Scapegoats?

First I should probably tell you my -- as of last month, former -- brother in law is Ernie Pool.
I've always used him as an example of someone who could start working in a lowly position at a young age and work his way up that ladder. Until he gets around 60 years old, that is, and possibly eligible for benefits and other such inconveniences.

That may be a cheap shot, because I should make it clear that Ernie never talked about business to me -- he was a loyal trooper. So everything I say is pretty much conjecture. This is going to affect my sister at an already difficult time for her, and Ernie is good guy.

Still -- this is the sort of thing you can almost guess was going to happen when Mt. Bachelor goes from a locally owned operation to a national corporation. I always say, when the Corp. says that the only changes will be positive, hold onto your wallets.

So....at a guess, the people at the mountain were given less money to work with, higher ticket prices and shorter seasons, a stretched work force, and aging equipment without adequate replacements.

And at a time when almost all the other ski resorts in Oregon numbers are up, Mt. Bachelor is down.

What to do?

Fire top management. (Local management, that is, I'm sure the corporate heads are safely attached...)

Something tells me that not much will change next year. Probably a stronger public relations effort -- never mind that broken chair lift, look how we painted it a new color!

Like I said, I have no inside knowledge. But I think we just saw a great example of scapegoating.