THE ENTERPRISE
Email-experience of the week: An email from a friend, and whether it is actually true or not..IT SHOULD BE!
"I called a business today and received the following greeting from the automated attendant:
"Press '1' if you speak English."
"Press '2' to disconnect until you can."
THIS IS THE USA AND WE SPEAK ENGLISH HERE
This is the United States of America and if people want to come here and live here and enjoy its benefits, they need to learn to speak its language--which is English. The only thing that this message could have done better was to make the Press 2 announcement in Spanish ... and perhaps several other languages.
A BANKRUPTCY OF IDEAS--WHY IS THIS NOT A SURPRISE
News flash: Air America, the liberal talk-radio network started by Al Franken and investor friends just filed for bankruptcy protection. It's been bankrupt of original ideas since it started, so this is the normal evolution of things. Surprisingly, Franken was unavailable for comment; probably off writing a book to criticize some well known Conservative.
WAL-MART CAN'T WIN
As Wal-Mart has its first ever earnings "blip" and withdraws from Korea and Germany, after losing to local competition, it struggles to succeed in the UK where its acquisition ASDA was doing better before Wal-Mart, and is now losing ground to Tesco and others. Then, when Wal-Mart announces that it will cut the price of many popular generic drugs to $4 to help low income people it meets with more criticism: first, it is plotting some evil scheme to take advantage of these low income people, or second, it is trying to bulldoze its way to still more market share. I think that is called "competing," isn't it?
WANT SOMETHING ELSE TO WORRY ABOUT?
People are eating more, getting fatter, and thus need larger cars which guzzle more gas. One of the car companies is even using this as an advertising theme. Snack food companies and fast food giants are making "healthier" junk food--an oxymoron. There is no way I can rationalize that a Big Mac and Biggie Fries or a tasty bag of fried chips are really good for me, no matter what oil they are fried in. I still love and indulge occasionally on good kettle cooked chips,, and my car veers naturally to the Krispy Kreme store when the "HOT NOW" sign is on. But please, don't insult the intelligence of those who can think. These are not healthy foods. And don't mislead the vast majority of Americans who are too lazy to think...junk foods are still NOT good for you. Plus, you'll need a larger car and more gas. (pun intended)
HOW ABOUT A BIG WORRY--ONLY LOOSELY TIED TO ELECTIONS
State and local governments are building huge deficits in their pension funds. Much bigger than the corporate ones that get all the press coverage. How about $2 Trillion (Yes, that is Trillion with a T.) What will they need to do, one of these days? Same as corporations--either lower benefits or raise prices (in their case that is your taxes.) There is no magic solution except these two--save perhaps sliding out the retirement age to 70 or beyond--which is a virtual certainty one of these days. Even the growth in the stock market won't solve this one.
---Not only did the Benedict Arnold CEOs NOT sell out Americans (sorry Lou Dobbs, John Kerry, et. al.--stuff it)...the jobs that were going to find their way offshore did, and will continue to do so. The jobs that Americans fight for and want to keep, for good reasons (too big, too bulky, to strategically important to import) will stay here. One big surprise: In the past 5 years, new US jobs offset those that moved offshore (albeit different jobs, and often at lower pay levels). The net gain in jobs since 2001--all 1.7 million of them--were due to growth in employment in the Health Care industry--and that will continue to grow, not decline and more of us get older and live longer. Tip to new college grads and job seekers: try the health care field. It's like the Eveready Bunny--going and going and going.
WHAT ELSE DO WE KNOW FOR SURE--PAIN & POLITICS?
---GM & Ford are getting slammed by Toyota and Honda, and it will get worse before it gets better. It doesn't matter that GM is building better cars or that Ford has a new CEO. Hyundai and Kia will put new pressure on them all in the next wave of global competition. Ranking the old Big Three: 1) GM is making better vehicles can survive, but only with extreme measures--like getting rid of its ridiculous JOBS program; Chrysler can make it by shrinking to just the low-price popular products division of DaimlerChrysler, and Ford is in BIG trouble, with only its trucks standing tall. It needs the harshest triage...we'll see if the new CEO and the Ford family are up for it.
---Only fools believe that President Bush is manipulating oil prices. C'mon people, this is a global market. Bush has done a lot of things, most of them not so good, but this one, even he, Cheney and Rumsfeld can't pull off. If they could, they probably would...but they can't. The trouble is that the less educated, intelligent and conversant with important matters of the day, the more gullible and naive the citizens of the US become--all fueled by malcontents like Al Franken and his buddies. However, that said, Americans should be upset.
---Congress was a record-breaking DO NOTHING GANG, and I place a lot of the blame on weak leadership--Bill Frist and Denny Hastert didn't lead the party in majority control to get things done.. Both need to be, and will be replaced. Everybody seemed to "like them" (their peers) but that wasn't their job. Their job was to lead, govern and confront the big issues, driving them to resolution. The prospect of Harry Reed as one of those leaders is scary indeed, and so is the rest of the gang that will take control of the committees in Congress if the Dems sweep in Nov. Just imagine this. (Scarier than the Foley debacle by far.)
A REALLY SCARY SCENARIO
You wake up next Jan. with Harry Reed as Senate Majority Leader AND Nancy Pelosi as House Speaker (3rd in line for the Presidency!!!!???AAAARRGGHH) Key committees would be chaired by such Democratic dignitaries as Ted Kennedy (Education & Labor), Charles Rangell (Ways & Means), Robert Byrd--yes, he's still alive--(Appropriations), Joe Biden (Foreign Relations), and more... But the way things are going, this could very likely be the outcome of the mid-term elections ... thanks to the current GOP's long list of screw-ups and the Bush administration's blind pig-headedness. It's one thing to have strong resolve. That's good. It's another to take it to extremes, be just plain stubborn, and then penalize yourself and your party for it (especially if you were at all wrong).
A NATION OF POLITICAL ILLITERATES, FOOLS AND DUPES
Am I upset about the upcoming election? Damn right. I have seen nothing but negative ads. No plans, no policies, just mud. It would be fun to throw out the whole bunch, but you gotta vote for somebody to go to Washington. The American people are so "dumbed down" that some of them actually think that "perky Katie Couric" is a real newscaster. GAG. Many actually believe the crap being fed to themas if it were news and the truth, by CNN, CBS, et. al. Since when did the news media get to "make up the news" if they didn't like reporting the facts. But why shouldn't Americans at large be uninformed--they never take time to think or to read anything except the TV Guide to see what sitcom or reality show is on TV next. Somebody needs to make a reality show called YOUR NEXT PRESIDENT and strand the whole bunch of candidates on a desert island to fight it out. Thje winner, and "survivor", gets the job. And that could well be Hillary--isn't she the toughest nut of the lot?
SO WHAT TO DO?
You know I never end without at least a shot at what to do. First, keep things in perspective. Consider the Business Week magazine headlines I found (while file cleaning) this week: Cover story: Can America Compete--"The US economy...faced with the urgent need to reduce its budget and trade deficits,....may well see its standard of living decline, and The Hollow Corporation--The decline of manufacturing threatens the entire US economy... The dates on these were April 20, 1987 and March 3 1986. What goes around, comes around. Surely the world has changed in 20 years, but many truths remain self-evident (didn't our founding father use that line?).
What we can do is first of all: VOTE...and for my money, choose the best individual IF you can figure out enough about what they stand for to know. When in doubt, VOTE REPUBLICAN, not because the GOP has done such a good job. It hasn't. Vote this way because at least many Republicans have positive plans besides "get Bush out" and might, just might, be scared enough by a really close call to begin governing and leading again. At least they are the most likely to fix their own messes. For the Bush haters--you've pretty much got him for 2 more years--unless a Democratic landslide sets up an impeachment vote, (Won't that be a mess?)
DON'T CONFUSE PERSONALITY WITH POLICY AND PHILOSOPHY. To the few Democratic or liberal readers still on the mailing list--I KNOW--you can say "I told you so," about Bush, but your party and its leadership is so bereft of positive new ideas, that a solid Democratic landslide will still be a DISASTER for the USA. The scary gang I named about will be in control and they and their colleagues want to take you back to the era of FDR, big UNIONs and BIG government control--TAX and SPEND because we know better than you what to do (Sadly, in the case of their loyal constituents, they are probably right!).
Worse yet, the appeasers and bleeding hearts will stop the war on terror in its tracks and open the country's doors to the Islamic terrorists and the car bombs and IEDs will be going off on our streets and road instead of Baghdad's.
In just over 2 weeks, get to the polls and vote--for the best man or woman running. Do enough homework to form a good opinion. Or get an absentee ballot and vote in the peace and quiet of your home where you can do some research on the slate of candidates. Some Democratic Governors should and will win. The Republican candidates are just too weak. But IF, as a nation, we turn over control of Congress to the Democrats, look out. And don't say you weren't warned.
Best, John
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