THE ENTERPRISE--"Have a "Shay" Day (read on)
THE UAW'S TWO-SIDED SWORD
From Kiplinger Reports:
"The GM deal gives the UAW a much needed chance to remake itself, reversing decades of declining membership and influence. And it affects more than just General Motors and the United Auto Workers. The contract serves as a model for negotiations with Ford and Chrysler and will be copied in other sectors, including steel and communications. Look for the pact to make the UAW much more relevant to members as it assumes control over a new trust fund for retiree health care.If the union can handle that responsibility to workers’ satisfaction, it’s sure to become a key selling point in drives to boost membership. But the risks are huge. To make GM’s $35-billion contribution to the health care trust fund last, the union needs to invest it wisely and find ways to control soaring health care costs. That won’t be easy. The union also won job security guarantees and lump sum bonuses. In exchange, it gave up pay raises and OK’d other measures to help GM, which is struggling to compete with nonunion car makers Toyota and Honda. If it works, the GM-UAW agreement will be a win for both sides."
The new contract which passes the huge health care liability from the auto companies to the UAW is just what the UAW needed--a reason to exist. And it is just what can open members eyes to whether or not the UAW is really a friend ... or a parasite. Watch and see for yourself. Anybody want to bet which is the outcome?
HEADLINE FROM THE WSJ'S JAMES STEWART'S COMMON SENSE COLUMN
U. S. Auto Firms Need One Goal: Build the Best!
Amen!
TIDBITS:
In 1990 the average American credit card holder has an outstanding balance of $2,966.
In 2006 it was $9,659.
THREE STEPS TO SOLVING ANY PROBLEM
1. Understand the problem
2. Define the problem
3. Solve the problem
Do not jump to step 3 without passing through steps 1. and 2.
DEFINITIONS--A KEY TO UNDERSTANDING--IN BUSINESS... AND IN POLITICS
With the coming year being spent on arguing policies and politics, it is important to learn the definitoins below. They describe the names for systems of governing and running a country.
DEMOCRACY
Pronunciation: di-'mä-kr&-sE
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -cies
Etymology: Middle French democratie, from Late Latin democratia, from Greek dEmokratia, from dEmos + -kratia -cracy
1 a : government by the people; especially : rule of the majority b : a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections
FEDERALISM
Pronunciation: 'fe-d(&-)r&-"li-z&m
Function: noun
1 a often capitalized : the distribution of power in an organization (as a government) between a central authority and the constituent units.
REPUBLIC
Pronunciation: ri-'p&-blik
Function: noun
Etymology: French république, from Middle French republique, from Latin respublica, from res thing, wealth + publica, feminine of publicus public -- more at REAL, PUBLIC
1 a (1) : a government having a chief of state who is not a monarch and who in modern times is usually a president (2) : a political unit (as a nation) having such a form of government b (1) : a government in which supreme power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected officers and representatives responsible to them and governing according to law (2) : a political unit (as a nation) having such a form of government c : a usually specified republican government of a political unit <the French Fourth Republic>
SOCIALISM
Pronunciation: 'sO-sh&-"li-z&m
Function: noun
1 : any of various economic and political theories advocating collective or governmental ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods
2 a : a system of society or group living in which there is no private property b : a system or condition of society in which the means of production are owned and controlled by the state
3 : a stage of society in Marxist theory transitional between capitalism and communism and distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done
COMMUNISM
Pronunciation: 'käm-y&-"ni-z&m, -yü-
Function: noun
Etymology: French communisme, from commun common
1 a : a theory advocating elimination of private property b : a system in which goods are owned in common and are available to all as needed
2 capitalized a : a doctrine based on revolutionary Marxian socialism and Marxism-Leninism that was the official ideology of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics b : a totalitarian system of government in which a single authoritarian party controls state-owned means of production c : a final stage of society in Marxist theory in which the state has withered away and economic goods are distributed equitably d : communist systems collectively
WHICH PARTY'S POLICIES AND APPROACH TO GOVERNING MORE CLOSELY MATCHES WHICH?
In case you can't decide, listen carefully to how the plans and ideas of the Democratic candidates differ from the Republican candidates. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. Which candidates want the government to take over control of things and tax the earning part of society to support the non-earning part? Which part wants the people to have more control over how the money they earn is spent, and on what?
NOTE:
The United States was founded to be a Federalist Democratic Republic. Over the years, it has varied in how that plan was executed. This year the Founding Fathers original plan is being severely tested. The past few years misbehavior by the Republican party should not blur what the party's basic beliefs are, and how they contrast to the Democratic party's beliefs.
I'd rather you test them yourself, by listening and reading about what each candidate thinks and stands for.
AMERICAN SOLUTIONS
http://www.americansolutions.com/SolutionsLab/
A new, original approach to finding solutions for America's problems has been initiated by a group led by former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich. Even his detractors admit that Gingrich has the most insights and some of the most original, yet practical solutions to America's problems--and he is not afraid to speak out. He wants American Solutions to be a bi-partisan effort, if only the polarized proponents of solutions will meet somewhere in the middle to find a common ground. I hope it grows and works. I intend to track it closely.
SOMETHING TO WARM YOUR HEART
Finally, I have posted a story my son, Mike sent me. It touched him, it touched me, and I'll bet it will touch you too. It makes you think about the relative of "winning" versus true human values. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Best, John
Two Choices
What would you do?....you make the choice.
Don't look for a punch line, there isn't one. Read it anyway.
My question is: Would you have made the same choice?At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question: 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay,cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?'
The audience was stilled by the query.
The father continued. 'I believe, that when a child like Shay, physically and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child.' Then he told the following story:
Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and said,'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning.'
Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in his heart.The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again.
Now,with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat. At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game?Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.
However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.
The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game.
Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled.
Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath,Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball ... the smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home.
All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!Shay, run to third!' As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the game for his team.
'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world'.
Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often obscene pass freely through cyber-space, but public discussion about decency is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little bit colder in the process?
A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
You now have two choices: 1. Delete this 2. Forward it
May your day, be a Shay Day
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