of academic freedom, in which case, what action do you think might be appropriate on the part of the academic administration?"
His response, in part:
Creating, fostering and enhancing our culture of learning must be our goal. This goal must guide our decisions about how we judge and possibly intervene in any specific event or incident that may appear to threaten the quality of that culture. In determining whether such a threat exists and whether and how to respond to it, it is worth remembering that our culture of learning is best fostered by shared norms of conduct, ones that encourage and accept the free expression of ideas and that reflect mutual respect for the expression of ideas by others.
Such shared norms, and the behavioral habits that reflect them, stand in some contrast to formal rules that seek sharply to define "appropriate" or "legitimate" behavior. Such "rules" in the academic context are likely almost always to falter in the face of the complex processes through which students learn and our faculty teach or, at times, through which our faculty learn from what their students say and do. The application of formal rules, while occasionally necessary, is unlikely to advance the deeper commitments that must support a true culture of learning.
I have to say, I largely agree. If faculty are not committed, genuinely committed, to real teaching, I don't see that some Jesuitical set of rules and appeals procedures is going to help.
ATSRTWT.
UPDATE: Then, there's this. Question: When exactly did Paul Krugman sell his soul? He makes Jerry Springer look honest and tasteful.
An Academic Question
By PAUL KRUGMAN
(NYT, April 5)
It's a fact, documented by two recent studies, that registered Republicans and self-proclaimed conservatives make up only a small minority of professors at elite universities. But what should we conclude from that?
Conservatives see it as compelling evidence of liberal bias in university hiring and promotion. And they say that new "academic freedom" laws will simply mitigate the effects of that bias, promoting a diversity of views. But a closer look both at the universities and at the motives of those who would police them suggests a quite different story.
Claims that liberal bias keeps conservatives off college faculties almost always focus on the humanities and social sciences, where judgments about what constitutes good scholarship can seem subjective to an outsider. But studies that find registered Republicans in the minority at elite universities show that Republicans are almost as rare in hard sciences like physics and in engineering departments as in softer fields. Why?
One answer is self-selection - the same sort of self-selection that leads Republicans to outnumber Democrats four to one in the military. The sort of person who prefers an academic career to the private sector is likely to be somewhat more liberal than average, even in engineering.
But there's also, crucially, a values issue. In the 1970's, even Democrats like Daniel Patrick Moynihan conceded that the Republican Party was the "party of ideas." Today, even Republicans like Representative Chris Shays concede that it has become the "party of theocracy."
Consider the statements of Dennis Baxley, a Florida legislator who has sponsored a bill that - like similar bills introduced in almost a dozen states - would give students who think that their conservative views aren't respected the right to sue their professors. Mr. Baxley says that he is taking on "leftists" struggling against "mainstream society," professors who act as "dictators" and turn the classroom into a "totalitarian niche." His prime example of academic totalitarianism? When professors say that evolution is a fact.
Think of the message this sends: today's Republican Party - increasingly dominated by people who believe truth should be determined by revelation, not research - doesn't respect science, or scholarship in general. It shouldn't be surprising that scholars have returned the favor by losing respect for the Republican Party.
Conservatives should be worried by the alienation of the universities; they should at least wonder if some of the fault lies not in the professors, but in themselves. Instead, they're seeking a Lysenkoist solution that would have politics determine courses' content.
And it wouldn't just be a matter of demanding that historians play down the role of slavery in early America, or that economists give the macroeconomic theories of Friedrich Hayek as much respect as those of John Maynard Keynes. Soon, biology professors who don't give creationism equal time with evolution and geology professors who dismiss the view that the Earth is only 6,000 years old might face lawsuits.
If it got that far, universities would probably find ways to cope - by, say, requiring that all entering students sign waivers. But political pressure will nonetheless have a chilling effect on scholarship. And that, of course, is its purpose.
Parent abuse
Me, this morning, driving carpool: "I can't believe people keep knocking down those bricks around the driveway. I have to rebuild that wall every two weeks. It's like I never make any progress."
My son, with even tone and not looking up from his book: "Yep, Dad, you are truly the modern Sisyphus. You should write about it. As much as I like to hear about this every morning, I'm sure others want to hear about it even more."
Butthead. I wish I had said it.


text:
Elder: Black motorists lying about cops: Who's doing the 'racial profiling'?
Three black motorists recently have made false accusations against courteous police officers. Body-cam videos prove it. Who's profiling who?
Elder: Black motorists lying about cops: Who's doing the 'racial profiling'? Three black motorists recently have made false accusations against courteous police officers. Body-cam videos prove it. Who's profiling who? Check out this story on thespectrum.com: https://www.thespectrum.com/story/opinion/2018/06/10/black-motorists-lying-cops-racial-profiling/688837002/
Larry Elder, Creators Syndicate Published 11:13 a.m. MT June 10, 2018
Larry Elder(Photo: Creators Syndicate)
In the last few weeks, three black motorists, including an NAACP chapter president, made blatantly false allegations against perfectly courteous police officers.
Now who's "racially profiling"?
First, in Timmonsville, S.C., local NAACP President the Rev. Jerrod Moultrie put up a lengthy post on his Facebook page: "Tonight, I was racially profiled by Timmonsville Officer CAUSE I WAS DRIVING A MERCEDES BENZ AND GOING HOME IN A NICE NEIGHBORHOOD." The reverend claimed the officer told him, "I am doing you a favor tonight not taking you to jail or writing you a ticket."
Timmonsville Police Chief Billy Brown said Moultrie contacted him the next morning with his accusations of racial profiling and mistreatment. "He made a comment that the officer accused him of having drugs in the car," said Brown. "He said that his wife and grandchild was in the car. He asked them not to move because the officer looked as if he might shoot them or something. He also made mention that the officer continued to ask him about his neighborhood. Why was he in that neighborhood? And (threatened) to put him in jail in reference to something dealing with the registration to the vehicle."
But Chief Brown reviewed the body cam video of the four-minute traffic stop. It showed a very polite officer explaining he pulled the car over for failing to signal a left turn and reminding the occupants to wear their seat belts.
Brown said: "When I saw the video, I was shocked that someone who is supposed to be a community leader, a pastor, and head of the NAACP would just come out and tell a blatant lie. It bothered me. It really bothered me, thinking about the racial unrest it could've cost in the community and it's just troubling to me that someone who held a position like that would come out and just tell a lie."
The Rev. Moultrie removed his original Facebook post, and refused further comment.
Second, a black South Carolina woman said she had a "traumatic experience" in Virginia when pulled over for speeding and "threatened" by a "white cop." Dawn Hilton-Williams posted an 11-minute Facebook Live video accusing a Brunswick County Sheriff's Office deputy of racism after she was ordered to sign a summons asking her to appear in court or prepay a traffic ticket.
"I have had a traumatic experience, and I want the people who are not African-American who know me to really get where we are coming from," Hilton-Williams says. "When I saw the police pull up behind me, the state trooper, I was immediately afraid. ...
"This is the area," she says, moving the camera to show the rural road. "In the middle of this kind of stuff. This is where I am, so it's not like I'm not afraid, because this is where we got lynched. ... Do any of my white friends ... feel like that when they get pulled over?"
Hilton-Williams says the "bully" cop "threatened" to "pull her out" of the car for refusing to sign the ticket and was "degrading" her "as an African-American." Her Facebook footage — taken right after she was stopped — was widely shared.
But the body cam video tells a different story. The officer, addressing her as "Ma'am," explains he clocked her going 70 mph on a rural highway that has a 55 mph limit. Asked to sign the summons for speeding, she repeatedly refuses.
The officer explains: "What you are signing here is a promise to come to court or a promise to prepay. It's not an admission of guilt. ... If you refuse to sign the summons, at this point, I'm going to have to get you outside of this car, I'm going to place you under arrest and take you in front of a magistrate. I will get your vehicle towed. ... You do not have a choice but to sign this summons. So once again, you're signing right there. So thank you. I knew you were going to sign it. Thank you very much. ... Have a very safe day."
Third, a viral post last week by civil rights "activist" Shaun King claimed that in Ellis County, Texas, a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper sexually assaulted a black woman, Sherita Dixon-Cole, following a traffic stop, then arrested her for driving while intoxicated.
King wrote: "The officer first communicated to Sherita that he would be willing to let her go if she performed sexual favors for him, then proceeded to sexually assault her, touching her under her skirt," King said in an interview.
But two days later, the TDPS released a nearly two-hour body cam video and issued the following statement: "The video shows absolutely no evidence to support the egregious and unsubstantiated accusations against the Trooper during the DWI arrest of the suspect. The Department is appalled that anyone would make such a despicable, slanderous and false accusation."
When a cop is caught on tape mistreating a suspect, many say, "Imagine what would've happened had this not been filmed by a civilian with a smartphone." But this cuts both ways. How often do civilians falsely accuse police officers of misconduct?
Larry Elder is a best-selling author and nationally syndicated radio talk-show host. To find out more about Larry Elder, or become an "Elderado," visit www.LarryElder.com. Follow Larry on Twitter @larryelder.
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Letters to the editor: July 14


This isn't specific to 6 but it just occured to me now so I figured I would post it.
Many times I work with 2, 3 or even 5 visual studios open all running resharper.
Would you like to overwrite it with the current settings?"
I never have any idea whats going to happen when I click yes or no. This dialog is extremely unhelpful.
With often 4 or 5 VS solutions open at any given time it is almost impossible to know exactly which settings have been changed and whether "yes" or "no" will preserve the correct set of settings.
Furthermore when closing multiple solution at the same time (e.g. during a shutdown) often 3 or 4 instances of this dialog will pop up and it is impossible to know which choices should be made to preserve the desired settings.
I created http://youtrack.jetbrains.net/issue/RSRP-265912 for this issue.
If I could 3rd, 4th and 5th this too - this message box is the worst piece of UI I can currently think of in any bit of software, and I've been meaning to complain about it on here for ages.
* It's impossible to answer correctly because you can't tell which instance is asking, and which settings it's asking about.
Then things would work about as well as could be reasonably expected. Of course there are corner cases - other instances won't immediately change behaviour when you change a setting, and opening the settings dialog box in two instances at the same time would cause one set to be lost, but at least we'd be spared the stupid message box. What have I missed here?
BTW, I have come to the conclusion that one should always click 'no', but I don't really know why, it just seems that you lose settings less often.
I never have any idea whats going to happen when I click yes or no.
This dialog is extremely unhelpful.


text:
InsiderBusinessSupport scheme for workers to be expanded
Support scheme for workers to be expanded
More businesses will be able to benefit from government schemes that allow employees to claim special unemployment allowances because of lower turnover resulting from the coronavirus lockdown, Eleftheria Paisanou reports for Phileleftheros.
Citing sources, the paper said that the Labour Ministry has expanded the list so as to protect more jobs, given that participation in the scheme prohibits companies from dismissals until October 12.
The plan is to include insurance agents who are not receiving commission from existing contracts and whose income depends on new contracts.
Dental technicians, physiotherapists, vets, some specialties of doctors and dairy producers will also be able to sign up, it added.
Labour MInister Zeta Emilianidou is expected to submit her proposal to cabinet today with 10 corrective measures on calculating and paying the allowances, as well as the additional companies that can join the schemes from April 13 to June 12.
The issue was discussed extensively by the minister with social partners.
It was also clarified that some businesses that were believed to be excluded from the schemes can do so. These include food suppliers such as bakeries, butchers, fruit shops and companies that supply hotels and restaurants which have been closed as a result of the lockdown.
Meanwhile companies that made dismissals at the start of the crisis will be given a second chance to join the schemes, provided they reinstate the affected employees.
They can then submit their applications by Sunday so that they can benefit from the scheme for the March 16 to April 12 period.
In a circular, the Employers and Industrialists Federation (OEB) called on all its members who wish to do so and are allowed to join the scheme to do so by the deadline of April 26.
How much support the state will offer for June to October was not clarified during the teleconference with the minister assuring that this would depend on the recovery of the business.
Trade unions told the minister they have received complaints of violations of the collective agreement and the unilateral reductions in wages.
They also urged the minister to step up checks of undeclared labour as a number of affected employees received less money.
By Eleftheria Paisanou
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