Posted on: Sunday, June 22, 2008
Japanese best visitors, but Americans try hard
Compiled by John MacIntyre
Rank of the Japanese, British and Germans as the overall best tourists, according to the findings of a global survey of hoteliers by Expedia: 1, 2 (tie)
Rank of Americans overall: 11
Rank of the Americans, Canadians and Russians as the most generous: 1, 2, 3
Rank of the Americans as those who lead the way with putting effort into learning a few key sayings in the local language and sampling local delicacies: 1
DANGER ZONES
Rank of Hong Kong (.hk) as the most dangerous country to surf and search on the Web, according to a McAfee survey: 1
Rank of People's Republic of China (.cn), Philippines (.ph), Romania (.ro) and Russia (.ru) on the list of dangerous surfing places: 2, 3, 4, 5
Percentage increase over 2007 in the chance of downloading spyware, adware, viruses or other unwanted software: 41.5
WORKPLACE THEFT
Percentage of workers who report they have taken office supplies for personal use in the past year, according to a Spherion Workplace Snapshot survey: 19
Of those who admit to having stolen office supplies, percentage who felt guilty or regretted the act: 22
Percentage of workers who feel it is wrong to take office supplies: 74
MR. MOM
Percentage increase in the number of stay-at-home dads over the past decade, according to the Census Bureau: 50
Percentage of fathers who say being a stay-at-home dad is more challenging than their career, according to an Adecco USA Workplace Insights survey: 64
Percentage of mothers who agree: 71
ANYTHING GOOD ON?
Number of television channels that the average U.S. home now receives, according to a report from The Nielsen Co.: 118.6.
Percentage of these channels that the average household tunes in to for at least 10 minutes per week: 13
CHEATING POLS
Percentage of Americans who believe it is likely 100 or more of the current 535 incumbent members of Congress have had extramarital affairs, according to a survey by Wilson Research Strategies: 52
Percentage who believe 300 or more have had an extramarital affair: 25
Percentage who say nearly all (500 or more): 11
GOLDEN YEARS
Percentage of baby boomers who seem eager to retire, according to a survey of senior HR executives in North America by Novations Group: 14
Percentage who seem no more eager to retire than previous age groups: 42
COST OF TRAVEL
Percentage of business travelers who are now staying at less-expensive/lower-star-rated hotels to save on travel costs, according to a survey by Orbitz for Business and Business Traveler Magazine: 68
Percentage of business travelers and corporate travel managers who are feeling some degree of pressure to cut travel expenses: 79
Percentage of companies that are tightening their travel policies and implementing more restrictions on travelers for hotels and dining: 41
SPREAD THE WORD
Percentage of inbound phone leads that are lost by most marketing companies, according to SecondApproach services: 60 to 80
Percentage of small and medium businesses that would pay for better online visibility and customer information: 50
THEY'VE SEEN THE LIGHT
Percentage of Americans who support the development and funding of solar energy, according to findings reported in the Schott Solar Barometer: 94
Percentage of Americans who feel that the development of solar power and other renewable energy sources should be a major priority of the federal government: 77
IDLE THOUGHT
"Life has meaning only if one barters it day by day for something other than itself."
— Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.
