THE ENTERPRISE
—The Economy--Still Going and going and ....
The US economy is like the Ever-ready Bunny. It keeps going and going and going...for now. That's good, because when the batteries finally start to run down, they lose power fast and the bunny stops and drops over "dead" (batteries, that is). Until then, enjoy the ride, but keep your powder dry, because the end is just over the horizon unless or until someone(s) in DC really shuts off the spending tap and start acting like responsible adults.
There are several management principles embodied in the paragraphs that follow. These apply in business as well as in government.
1) When you're hot...do smart things and be a little humble... or you'll soon find out you're not!
2) Einstein said "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." Perhaps the Bush White House should re-read this one. So should companies that think the management that got them in trouble is going to get them out of trouble. Won't work.
3) Stop problems at the source--"nip them in bud"--and establish metrics that reinforce the correct behavior--not vice versa. The remember that tough problems take tough solutions, and "the behavior rewarded is the behavior that will be repeated!"
1—The waste of "political capital" (And 2006 election projections--see below)
George W. Bush spoke of the "political capital" he had after defeating John Kerry. He has spent the last 2-1/2 years frittering it way. With the lowest approval levels of a President in recent US history, Bush has done plenty wrong, but even the things his administration did (or tried to do) right (and despite his detractors, there were a number of "good things")...they DID THEM WRONG...OR AT LEAST HANDLED THEM POORLY. I could make a list, but you know them. Not all of them are the startling, significant issues the mainstream media made of them, but most of them could have been handled sooo much better by Bush's team of "we're right, you're wrong" insiders. Even though they are right a lot, neither the opposition nor most of the American public likes that kind of treatment, and the consequences will be large.
2—White House Re-staffing--too little, too late (for 2006 elections that is) but worth continuing
Changing the chief of staff and press secretary are both fine moves. But they don't really make policy directly. Changing Rumsfeld now is the wrong thing to do, given the deplorable "break of ranks" by retired generals. What happened to the military ethic of loyalty to the chain of command? Whether they are right or wrong is irrelevant. They were out of line. Period. Anyone who thinks they weren't, go to the back corner of the classroom for detention. There are lots of places where speaking out against authority figures is perfectly OK. In fact, we've made it into a nearly destructive mania in the US. But NOT IN THE MILITARY, and not people of this rank. Shame on them. We have enough trouble without this kind of thing PUBLICLY undermining the confidence of our fighting men. (They can use terms like FUBAR privately all they want, but you don't go public with it.) That said, there are plenty of spots Bush could re-staff that would both bring in fresh insights and send a clear message to the American people--"we admit we screwed up and are going to make some changes." C'mon W...keep on with replacements--but make them meaningful, not token.
3—Somebody woke up in DC! Now can they get it done?
Finally, the Bush administration and Senate Leader Frist have a good idea that WILL make a difference in the US. Raise the CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards and raise them a bunch. Quit pussy-footing around and do it NOW! The technologies exist to make more fuel efficient autos right now and if the known methods are combined into new vehicles, I'm betting we can save a huge amount of energy that we are paying OPEC for--money that largely funds our adversaries in the Middle East. Want to bet the House tries to water down the proposed bill? It's an election year and they are all up for re-election. I wonder if they will figure out that average Americans know this is a good idea. C'mon Congress--get it done.
3—Tax Gas Guzzlers, both the Gas and The Guzzlers
The US gas prices are about 1/2 that of rest of the developed world. Why? We don't have nearly as high a tax on gas. If we are serious about ever balancing the budget AND energy independence a good way to start is to stick a healthy (but not ridiculous) added tax on gas, and the higher the octane, the higher the tax. (Keep regular fuel taxes lower for the less well-off to buy.) Then slam a tax on any vehicle that gets lousy mileage, as part of the CAFE increase bill. If you want to drive a Hummer H2, fine, do it. This is America, and you can. You'll just pay an extra ANNUAL fuel consumption tax in addition to buying $4/gallon fuel to fill that big gas tank. Take part of the proceeds and use it to bring down the debt run up by the Iraq War, and take the other part and use it to drive a "Man on the Moon" level project to make the US independent of foreign oil and its tyrants like Iran (and OPEC in general) and Venezuela's Chavez, et. al.
3—Illegal Immigrants are...ILLEGAL...what's so complicated about that?
Any time we let someone break a law and do nothing about it, we might as well repeal the law, because the message is clear--it doesn't matter if it's illegal. I know we can't reasonably round up and deport 11-12 million illegal immigrants already here, but we can sure as hell make a serious attempt at finding and punishing those who are flagrantly ignoring the law. The demonstrators can have a fit all they want, but until they can chant in English and write their signs in English, as far as I'm concerned, they can go back to wherever Spanish (or whatever other languages they are using) are the native tongues.
The Pareto Principle usually applies, so the vast majority of the illegals are concentrated in locales, jobs, industries, etc. So we can't deal with 11-12 million. How about nailing 1/2 of them and the employers who are "using" them? A few "public hangings" (figuratively speaking, of course) send a loud and clear message. But the punishment for the worst offenders cannot be a fine. That's just money. It has to be banning them from operating the facilities employing illegal immigrants in quantity--just like the EPA can do to polluters--shutting them down. That WILL get their attention.
Of course Congressional phones will ring off the hook. Frenzied lobbyists will be calling in every imaginable favor. BUT, until someone takes significant action--and fast--these kind of problems will keep getting worse and worse. We wring our hands over outsourcing of US jobs. Has anyone calculated whose jobs those 11-12 million illegal immigrants are taking? Even the ones Americans are too proud or lazy to do need to be available to American citizens first--then open up to others. And Detroit's cries about CAFE standards killing them--don't matter--they're already almost dead now. And GM is advertising how many cars it makes that get over 30 mpg--maybe it'll resurrect them.
Serious problems require serious, but strong action. Now if somebody will just use a figurative cattle-prod on this Congress and this Administration, and whisper in the ear of the media to make American Energy Independence our version of the 1960's Man on the Moon, that will get things going. If we quit buying Iran's oil, maybe they can quit claiming they need nuclear energy know how for non-military use. And if we quit condoning the employment of illegal immigrants with a wink and a smirk and levy some serious penalties, maybe American employers will figure out the right behavior. And maybe if we staff the White House with a few more people with the big H--Humility, instead of the other big H--Hubris, both our allies and our citizens will like our President more and our enemies less.
If you know anyone in a position of influence in Washington, DC--please forward this to them instead of the latest joke. We might actually find one person who can start something positive happening.
Best, John
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