A year ago, the sky seemed to be the limit for Starbucks. Plans for 40,000 stores worldwide were met with some skepticism, but most seemed to think if anyone could do it, it would be Starbucks.

But then, as 2007 got into full swing, the wheels started to come off.

It became apparent that while Starbucks still had tremendous growth opportunities overseas, things were very different on the domestic front. Same store sales data seemed to show over-saturation and the stock fell 40%. The once trendy status symbol, which I once heard described as a “four-dollar Mercedes”, wasn’t so trendy anymore.

Others looked past the saturation argument and instead blamed the quality of the product. These folks accused the fully-automated machines that could better handle the growing lines at the counter, but removed much of the “je ne sais qua” that the friendly, but fiendishly busy Barista provided.

Regardless of the reason, in 2008, Starbucks is looking to reinvent itself. CEO superstar Howard Schultz is back in the saddle and has promised that the company will return to its roots. That means no more hot breakfast sandwiches, which were being tested in many metropolitan areas, as well as many other secret plans not yet revealed.

So, after that brief recap here’s the question of the morning: Do you think Starbucks can pull it off?

If the coffee chain were to revert back to a time when their service was more personalized and focused on the coffee, would you make a point to stop on the Square a grab a cup? Or are the Decatur coffee animals (Java MONKEY or Dancing GOATS) more your style? Perhaps you just prefer to brew your own…

Up until now, I’ve really tried to avoid posting about the horrific Meredith Emerson murder case. National and local media outlets are doing a pretty good job of reporting on every little detail in the case. But after reading about the results of her autopsy, I felt inclined to say something, if for nothing else but to start a discussion where others could express their concern/horror/sadness.

I guess I consider myself as a pretty avid day hiker. I was brought up walking the trails around New England and have spent a good many weekends hiking the trails in the North Georgia Mountains since moving here in 2001. Many of these trails helped me cope with the chaos of the city before I was really conditioned to the normal rush of urban life. So, like many thousands of hikers nationwide, this story really bothers me deep down.

Additionally, I’ve been to Vogel State Park, the scene of this horrific murder, and walked the trails with both my wife and dog. Its a beautiful, tranquil state park with great trails and amenities that will now eternally be the setting for a horrific murder and every hiker’s worst nightmare.

This adds to my general unease.

Ultimately, its fruitless to rail against the actions of the guilty suspect in this case, Gary Michael Hilton, as everything that was done to Emerson is beyond sane comprehension and explanation. All I can say is that I am continually shocked by the horrors that human beings are capable of. Movies give us the false sense that all of the deranged living is only played out on the screen, but to have it come even this close to my life (which admittedly isn’t that close), I feel an indescribable chill and fleeting lack of faith in humanity.

I know that people like Gary Michael Hilton are the exception to the rule, but random acts of violence are the ones that really make you feel helpless in an unpredictable world. Domestic violence is much more prevalent than stories like Meredith’s, but most people can feel safe that these sorts of front page stories will never happen to them.  They at least have some control over the circumstances that escalate in those cases.  Not so with this story.  All you have to be is a hiker that’s ever been alone in the woods and you feel vulnerable.  For a while it will be hard not to look over your shoulder while hiking as this story runs its course.

What can we do but be aware? But not paranoid. Feel sorrow, but not give up hope?

Easier said than done, I know.

All the support in the world should be given to the Emerson family. It goes without saying that no one deserves this.

Zach over at Wordsmiths’ blog gives his 2008 State of the Business a couple weeks early, ruminating over the the book store’s past year of start-up and looks to the future, promising on-site coffee and a used book section in the coming year. Both get a big thumbs up from me. [h/t: InDecatur]

But even local-loving Decaturites shouldn’t become complacent about supporting our independent book stores. They need our business. Outside (and probably inside) our little independent shop haven, writers, publishers and sellers all worry about the future of the medium.

A recent overview of the book industry in the L.A. Times (“A Dismal Year for Books“) summed up worries for the future of independent book shops nationwide and the solvency of the industry as media and publishing evolve into the digital space.

The article ultimately concludes with the uneasy feeling that many a book-lover with his/her wallet on the line must be dealing with these days.

Overall, as the publishing world looks back on 2007, it’s hard to reconcile the unease people feel about the business with the excitement they feel about the books themselves. When he goes to publishing dinners, bookseller Doug Dutton said, the conversation swings between lamenting the state of the business and exclaiming joy over a new novel or history.

“It’s about as murky a picture as I’ve seen,” said Dutton. Then he amended that slightly: “Sort of like last year and the year before.”

Buy local.

News that CL has laid off seven non-editorial people in its Atlanta office, along with bigger cuts (including editorial) at the newly acquired Chicago Reader and Washington City Daily, will get definitely get the attention of the Atlanta blogsphere.

It begs the question of whether these alt-publishers, just like the big-boys over at the AJC, can stay solvent in an ever-changing .com world.  My personal take is that most print media will end up moving to the web, but its going to be a rocky road for a while, as advertisers slowly move their ad dollars from TV/radio/print to the web.

As for us one-man blogger operations, we don’t necessarily need the ad dollars (unless its a full-time job), just more free time (which I guess would come with more cash).  Regardless, I don’t see myself laying myself off any time soon.

Read Creative Loafing’s “official” take here.  Sounds like DriftGrift is on this story too.  Oh, and some paper called the New York Times also covered the story.

They give up everything, and then if they survive, spend the rest of their lives trying to get some of it back. For some, they don’t have the support system back home to get them through the physical and psychological struggle. But why do they end up on the streets?

From the AP

“Veterans make up one in four homeless people in the United States, though they are only 11 percent of the general adult population, according to a report to be released Thursday.

And homelessness is not just a problem among middle-age and elderly veterans. Younger veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan are trickling into shelters and soup kitchens seeking services, treatment or help with finding a job.

The Veterans Affairs Department has identified 1,500 homeless veterans from the current wars and says 400 of them have participated in its programs specifically targeting homelessness.

The National Alliance to End Homelessness, a public education nonprofit, based the findings of its report on numbers from Veterans Affairs and the Census Bureau. 2005 data estimated that 194,254 homeless people out of 744,313 on any given night were veterans.

In comparison, the VA says that 20 years ago, the estimated number of veterans who were homeless on any given night was 250,000.

Some advocates say the early presence of veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan at shelters does not bode well for the future. It took roughly a decade for the lives of Vietnam veterans to unravel to the point that they started showing up among the homeless. Advocates worry that intense and repeated deployments leave newer veterans particularly vulnerable.”

Some predict that Iraq War vets, like those returning from Vietnam, will again be blatantly ignored by the country they served. For once, I choose to be optimistic. In this war, unlike Vietnam, the criticism is rightfully pointed at the administration and not the troops on the ground. When these soldiers return home, they have the opportunity to become a powerful political force. One that understands the realities of war and the true sacrifice of future generations. Then maybe, just maybe, vets will get the political and financial support they deserve.