THE ENTERPRISE--"JUST THE FACTS, MA'AM"
Note: The subtitle is a famous quote from the old TV series Dragnet, which many readers are too young to even remember. Many "brilliant decisions" are made based on the wrong facts, or an absence of facts, and thus have terrible outcomes. Thus, a word to the wise, "get the (real) facts!"
I'M NOT SURE WHAT TO WRITE ABOUT
This is a very disturbing time. Lots is happening, much of it unprecedented, and a lot of it, not so good. The recession has bottomed, but the recovery is not recovering--yet. More people continue to lose jobs. Spending is slow, soft, cautious. But life must go on. And so must this edition.
INEPT LEADERS AND STUPIDITY--OR BOT
The stupidity being exhibited by our elected leaders is appalling. Their complete failure to see the consequences of their actions is even more staggering. Even French leader Sarkozy tagged President Obama for his inexplicable failure to bring up the Iranian secret nuclear facility at the UN Security Council over which Obama "presided" this time. Instead, Obama brought it up in Pittsburgh shortly thereafter at the G-20 meeting. Sarkozy's exact quote: "President Obama, I support the Americans' outstretched hand. But what did the international community gain from these offers of dialogue? Nothing." I am proud of the French leader for calling out Obama on his misdirection and useless rhetoric.
THE GENERAL MAY JUST QUIT--BUT I DOUBT IT!
Vice President Biden meddles with military leadership because Obama wants to avoid areas about which he knows little, and has even less idea what to do. Obama met with his own choice to lead American military in Afghanistan, Gen. McChrystal only once until this week, when critics wondered, rightfully so, how the Commander in Chief could operate without any first hand briefing from his leader. But Biden had the solution. Fight only al Qaeda and not the Taliban. This politically expedient, but militarily and practically crazy idea has great political chops. You can't "lose" a fight you walk away from--or can you? Perhaps in walking away the greater loss will come later. The worst thing that is happening is that Obama and his minions are ceding the US global leadership position to a bunch of crazies, while they are creating a nation of dependency-seeking supporters. Who says he "loves America?" Sounds more like he "hates it." At least that is what I perceive, based on what he has said publicly in many foreign speeches, and on what he is doing (and not doing).
"America is the greatest country in the world; and we are here to change it." —Barack Obama during his Presidential campaign.
DEMOCRATS DON'T HAVE A CORNER ON INEPTNESS
I wonder why some of the GOPs intelligent and reasonable "fixes" for our health care system only surface now--when the Democrats are inches from the goal line of creating a government operated health care system--which will eventually both break our nation and work to all of our disfavor--after a brief honeymoon of help for the distressed. We will all become distressed. Where were these GOP plans when they controlled Congress--and the White House--for Bush's terms? I guess they were not important enough to legislate then. Why? Because the "old timers" in the GOP, for the most part, are almost as bad as the old-timers in the Democratic party. They are just wrong differently. The rants of Limbaugh, Hannity, Coulter, et. al. grate on the nerves as they solve nothing, but inflame the hearts and minds of decent people.
"The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well meaning, but without understanding." —Louis D. Brandeis
IF I COULD HAVE A THIRD PARTY TO BELONG TO, I WOULD--"THE NEW AMERICAN PARTY"
Both of our current political parties are a mess. The Democratic leaders, mostly aging and also mostly very left-leaning liberals are going to ruin the USA for a generation to come. The reasonable, moderate Democrats are not a large enough group to change that. The Republicans are now in the "obstructionist" mode, since they have no clear leader and few well articulated alternatives to the Obama/Congressional folly. Does anyone see a really exciting new Republican leader on horizon. (Is it Tim Pawlenty? Need to do some homework on him!)
Unfortunately money, history and the entrenched interests make the likelihood of a successful third party so low as to be unrealistic. The Libertatirans can't do it. Ross Perot's millions couldn't do it. Ralph Nader's persistence couldn't do it. AND YET, THAT IS WHAT AMERICA NEEDS. MASS DEFECTIONS FROM THE TWO POLARIZED AND PARTISAN EXTREMES TO FORM A NEW AMERICAN PARTY. Fiscally responsible and conservative and socially moderate people, (I think), make up the vast majority in America. How can we get a voice in our government over these idiots we elected to Congress and the White House? IF ANY READERS HAVE AN ANSWER TO THIS, I'D LOVE TO HEAR IT. First, we need to replace as many of the current misguided elected officials as possible. Our chance to do that next is Nov. 2010.
OBAMA'S GOT "PORK FLU"--When you don't know what to do, "throw money at the problem."
IN THE NEXT WEEK OR SO, I'LL PUBLISH THE "PLATFORM" (or at least most of it) for the NEW AMERICAN PARTY!
ON TO OTHER TOPICS--A LIST OF FACTS TO CONSIDER--(OR DISPUTE IF YOU WISH)
--Fact: The US budget deficit for the past year was $1.4 TRILLION, a record level by far. That is NOT GOOD!
--Fact: Over 70% of Americans will not believe the recovery is here until employment reverses and job losses stop--replaced by gains. It matters little who tells them otherwise (Source: BIGresearch's American Pulse Survey of over 4000 Americans.)
--Fact: You can cost reduce your way to survival but not to prosperity. That takes growth in revenue (not government largess) which is largely derived from innovation--which takes brains and guts, two things that are scarce these days.
--Fact: You cannot win by watching your competitor and reacting. You'll be slow and late every time. In business (and in most sports), the attacker has a natural advantage.
--Fact: The "outs" always have an advantage over the "ins" no matter which party is which, because they can say they'd do better--but they seldom do.
--Fact: Companies do a lousy job choosing leaders too. CEO turnover is at 15%/year and growing. New CEOs typically last about 18 months. That's simply deplorable, considering that most of them had been successful CEOs somewhere else before. e.g., Longaberger (Baskets) near Columbus is on its 5th CEO in 5 years.
--Fact: Promoting a great COO to CEO is often a mistake. CEOs have different jobs and need different skills than COOs. The COO make sure 'the trains run on time--profitably" The CEO decides where they should be going, and whether they should be trains at all.
--Fact: There are only two way to balance a budget: less spending or more income. That's it.
--Fact: A weak US dollar results in a hidden tax on every American.
--Fact: Barack Obama is more "pitchman" than President--and when the pitch doesn't make sense (like the Chicago Olympic bid) he has nowhere to turn. His solution to every problem is to "make a speech." Perhaps he should stop talking and start learning the consequences of his actions before he launches them with yet another speech.
--Fact: Inspiration must be built upon reality and truth to have any lasting effect.
--Fact: Nuclear weapons are here to stay, and if Obama insists on disarming the US, it will be the first major country to be attacked with Nukes. Who has them now and who will have them soon is a growing and disconcerting list.
--Fact: The average Federal employee earns $119,982 per year in compensation and benefits.
--Fact: The average Private sector employee earns $59, 909 per year in compensation and benefits.
--Fact: To cover this disparity, $100 billion/year is taken from the private sector in income taxes, and Federal employees only make up 2 million of the 20 million that work in the public sector.
--Fact: The Federal Bureaucracy grows and grows to no good purpose: The Department of Energy was formed in 1977 to make us "independent of foreign oil." Now it has grown to a bureaucracy of 18,000 people and a $25 Billlion annual budget and we are as dependent on foreign oil as ever--or more so.
--Fact: President Obama lied repeatedly in his speech on health care (documented by numerous news sources), but it was socially incorrect for a Congressman to call him out on just one of his lies.
--Fact: ACORN is a corrupt organization and it has very close ties to the President, and has had for years, by his own admission in public speeches.
--Fact: Charles Rangel is the leader of a major Congressional committee and has violated several laws on conduct and taxes, but still holds this prestigious seat.
--Fact: Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is a tax evader who now governs the IRS, only because he was caught and allow to make restitution.
--Fact: When the Federal Reserve simply "prints more money" to pay the government's bills, the result must necessarily be inflation, since there was no underlying value to that money. Inflation is another hidden tax on all Americans.
--Fact: Most, if not all, government stimulus spending has a NEGATIVE effect on the economy acting as a non-stimulus after the initial money is spent because it replaces private sector investment with taxes to fund the stimulus
--Fact: There are not enough doctors and nurses to meet the needs now, and increasing the number of people covered for medical care will worsen that problem. Cutting the pay of doctors to help control health care costs will result in fewer doctors, making the shortage even worse.
--Fact: America is aging and Americans will consume even more health care in the future than in the past. In a decade, "minorities" in the aggregate, will be the majority. In a few decades, there will be no more "blacks and whites, etc." There will be more and more "tans" as races intermarry and reproduce.
--Fact: One of America's greatest vulnerabilities to attack is the "Information and Communication Infrastructure," including the Internet, cell phones and the millions of computers which control almost everything from the power grid to the air traffic control system to the banking system to Wall Street to every form of broadcast media...and more. AND NO ONE IS SECURING THIS.
--Fact: There are not really 46 million "uninsured" Americans that need to be insured. Many (10+ million) are here illegally; many (17+/- million) can afford insurance and don't want to pay for it; many are in transition. The real number of "desperately uninsured" is more like 15+/- million--maybe. Thus the question: Do we need to dramatically change the system for the other 250+ million to accommodate this 15 million?
--Fact: Many, many "true scientists" believe the "Global Warming" scare is a myth, totally unfounded in scientific fact, and constructed on anecdotal evidence for political purposes. e.g., CO2 is NOT a greenhouse gas. It is necessary for plant and human life on earth. Passing a Cap & Trade system will assess another huge hidden tax on all Americans.
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS NO CORNER ON STUPIDITY--STATES CAN DO IT TOO.
--Fact: Stupidity can be local as well as national. e.g., Columbus Ohio is tearing down a perfectly good, multi-million dollar mall downtown, which was the showcase just over a decade ago, and now has been eclipsed by a series of suburban malls. First rule: people would rather shop near where they live rather than near where they work--especially in urban/suburban cities. Places like NYC where many people live in the same general areas where they work are the exception. Columbus couldn't find any better use for this magnificent structure than to tear it down and make a downtown park. Any bets on how long before that park (which generates zero tax revenue) becomes an economic millstone and a security/crime problem. I give it two years.
--Fact: Misguided governors can damage states faster that anything. Ohio had one for eight years. Bob Taft was his name and he crippled Ohio because he wouldn't or couldn't stand up to much of anyone, on much of anything. So now Ted Strickland takes over, and he balances an unbalanced budget by using one time Federal stimulus money ($5B of it) to plug a gap, and it still doesn't balance. So he decides casinos are the answer (casinos are a form of taxes on the weak-willed). But now the casinos are under legal dispute, so the gap will have to be filled by stopping tax relief that was passed to undo some of Taft's mistakes. It is a comedy of errors. Meanwhile, Ohio suffers.
--Fact: Take California, please? The land of "fruits and nuts" is being taken over by the "fruits and nuts." Please, no California "bailout!"
FINAL FACT: No newsletter is accurate all the time. And, as Mark Twain once said, "All generalizations are false, including this one."
Best, John
-----------------------------------------------------------
John L. Mariotti, President & CEO, The Enterprise Group, Phone 614-840-0959 http://www.mariotti.net http://mariotti.blogs.com/my_weblog/
------------------------------------------------------------
Note: The subtitle is a famous quote from the old TV series Dragnet, which many readers are too young to even remember. Many "brilliant decisions" are made based on the wrong facts, or an absence of facts, and thus have terrible outcomes. Thus, a word to the wise, "get the (real) facts!"
I'M NOT SURE WHAT TO WRITE ABOUT
This is a very disturbing time. Lots is happening, much of it unprecedented, and a lot of it, not so good. The recession has bottomed, but the recovery is not recovering--yet. More people continue to lose jobs. Spending is slow, soft, cautious. But life must go on. And so must this edition.
INEPT LEADERS AND STUPIDITY--OR BOT
The stupidity being exhibited by our elected leaders is appalling. Their complete failure to see the consequences of their actions is even more staggering. Even French leader Sarkozy tagged President Obama for his inexplicable failure to bring up the Iranian secret nuclear facility at the UN Security Council over which Obama "presided" this time. Instead, Obama brought it up in Pittsburgh shortly thereafter at the G-20 meeting. Sarkozy's exact quote: "President Obama, I support the Americans' outstretched hand. But what did the international community gain from these offers of dialogue? Nothing." I am proud of the French leader for calling out Obama on his misdirection and useless rhetoric.
THE GENERAL MAY JUST QUIT--BUT I DOUBT IT!
Vice President Biden meddles with military leadership because Obama wants to avoid areas about which he knows little, and has even less idea what to do. Obama met with his own choice to lead American military in Afghanistan, Gen. McChrystal only once until this week, when critics wondered, rightfully so, how the Commander in Chief could operate without any first hand briefing from his leader. But Biden had the solution. Fight only al Qaeda and not the Taliban. This politically expedient, but militarily and practically crazy idea has great political chops. You can't "lose" a fight you walk away from--or can you? Perhaps in walking away the greater loss will come later. The worst thing that is happening is that Obama and his minions are ceding the US global leadership position to a bunch of crazies, while they are creating a nation of dependency-seeking supporters. Who says he "loves America?" Sounds more like he "hates it." At least that is what I perceive, based on what he has said publicly in many foreign speeches, and on what he is doing (and not doing).
"America is the greatest country in the world; and we are here to change it." —Barack Obama during his Presidential campaign.
DEMOCRATS DON'T HAVE A CORNER ON INEPTNESS
I wonder why some of the GOPs intelligent and reasonable "fixes" for our health care system only surface now--when the Democrats are inches from the goal line of creating a government operated health care system--which will eventually both break our nation and work to all of our disfavor--after a brief honeymoon of help for the distressed. We will all become distressed. Where were these GOP plans when they controlled Congress--and the White House--for Bush's terms? I guess they were not important enough to legislate then. Why? Because the "old timers" in the GOP, for the most part, are almost as bad as the old-timers in the Democratic party. They are just wrong differently. The rants of Limbaugh, Hannity, Coulter, et. al. grate on the nerves as they solve nothing, but inflame the hearts and minds of decent people.
"The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well meaning, but without understanding." —Louis D. Brandeis
IF I COULD HAVE A THIRD PARTY TO BELONG TO, I WOULD--"THE NEW AMERICAN PARTY"
Both of our current political parties are a mess. The Democratic leaders, mostly aging and also mostly very left-leaning liberals are going to ruin the USA for a generation to come. The reasonable, moderate Democrats are not a large enough group to change that. The Republicans are now in the "obstructionist" mode, since they have no clear leader and few well articulated alternatives to the Obama/Congressional folly. Does anyone see a really exciting new Republican leader on horizon. (Is it Tim Pawlenty? Need to do some homework on him!)
Unfortunately money, history and the entrenched interests make the likelihood of a successful third party so low as to be unrealistic. The Libertatirans can't do it. Ross Perot's millions couldn't do it. Ralph Nader's persistence couldn't do it. AND YET, THAT IS WHAT AMERICA NEEDS. MASS DEFECTIONS FROM THE TWO POLARIZED AND PARTISAN EXTREMES TO FORM A NEW AMERICAN PARTY. Fiscally responsible and conservative and socially moderate people, (I think), make up the vast majority in America. How can we get a voice in our government over these idiots we elected to Congress and the White House? IF ANY READERS HAVE AN ANSWER TO THIS, I'D LOVE TO HEAR IT. First, we need to replace as many of the current misguided elected officials as possible. Our chance to do that next is Nov. 2010.
OBAMA'S GOT "PORK FLU"--When you don't know what to do, "throw money at the problem."
IN THE NEXT WEEK OR SO, I'LL PUBLISH THE "PLATFORM" (or at least most of it) for the NEW AMERICAN PARTY!
ON TO OTHER TOPICS--A LIST OF FACTS TO CONSIDER--(OR DISPUTE IF YOU WISH)
--Fact: The US budget deficit for the past year was $1.4 TRILLION, a record level by far. That is NOT GOOD!
--Fact: Over 70% of Americans will not believe the recovery is here until employment reverses and job losses stop--replaced by gains. It matters little who tells them otherwise (Source: BIGresearch's American Pulse Survey of over 4000 Americans.)
--Fact: You can cost reduce your way to survival but not to prosperity. That takes growth in revenue (not government largess) which is largely derived from innovation--which takes brains and guts, two things that are scarce these days.
--Fact: You cannot win by watching your competitor and reacting. You'll be slow and late every time. In business (and in most sports), the attacker has a natural advantage.
--Fact: The "outs" always have an advantage over the "ins" no matter which party is which, because they can say they'd do better--but they seldom do.
--Fact: Companies do a lousy job choosing leaders too. CEO turnover is at 15%/year and growing. New CEOs typically last about 18 months. That's simply deplorable, considering that most of them had been successful CEOs somewhere else before. e.g., Longaberger (Baskets) near Columbus is on its 5th CEO in 5 years.
--Fact: Promoting a great COO to CEO is often a mistake. CEOs have different jobs and need different skills than COOs. The COO make sure 'the trains run on time--profitably" The CEO decides where they should be going, and whether they should be trains at all.
--Fact: There are only two way to balance a budget: less spending or more income. That's it.
--Fact: A weak US dollar results in a hidden tax on every American.
--Fact: Barack Obama is more "pitchman" than President--and when the pitch doesn't make sense (like the Chicago Olympic bid) he has nowhere to turn. His solution to every problem is to "make a speech." Perhaps he should stop talking and start learning the consequences of his actions before he launches them with yet another speech.
--Fact: Inspiration must be built upon reality and truth to have any lasting effect.
--Fact: Nuclear weapons are here to stay, and if Obama insists on disarming the US, it will be the first major country to be attacked with Nukes. Who has them now and who will have them soon is a growing and disconcerting list.
--Fact: The average Federal employee earns $119,982 per year in compensation and benefits.
--Fact: The average Private sector employee earns $59, 909 per year in compensation and benefits.
--Fact: To cover this disparity, $100 billion/year is taken from the private sector in income taxes, and Federal employees only make up 2 million of the 20 million that work in the public sector.
--Fact: The Federal Bureaucracy grows and grows to no good purpose: The Department of Energy was formed in 1977 to make us "independent of foreign oil." Now it has grown to a bureaucracy of 18,000 people and a $25 Billlion annual budget and we are as dependent on foreign oil as ever--or more so.
--Fact: President Obama lied repeatedly in his speech on health care (documented by numerous news sources), but it was socially incorrect for a Congressman to call him out on just one of his lies.
--Fact: ACORN is a corrupt organization and it has very close ties to the President, and has had for years, by his own admission in public speeches.
--Fact: Charles Rangel is the leader of a major Congressional committee and has violated several laws on conduct and taxes, but still holds this prestigious seat.
--Fact: Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is a tax evader who now governs the IRS, only because he was caught and allow to make restitution.
--Fact: When the Federal Reserve simply "prints more money" to pay the government's bills, the result must necessarily be inflation, since there was no underlying value to that money. Inflation is another hidden tax on all Americans.
--Fact: Most, if not all, government stimulus spending has a NEGATIVE effect on the economy acting as a non-stimulus after the initial money is spent because it replaces private sector investment with taxes to fund the stimulus
--Fact: There are not enough doctors and nurses to meet the needs now, and increasing the number of people covered for medical care will worsen that problem. Cutting the pay of doctors to help control health care costs will result in fewer doctors, making the shortage even worse.
--Fact: America is aging and Americans will consume even more health care in the future than in the past. In a decade, "minorities" in the aggregate, will be the majority. In a few decades, there will be no more "blacks and whites, etc." There will be more and more "tans" as races intermarry and reproduce.
--Fact: One of America's greatest vulnerabilities to attack is the "Information and Communication Infrastructure," including the Internet, cell phones and the millions of computers which control almost everything from the power grid to the air traffic control system to the banking system to Wall Street to every form of broadcast media...and more. AND NO ONE IS SECURING THIS.
--Fact: There are not really 46 million "uninsured" Americans that need to be insured. Many (10+ million) are here illegally; many (17+/- million) can afford insurance and don't want to pay for it; many are in transition. The real number of "desperately uninsured" is more like 15+/- million--maybe. Thus the question: Do we need to dramatically change the system for the other 250+ million to accommodate this 15 million?
--Fact: Many, many "true scientists" believe the "Global Warming" scare is a myth, totally unfounded in scientific fact, and constructed on anecdotal evidence for political purposes. e.g., CO2 is NOT a greenhouse gas. It is necessary for plant and human life on earth. Passing a Cap & Trade system will assess another huge hidden tax on all Americans.
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS NO CORNER ON STUPIDITY--STATES CAN DO IT TOO.
--Fact: Stupidity can be local as well as national. e.g., Columbus Ohio is tearing down a perfectly good, multi-million dollar mall downtown, which was the showcase just over a decade ago, and now has been eclipsed by a series of suburban malls. First rule: people would rather shop near where they live rather than near where they work--especially in urban/suburban cities. Places like NYC where many people live in the same general areas where they work are the exception. Columbus couldn't find any better use for this magnificent structure than to tear it down and make a downtown park. Any bets on how long before that park (which generates zero tax revenue) becomes an economic millstone and a security/crime problem. I give it two years.
--Fact: Misguided governors can damage states faster that anything. Ohio had one for eight years. Bob Taft was his name and he crippled Ohio because he wouldn't or couldn't stand up to much of anyone, on much of anything. So now Ted Strickland takes over, and he balances an unbalanced budget by using one time Federal stimulus money ($5B of it) to plug a gap, and it still doesn't balance. So he decides casinos are the answer (casinos are a form of taxes on the weak-willed). But now the casinos are under legal dispute, so the gap will have to be filled by stopping tax relief that was passed to undo some of Taft's mistakes. It is a comedy of errors. Meanwhile, Ohio suffers.
--Fact: Take California, please? The land of "fruits and nuts" is being taken over by the "fruits and nuts." Please, no California "bailout!"
FINAL FACT: No newsletter is accurate all the time. And, as Mark Twain once said, "All generalizations are false, including this one."
Best, John
-----------------------------------------------------------
John L. Mariotti, President & CEO, The Enterprise Group, Phone 614-840-0959 http://www.mariotti.net http://mariotti.blogs.com/my_weblog/
------------------------------------------------------------
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