Estimated value of packaged goods coupons offered annually, according to research from the Promotion Marketing Association's Coupon Council: $350 billion

Average value per coupon: $1.25

Percentage of all coupons issued that appear in the Sunday newspaper free-standing inserts (FSI): 90

Source: Promotion Marketing Association.

Percentage of business travelers who are more apt to stay at a less-expensive hotel if it offers amenities like free wi-fi and/or continental breakfast, instead of a more luxurious hotel that does not offer these perks, according to a survey by Orbitz for Business and Business Traveler Magazine: 67

Percentage of those surveyed who say their company's per diem spending for meals has decreased in the past year: 17

Source: Orbitz.

Percentage of gays and lesbians who say they have faced some sort of discrimination in the workplace, according to a study by Out and Equal Workplace Advocates and Witeck-Combs Communications: 65

Percentage who have heard anti-gay comments on the job: 47

Percentage who say they remain closeted at work: 36

Source: Out and Equal Workplace Advocates.

Ranks of talking on their cell phones, driving too fast, tailgating, and eating or drinking while driving as the behaviors by other drivers that cause stress for commuters and can lead to road rage, according to a survey by AutoVantage: 1, 2, 3, 4

Percentage of commuters who admit to reacting to bad driving by honking their horn at the offending driver: 43

Percentage who curse at the other driver: 36

Percentage who make an obscene gesture: 9

Source: AutoVantage.

Percentage of all young Americans (18 to 34 years old) who are carrying medical debt, according to research conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner for Qvisory 2008 Greenberg survey: 28

Percentage of all young people who have gone without health insurance at some point in the past five years, including 75 percent of those who are now carrying medical debt: 50-plus

Source: Qvisory.

Rank of keeping and maintaining current business and sources of revenue as the top priority for entrepreneurs, according to the American Express OPEN Small Business Monitor research conducted by Echo Research: 1

Percentage of entrepreneurs who find themselves reducing or accepting lower profit margins: 56

Source: American Express.

Percentage of physicians who have formed party and/or candidate preferences based upon the candidate's stand regarding key issues, according to a study from DoctorDirectory.com: 81.3

When asked how a universal health care system should be funded, percentage who thought it should be funded by the federal government: 10

Percentage who said they preferred some combination of state, federal, employer and individual contributions: 60

Source: DoctorDirectory.com .

Percentage of employers who recruit applicants for hard-to-fill positions only when the jobs become open, according to Aon Consulting's "2008 Benefits and Talent Survey": 52

Percentage of employers who recruit continuously: 33

Percentage of respondents who said that over the last two years, when their organizations were not successful in hiring their top recruits it was because these top candidates went elsewhere for pay they perceived as higher: 36

Percentage of respondents who said they did hire the majority of their top recruits: 32

Source: Aon Consulting.

Percentage of Americans who drink spirits that said they've had a bad experience when drinking tequila, according to a survey conducted by Agavero and Ipsos: 38

Percentage of those who said they don't drink tequila anymore because of it: 10

Approximate percentage of all spirit drinkers who said that they make an "I'm never drinking tequila again" face when they merely hear the word tequila: 16

Source: Agavero.

Average corporate health benefit expenditure per employee in 2009 (an increase of 6 percent over 2008 figures), according to the 2009 Towers Perrin Health Care Cost Survey: $9,660

Percentage increase in total health care costs since 2004: 33

Percentage increase in employee share during the same period: 42

Source: Towers Perrin.

Idle Thought

"No problem can stand the assault of sustained thinking." -- Voltaire

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600

Percentage of the very, very rich (those with a net worth of at least $30 million) who project their spending through the end of 2008 to be on par with or greater than last year, according to Elite Traveler/Prince and Associates research: 70

Percentage of these super-rich consumers who plan to spend an average of $108,100 on jewelry and watches before the end of 2008: 96.4

Percentage of the super-rich who plan to spend an average of $77,300 on apparel and accessories before 2008 ends: 97.6

Percentage who plan to spend an average of $23,400 on the personal consumption of wines and spirits: 94

Source: Elite Traveler.

Percentage of Americans ages 19 to 39 -- members of the so-called generations X and Y -- who said they were very knowledgeable about how to use an iPod, according to survey by Employee Benefit Research Institute: 40

Percentage who said they were very knowledgeable about eliminating or avoiding debt: 32

Percentage who said they were very knowledgeable about buying a home: 21

Percentage who said they were very knowledgeable about how to invest their money outside of the workplace: 15

Source: EBRI.

Estimated buying power of the burgeoning Asian-American market, which offers the most lucrative opportunities in the multicultural consumer market, according to research by Packaged Facts: $600 billion

Percentage of Asian-American households that have an income of at least $100,000: 36

Percentage of American families as a whole that have an income of at least $100,000: 25

Source: Packaged Facts.

Amount American consumers are expected to spend on Halloween this year, according to a survey conducted by BIGresearch: $5.77 billion

Amount the average person will spend on costumes: $24.17

Amount the average person will spend on sweets: $20.39

Source: BIGresearch.

Percentage of American workers who would call their boss a "friend" -- more than any other categorization, according to the Adecco USA "Workplace Insights" survey: 29

Percentage who would call him/her a mentor: 21

Percentage who view him/her as a confidant: 6

Source: MWW Group.

Percentage of U.S. energy that is swallowed by buildings, though most Americans believe transportation and industry are the largest offenders, according to the U.S. Department of Energy: 40

Percentage of Americans who correctly identified buildings as the major energy culprit, according to a survey conducted by Owens Corning: 27

Ranks of buildings, industry and transportation as the primary users of energy: 1, 2, 3

Source: Owens Corning.

Percentage of administrative professionals who said having a bad boss would be the most important factor in a decision to leave their job, according to a survey conducted by the International Association of Administrative Professionals: 45

Percentage who indicated they would leave their job because of poor pay: 4

Percentage who would leave because of poor benefits: 2

Source: IAAP.

Percentage of American workers who are happy on the job, up slightly from last year's 61 percent, according to SnagAJob.com's "Labor Happiness" survey: 65

When workers were asked the No. 1 issue facing the nation, percentage who cited the economy: 57

Source: SnagAJob.com.

Ranks of The Joker, Batman and Iron Man/Tony Stark on the list of the top three Halloween costumes for men, based on movies released in 2008, according to a survey by Fandango: 1, 2, 3

Ranks of "The House Bunny" (Anna Faris), Fox (Angelina Jolie) from the movie "Wanted" and Hannah Montana (Miley Cyrus) on the list of the top three Halloween costumes for women: 1, 2, 3

Source: Fandango.

Estimated annual economic losses in marine fisheries resulting from poor management, inefficiencies and overfishing, according to a World Bank-FAO report: $50 billion

Taken over the last three decades, estimated total losses, a figure roughly equivalent to the GDP of Italy: $2 trillion

Estimated number of people whose livelihoods depend on the fisheries: 200 million

Percentage of these people who live in developing countries: 90

Source: FAO.

Idle Thought

"It is also a victory to know when to retreat." -- Erno Paasilinna, essayist

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600

Percentage of organizations that offer cell phones to executives as a perk, according to the Executive Compensation 2008/2009 survey conducted by Compdata Surveys: 60.2

Percentage of companies that provide laptops or home PCs: 43.8

Source: Compdata Surveys.

Percentage of people who said they manage the stress of tough times by spending more hours with loved ones and on leisure pursuits, according to the Dice Report, the leading career Web site for technology and engineering professionals: 84

Percentage who are taking more time with friends, family or on hobbies: 21

Percentage who are either running, walking or riding: 26

Percentage who are turning their Blackberries off and their Tivos on: 7

Source: Dice Report.

Percentage of Americans who have a "loving and joyful" marriage, according to the findings of a national survey commissioned by Parade: 50

Percentage who admitted they remain married either because of financial reasons or because "it's too much trouble to get out": 30

Source: Parade Magazine.

Percentage of renters who have always rented, according to a national survey conducted by Apartments.com: 70

Percentage who have been renting for 10 or more years: 37

Percentage of renters who live alone: 35

Source: Apartments.com.

Average amount of life insurance coverage on insured husbands, according to a survey commissioned by Heritage Union: $235,600

When asked how much life insurance they thought was enough, percentage of respondents who said they would need between $400,000 and $1 million: 23

Percentage who thought that $11,001 to $100,000 would be sufficient: 22

Source: Heritage Union.

Percentage of Americans who rate now as a bad time to find a quality job, according to a Gallup study: 82

Percentage who felt this way in October 2007: 56

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of Americans who say they believe in ghosts, according to a survey conducted by AP-Ipsos: 34

Percentage of Americans who say they believe in spells or witchcraft: 19

Percentage of Americans who say they have woke up from sleep with a sense of strange presence in the room: 30

Source: The Associated Press and Ipsos.

Percentage of leaders who think retaining key employees is even more important during an economic downturn than it is in a robust economy, according to a study by Personnel Decisions International: 93

Percentage of companies that maintain a list of key employees who they need to retain: 68

Source: PDI.

Percentage of small business owners who said that they see developing new business as their No. 1 challenge through the remainder of the year, according to the results of a survey conducted for ING Direct's ShareBuilder 401(k): 57

Percentage who cited "access to cash" as the second greatest challenge they face: 18

Percentage who are raiding retirement accounts for cash: 16

Source: ING Direct's Sharebuilder 401(k).

In 1998, estimated number of people ("Cyberchondriacs") who went online for health care information at least once, according to a Harris poll: 54 million

Number of people who did so in 2007: 160 million

Average number of times per month cyberchondriacs look for health care information: 4.8

Source: Harris Interactive.

Idle Thought

People of small caliber like to sit on high horses." -- Magdalena Samozwaniec, writer

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600