Headline for the Week (1)

 

Some Good News For a Change

  Admittedly, this is a cheap way to create a post, since post-worthy headlines are found daily. But, we really do need some good news, and it is that luxury car sales are up. I do suppose there is some corresponding bad news, in that if you wish to buy a new Bentley Bentayga, you may be too late. Perhaps there might still be a few left with the steering wheel on that side. The headline:
                        "As the World Reels, Bentley Sales Skyrocket."

  It is found at the top of an article in the Globe & Mail on Jan. 12 which was written by Andrew Clark. He adds: 

"If you’re looking to sum up the economic side of the COVID-19 pandemic in one sentence, look no further: “Luxury British car maker Bentley cruised to a record year in 2021 as global sales jumped 31 per cent amid strong demand for high-end vehicles, the Volkswagen AG unit said on Thursday.”

That’s from Reuters. As the world reeled from the worst pandemic in more than 100 years, Bentley sales rose to 14,659 in 2021 from 11,206 units in 2020. Bentley’s top-selling vehicle was the Bentayga luxury SUV, which starts at more than $200,000.

There you have it – as the plague raged, members of the moneyed class were forced to spend their hard-earned millions on luxury vehicles. How fortunate they had the outlet."

   Other luxury cars were in high demand.

"Bentley isn’t the sole luxury vehicle in high demand since the pandemic swept the planet, leaving millions of people dead, unemployed and/or depressed. In April, 2021, Rolls-Royce chalked up the best quarter in its history. The company sold 1,380 cars in the first quarter (up 62 per cent from the same period in 2020). In 2021, Lamborghini registered the best six months in its history, selling 4,853 vehicles. Porsche North America sold 70,000, up from its record sales in 2020."

His concluding line:

"Kind of makes you wonder: if Nero were around today, would he fiddle as Rome burned, or would he head down to the nearest Bentley chariot dealership?"

The Bonus:

   Since I confessed that that was a fairly easy post to create, here are a couple more headlines, noticed recently. They are not necessarily in the 'good news' category, but they are ones that will be easily identifiable as representative of the current zeitgeist. 

"California Will Require Large Retailers to Provide Gender Neutral Toy Sections" (the L.A. Times, Oct.10, 2021)

"Any Abuse That Anybody Talks About, It's True." (CTV News, London, June 25, 2021)

For a whole bunch more: "Extra Extra, Read All About It."