Telling It Like It Is

THE ENTERPRISE--THE COMING CRISIS--AND DECISIONS TO BE MADE?

THE ENTERPRISE--THE COMING CRISIS--AND DECISIONS TO BE MADE?

A FEW WEEKS AGO I POSTED A WARNING ON FORBES.COM--

http://www.forbes.com/sites/prospernow/2012/01/26/america-in-danger-of-collapse/

This one was based on Jacek Marczyk and www.Ontonix.com's calculations of when "critical complexity" would be reached for the USA-- and the point at which it would tip over into chaos and "collapse" as a functioning nation.  There is no "signpost" that says this happened.  It will be revealed by internal and external indicators and how the rest of the world regards the USA--a perception that is sinking further every day.  Jacek's algorithms and system predicted 2017-2018 collapse due to extreme complexity.

  

NOW JOHN MAULDIN OF INVESTOR'S INSIGHT IS SOUNDING THE WARNING

Mauldin's is an astute observer of the global economic system and he interacts with a lot of very smart people. A brief excerpt from his weekly newsletter (available free of charge at http://www.frontlinethoughts.com/subscribe.  His warning is no less dire.

 

The Cancer of Debt and Deficits

By John Mauldin | February 18, 2012  (© www.JohnMauldin.com)

AN EXCERPT: "We are coming to the point in the United States when even the US government will no longer be able to borrow at very low long-term rates. That point is a few years off, and we have time to change paths; but as I have shown in previous letters, the longer we wait to get the deficit under control, the fewer choices we have and the more painful they are. NO country can run deficits the size we are currently running, along with unfunded deficits over four times the size of the economy and a growing overall debt burden, without consequences. At some point, investors in bonds will start wondering exactly what the process is by which they will be repaid. And what will the value of those future payments be?"

"One by one, the countries of Europe are losing their ability to sell their bonds at an interest rate that is sustainable for their economies and revenue bases without severe and socially disruptive restructuring, even if a central bank that will accommodate their spending by printing money or other countries will tax their citizens to pay for someone else's debts.  The US will soon be faced with that same problem if we do not act soon. Will it be 2014? 2015? 2016? I think it will be earlier rather than later…"

-------------------------

NEXT, ALL OF YOU SENIOR CITIZENS AND ALMOST SENIOR CITIZENS SHOULD CHECK OUT THIS RECENT FORBES POST

http://www.forbes.com/sites/prospernow/2012/02/24/obamas-sneak-attack-on-senior-citizens/

FINALLY--TIME FOR SOME STRAIGHT TALK!

MY FELLOW REPUBLICANS--ARE YOU CRAZY?  RICK SANTORUM?  REALLY?

First it was Michelle Bachman, then Rick Perry, then Newt Gingrich, and now Rick Santorum.  All are likely fine people--but for President of the United States??  Newt is brilliant; meteoric but brilliant; not a good leader by his own admission either.  Rick Perry was a typical Big Hat Texas politician--all platitudes and politics and good ole boy stuff.  Now we have "A passionate zealot we can all like and identify with--but seriously--as a candidate for President?  Just save the money and give Obama his second term to finish his secular, socialist big government destruction of America.  

When Tim Pawlenty starts to look good in comparison, it makes me wonder why somehow, being the most experienced, dedicated and overall talented leader and grownup in the room (Mitt Romney) is not good enough.  We went through this last time, with McCain.  And lost!  Maybe Romney doesn't have all the warm fuzzies.  We don't need warm fuzzies.  We need a leader who can lead, a manager who can manage, a good person who will make solid, conscience based decisions on impossible issues, and will help America dig its way out of the disaster named Obama.

OK, SO HE'S RICH AND SUCCESSFUL--THAT'S GOOD--IT MEANS HE KNOWS HOW TO MANAGE MONEY WISELY

I know, he doesn't relate well to the common man and his plight.  But he understands it; and he's willing to do something about it.  Mitt wants to fix America.  Why else would a man in his mid-60's who has a great family that he loves and has made more money than he'll ever need, go through this kind of gauntlet?  Maybe Mitt ought to just step aside and let one of the also-rans take the flak.  The only other viable presidential candidate for the GOP doesn't want to run:  Jeb Bush--"the best of the Bushes."  Forget Mitch Daniels (a great guy, solid leader, etc. and if you think Mitt is "wooden" on the platform, listen to Mitch for a while--if you can stay awake.  Chris Christie is a breath of fresh air, but America is not yet ready for his style of in your face, "Jersey hard ball" leadership.  Maybe it never will be.

SO HERE'S THE MESSAGE.  

READ THE TWO PARAGRAPHS ABOVE AGAIN,  REALIZE THAT MITT IS A GOOD MAN, A COMPETENT LEADER AND AN INSPIRED PERSON--REGARDLESS OF HOW HE TRANSLATES THAT INTO STUMP SPEECHES, AND HIS SO-CALLED "GAFFES" -- MOSTLY BLOWN OUT OF PROPORTIONS BY THE LIBERAL MASS MEDIA.

It's time for the members of the GOP to "get real" about a candidate and quit looking for another Ronald Reagan--after all, he lost in his first try for the nomination. 

Quit supporting and voting for people who can't win, can't do the job, and should not even be part of the consideration.  Support "the grownup in the room" who can help repair and rejuvenate America (and have a chance to beat Barack Obama and his Soros & Union $$millions, incumbent elitist influences and mainstream media lackeys.

THE GOP NEEDS TO QUIT SEEKING POSTPONED PERFECTION AND GO FOR PLANNED PROGRESS--AGAINST BARACK OBAMA

Quit the internal bickering and ask yourself.  Who do you want for the next four years?  Barack Obama, or the Republican with the best chance to win, and the best credentials to lead and govern the USA out of this enormous mess?

I know my answer.  How about you?

Best, JOHN

**********************

NEW BOOK COMING SOON: 

HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency, co-authored with D. M. Lukas, available March 2012 in paperback & Kindle editions at www.amazon.com  

GO SEE NEW WEB SITE: http://www.hopeisnotastrategybook.com

Author of the Award Winner: THE COMPLEXITY CRISIS, and the exciting novel: THE CHINESE CONSPIRACY.   Come see my blog posts on Forbes.com 

John L. Mariotti, President & CEO, The Enterprise Group,  http://www.mariotti.net,   http://mariotti.blogs.com/my_weblog/ 

 

THE ENTERPRISE--FAIRNESS, THE ELECTION, AND THE NEW BOOK

IN CASE YOU DIDN'T SEE THIS IN THE WSJ:  FAIRNESS IN WHOSE OPINION???

A Fairness Quiz for the President  By STEPHEN MOORE

President Obama has frequently justified his policies—and judged their outcomes—in terms of equity, justice and fairness. That raises an obvious question: How does our existing system—and his own policy record—stack up according to those criteria?

 

• Is it fair that the richest 1% of Americans pay nearly 40% of all federal income taxes, and the richest 10% pay two-thirds of the tax?
• Is it fair that the richest 10% of Americans shoulder a higher share of their country's income-tax burden than do the richest 10% in every other industrialized nation, including socialist Sweden?
• Is it fair that American corporations pay the highest statutory corporate tax rate of all other industrialized nations but Japan, which cuts its rate on April 1?
• Is it fair that President Obama sends his two daughters to elite private schools that are safer, better-run, and produce higher test scores than public schools in Washington, D.C.—but millions of other families across America are denied that free choice and forced to send their kids to rotten schools?
• Is it fair that Americans who build a family business, hire workers, reinvest and save their money—paying a lifetime of federal, state and local taxes often climbing into the millions of dollars—must then pay an additional estate tax of 35% (and as much as 55% when the law changes next year) when they die, rather than passing that money onto their loved ones?
• Is it fair that Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, former Democratic Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, former Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel and other leading Democrats who preach tax fairness underpaid their own taxes?
• Is it fair that after the first three years of Obamanomics, the poor are poorer, the poverty rate is rising, the middle class is losing income, and some 5.5 million fewer Americans have jobs today than in 2007?
• Is it fair that roughly 88% of political contributions from supposedly impartial network television reporters, producers and other employees in 2008 went to Democrats?
• Is it fair that the three counties with America's highest median family income just happen to be located in the Washington, D.C., metro area?
• Is it fair that wind, solar and ethanol producers get billions of dollars of subsidies each year and pay virtually no taxes, while the oil and gas industry—which provides at least 10 times as much energy—pays tens of billions of dollars of taxes while the president complains that it is "subsidized"?
• Is it fair that those who work full-time jobs (and sometimes more) to make ends meet have to pay taxes to support up to 99 weeks of unemployment benefits for those who don't work?
• Is it fair that those who took out responsible mortgages and pay them each month have to see their tax dollars used to subsidize those who acted recklessly, greedily and sometimes deceitfully in taking out mortgages they now can't afford to repay?
• Is it fair that thousands of workers won't have jobs because the president sided with environmentalists and blocked the shovel-ready Keystone XL oil pipeline?
• Is it fair that some of Mr. Obama's largest campaign contributors received federal loan guarantees on their investments in renewable energy projects that went bust?
• Is it fair that federal employees receive benefits that are nearly 50% higher than those of private-sector workers whose taxes pay their salaries, according to the Congressional Budget Office?
• Is it fair that soon almost half the federal budget will take income from young working people and redistribute it to old non-working people, even though those over age 65 are already among the wealthiest Americans?
• Is it fair that in 27 states workers can be compelled to join a union in order to keep their jobs?
• Is it fair that nearly four out of 10 American households now pay no federal income tax at all—a number that has risen every year under Mr. Obama?
• Is it fair that Boeing, a private company, was threatened by a federal agency when it sought to add jobs in a right-to-work state rather than in a forced-union state?
• Is it fair that our kids and grandkids and great-grandkids—who never voted for Mr. Obama—will have to pay off the $5 trillion of debt accumulated over the past four years, without any benefits to them?    
  • Mr. Moore is a member of the Journal's editorial board.

 

WELL, MR. PRESIDENT, IS ALL THIS "FAIR?"  NOT IN OUR WAY OF THINKING IT ISN'T!

BARACK OBAMA CAN DENY THE THINGS HE SAYS ALL HE WANTS, BUT VIDEO DOESN'T LIE

If you want to see why he is not troubled by his recent unconstitutional attack on Catholic and Christian beliefs and institutions, just watch this to see what he believes in:

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=tCAffMSWSzY#t=28

CHINA IS STILL A PROBLEM FOR THE USA--ESPECIALLY US BUSINESSES

FROM KIPLINGER REPORTS: 

The clock is winding down on a U.S. bid to push back on Chinese subsidies.  Without a new move, 23 duties on steel, paper and other goods from China come to an end on March 5.  A court ruled that the Commerce Dept. lacks authority to impose countervailing duties on China, Vietnam and other non-market economies.  The best option: A law giving the Commerce Dept. the power to apply duties.  Without duties, China can undercut prices charged by U.S. manufacturers.  That puts pressure on about 80 firms that provide thousands of jobs in 38 states.

OBAMA'S LATEST BUDGET SUBMISSION IS INSANE, IRRESPONSIBLE, AND DEEPLY TROUBLING

Not only does it raise the deficit during his Presidency to $5 Trillion.  It repeats his disdain for fiscal responsibility, and reinforces his failure to grasp the most fundament principles of management and leadership.  Everyone with an ounce of sense should realize that spending 30-40% more than income or revenue simply cannot go on without dire circumstances--sooner or later. Obama just figures he can push it past the end of his second term if he can get reelected--and by then America would be too far gone to save from his ultimate goal, a socialist-secular welfare state in which government dominates everything.

WORST OF ALL, HIS SCHEMES ARE WORKING, AND HIS REELECTION CHANCES LOOK GOOD AGAIN.

Romney, Santorum, whoever the GOP nominates, faces the best campaigner, the most adept deceiver, and the most dangerous leader America has ever had.  Even if the American people see through his lies and tricks, there may be so many in the dependent underclass, the ideological elite, and the apathetic, naive uniformed to elect him president, again!  

THIS IS IN SPITE OF PRESIDENT OBAMA'S CONTINUED "IMPERIAL ACTIONS" THAT IGNORE/DISTORT THE LAW & THE CONSTITUTION 

1. Obamacare, which is now in the courts
2. Recess appointments when Congress was not in recess
3. Participating in the "war" in Libya and ignoring the "War Powers Act"
4. Failing to propose a remedy for Medicare underfunding in both of the past two years (required by law)
5. Lawsuits against states who try to enforce laws that the Federal government will not enforce
6. Using cabinet departments and commissions to make law around Congress (EPA, NLRB, HHS, etc.)
7. Failing to pass an annual budget for the country for over 1000 days aided and abetted by Harry Reid and Democrats in the Senate
8. Retaining an Attorney General who overtly misleads Congress, and whose department acts in flagrantly irresponsible ways
9. Retaining an Energy Secretary who wastes billions of taxpayer money on foolish "loans"
10. Repeated distorting the facts, misstating the figures and lying to the American people--all in the name of getting reelected

The only solution is to muster every possible voter to oppose Barack Obama and his "minions."  

That's why the book mentioned below can play such a big role--IF we can get enough people to read it, or hear about it on some kind of media.

LAUNCH WEEK FOR HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY: WILL BE SET VERY SOON!

PLEASE HELP BY SPREADING THE WORD, AND WHEN LAUNCH WEEK COMES, BY BUYING MULTIPLE COPIES AND SPREADING THEM AROUND.

STAY TUNED,

JOHN

**********************

NEW BOOK COMING SOON: 

HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency, co-authored with D. M. Lukas, available March 2012 in paperback & Kindle editions at www.amazon.com

Author of the Award Winner: THE COMPLEXITY CRISIS, and the exciting novel: THE CHINESE CONSPIRACY.   Come see my blog posts on Forbes.com & American Express Open Forum: http://www.openforum.com/connectodex/small-business-trends?username=john-mariotti&isRecentPosts=True 

John L. Mariotti, President & CEO, The Enterprise Group,  Phone (mobile) 614-499-5577  http://www.mariotti.net,   http://mariotti.blogs.com/my_weblog/ 

 

 

Coming Very Soon-New Book: HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY:Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency. Watch for "Launch Week" info on when to buy

THE ENTERPRISE--THE HARD FACTS & POSSIBILITIES

THE ENTERPRISE--THE HARD FACTS & POSSIBILITIES

KIPLINGER WEIGHS IN WISELY--EXCERPTS (WITH MY EMPHASIS ADDED)

"…. industrial output climbs, BUT U.S. manufacturing jobs keep shrinking. Despite Jan.’s jump in factory jobs...up 50,000... or the talk you hear from politicians, creating millions of new industrial jobs is a pipe dream! This isn’t defeatism, or a misunderstanding of the role manufacturing still plays in the U.S.  Nor is it the end of U.S. economic muscle.  It’s a matter of comparative advantage, a basic law of economics: Each nation benefits most by concentrating its efforts on what it does best.  For America, that’s creativity and innovation, not stamping out widgets on an assembly line…."

Also at play: Waning industrial productivity... output per hour of labor continues to rise, but productivity of all inputs has been sliding for more than a decade...So the post recession bounce America’s seeing in manufacturing won’t last.  ...Ditto, the recent upturn in manufacturing’s share of GDP. 

It’s a blip in a long-term downtrend...from 28% in 1953 to 25% in 1968, 20% in 1980 and 11% in 2009. In 2010...an 11.7% share.  By 2015...under 10% of GDP and jobs. Of the roughly 2.5 million net new jobs needed each year for decent economic growth, manufacturers will average 100,000 in each of the next five years. 

Biotechnology, clean technology and other young industries will create jobs, but not enough to offset an inexorable decline in factory jobs in old-line industries.

New, highly automated plants will boost output but not employment.  And America will continue to make and sell a plethora of high-value goods... medical devices, jets, pollution controls and other sophisticated new technologies.

Still, service jobs will dominate. And that’s not bad news. Doom-and-gloomers fear a nation of low-paid burger-flippers, producing little of lasting value. But...The greatest added value no longer comes from the production of goods. It comes from inventing, designing, marketing and servicing them.

In the Information Age, education and innovation are the keys to growth, to generating well-paying jobs and to continued improvement in U.S. living standards.

Keeping the edge in those fields is what will keep the U.S. on top.

Sen. Marco Rubio: Obama Will Try to 'Absolutely Eviscerate' Republican Opponent

Sen. Marco Rubio tells Newsmax.TV that President Barack Obama can’t run on his record and instead intends to “absolutely eviscerate” his Republican opponent before the November election.

The Florida Republican also predicts that Obama plans to pander to his extreme left base and seek to divide Americans along economic lines, asserts that the way to reduce the budget deficit is with more taxpayers instead of more taxes, and says the field of GOP presidential candidates is “underrated.”

Rubio was elected in 2010 in a three-way race that included then-Gov. Charlie Crist. Before that, Rubio was speaker of the Florida House, and he now is considered a key figure in the tea party movement.

In an exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV and chief Washington correspondent Ronald Kessler, Rubio comments on Obama’s call to raise taxes on wealthy Americans.

“I think the president’s policies are wrong for America on a number of fronts,” Rubio says.

“First and foremost, I think the president’s made the deliberate decision that he wants to divide Americans against each other.

“He’s in search of 50 percent plus one. He’s counting electoral votes and he’s made the decision that the way to do that is number one, feed red meat to his base, the most extreme elements of his party on the left, and number two, to divide and pit Americans against each other, to convince people out there who are hurting. They’ve lost their jobs, they’ve lost their homes, they’re working harder and making less — that the reason those things are happening to them is because other people are doing too well, and to convince them to vote for him and give him the power to come in with government and fix that to equalize the playing field.

“The problem with that is that it has never worked anywhere in the world where they’ve tried it. In fact, people desperately flee countries that try that.”

If Obama is re-elected, “I think that’s the position he’ll be trapped into taking, because once you go down that road, it becomes almost impossible to make a U-turn and get out of it.

“If you look at the policies the president has pursued, they haven’t worked. This president does not want this election to be a referendum on the job he has done or on his record because if it is, he’s not going to win.

“President Obama inherited an economy that wasn’t doing well. Then his party took control of Congress. He got anything he wanted. What he wanted was the stimulus and Obamacare. They gave it to him and it made everything worse. He made it worse faster than any president has in American history, and now for the first time since World War II our debt is larger than our economy. So he can’t run on that.

“Instead, what you’re going to see is a campaign that’s going to do two things: absolutely eviscerate and smear on a personal level the people he’s running against, and, the second thing, is to run a campaign of dividing Americans against each other, trying to get 51 percent of Americans to buy into the notion that they’ll be better off if they give him the power to make other people worse off.

“What does work is the American free enterprise system, and the president seems to be making the argument that the American free enterprise system is not appropriate for the 21st century, that the things that made us prosperous and different from the rest of the world no longer function and we must embrace a stronger government.

“There are so many countries around the world that have that kind of system, and if that’s what you want to live under you should go over there.”

Asked what he would look for in the ideal GOP presidential candidate, Rubio says: “Most importantly, someone who can show a clear contrast in the direction they would take our country, someone who can make a compelling argument for why this president is taking us in the wrong direction and what a better direction would be instead. And if we can do that, Barack Obama is not going to be president in November of 2012.”

Rubio declines to name his favorite among the current Republican White House candidates, but he tells Newsmax: “All of these candidates bring particular strengths. The one thing I’ve been saying is that this field is underrated, and I think if you look at the candidates that remain, they are all so much better today than they were 12 months ago.

“I know it’s uncomfortable sometimes to go through heated primaries where some unfortunate things are said. But I think we’re going to have a stronger candidate because of it.

“And the stuff you are seeing today in the primaries is child’s play compared to the kind of negative attacks that we can expect from the left, the radical elements of the Democratic Party and the president’s own campaign apparatus, who have openly admitted that one of their campaign strategies is to personally disqualify whoever is the Republican nominee.

“So buckle in. It’s going to be quite a ride. But I’m confident we’re going to have a very strong nominee and a very compelling alternative to the direction that Barack Obama wants to take our country.”

Asked how the Republicans can attract more voters in the Hispanic community, Rubio, who is Cuban-American, responds: “Ultimately, Americans of Hispanic descent have the same hopes and dreams as the entire country, and there is no more prevalent feeling in America than the desire to accomplish your own dreams and to leave your children better off than yourselves. My parents were obsessed with this.”

Many of the Hispanics in America “came here from countries that have big government. They know firsthand that big government doesn’t work.

“In America, it doesn’t matter how poor you were when you were born. If you have a good idea and you’re willing to work hard, you can make it happen. That’s the argument we need to make in that community.”

On the immigration issue, Rubio says, “you start by saying we’re the pro-legal immigration party. We believe in legal immigration. But we can’t be the only country in the history of the world that doesn’t have immigration laws and doesn’t enforce them.”

Rubio says he does not support the proposed DREAM Act (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors), which would grant permanent residency to some children who came to the United States with undocumented parents, because “it goes too far. With 11 million people you can’t grant blanket amnesty. If you do, you are encouraging illegal immigration in the future and being unfair to the millions of people who are waiting to do it the right way.” 

Turning to the economy, Rubio says the “primary drivers” of the federal debt are in the Medicare program. “If we don’t do anything about Medicare, it’s going to go bankrupt. It’s the people like the president who have no plans to save Medicare. In fact, what they’re campaigning for is to bankrupt Medicare.”

Rubio points out that he supports a permanent ban on earmarks and is a co-sponsor of an amendment that would do that.

“And ultimately I’d like to see a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution,” he adds.

“The other thing we need is more revenue. But how do you get more revenue? The Democrats believe you get more revenue by raising taxes. I believe you get more revenue by having more taxpayers, more people working.”

Rubio still insists he is not interested in the vice-presidential post this year, noting: “I have consistently said I’m not going to be the vice president for a number of reasons.

“I understand being vice president is important, but the U.S. Senate is important, too. We need strong voices here to let people know that conservatism is not an ideology, it’s at the core of American exceptionalism. That’s what I want to be, one of those voices, and hopefully joined by a bunch of other voices in this election cycle that will allow us to have a majority so we can actually start turning some of those ideas into public policy.” 

© Newsmax. All rights reserved.

Unlikely to ever make the news but this speaks to Romney's character.

On Romney's character....  Sometimes, this facet of Romney's personality isn't so subtle. In July 1996, the 14-year-old daughter of Robert Gay, a partner at Bain Capital, had disappeared. She had attended a rave party in New York City and gotten high on ecstasy. Three days later, her distraught father had no idea where she was. Romney took immediate action. He closed down the entire firm and asked all 30 partners and employees to fly to New York to help find Gay's daughter. Romney set up a command center at the LaGuardia Marriott and hired a private detective firm to assist with the search. He established a toll-free number for tips, coordinating the effort with the NYPD, and went through his Rolodex and called everyone Bain did business with in New York, and asked them to help find his friend's missing daughter. Romney's accountants at Price Waterhouse Cooper put up posters on street poles, while cashiers at a pharmacy owned by Bain put fliers in the bag of every shopper. Romney and the other Bain employees scoured every part of New York and talked with everyone they could , prostitutes, drug addicts , anyone. That day, their hunt made the evening news, which featured photos of the girl and the Bain employees searching for her. As a result, a teenage boy phoned in, asked if there was a reward, and then hung up abruptly. The NYPD traced the call to a home in New Jersey , where they found the girl in the basement, shivering and experiencing withdrawal symptoms from a massive ecstasy dose. Doctors later said the girl might not have survived another day. Romney's former partner credits Mitt Romney with saving his daughter's life, saying, It was the most amazing thing, and I'll never forget this to the day I die. So, here's my epiphany: Mitt Romney simply can't help himself. He sees a problem, and his mind immediately sets to work solving it, sometimes consciously, and sometimes not-so-consciously. He doesn't do it for self-aggrandizement, or for personal gain. He does it because that's just how he's wired.  Many people are unaware of the fact that when Romney was asked by his old employer, Bill Bain, to come back to Bain & Company as CEO to rescue the firm from bankruptcy, Romney left Bain Capital to work at Bain & Company for an annual salary of one dollar.   When Romney went to the rescue of the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics, he accepted no salary for three years, and wouldn't use an expense account.   He also accepted no salary as Governor of Massachusetts .  Character counts!! (and yes...that's worth reading again!)

2012 PROSPECTS TO WORRY ABOUT FOR OUR COUNTRY FROM A DEMOCRATIC/OBAMA SUPPORTER'S COUNTER-POINT TO MY LIST OF LAST WEEK...

1. Bigoted, white, red-necks will vote for the GOP blindly. Period. Doesn't matter what they say or do.
2. Too many uneducated men will vote for the GOP.
3. Ultra conservatives will vote GOP. They hope for disenfranchising everyone else.
4. Republicans will vote GOP - The leader of their party,
5. Evangelicals will vote GOP. It is their only path to glory and their leaders recognize the political clout they carry in the Republican Party,
6. Corporate executives will vote overwhelmingly Republican. They are key to money and power in all politics in this post Citizens United world. 
7. The Murdock media (in the FOX-like world) love the GOP and are openly biased against Democrats.  To not love the GOP would be anti-American,
8. Most others of some real or believed wealth will vote for a Republican. Oddly, the overwhelming majority of those thinking that they are the better class and will support a Republican candidate because they won't vote Democrat.
9. Obviously homophobics tend to vote Republican.
10. The large "white-dependent class" not mentioned above will vote blindly GOP, which includes the largest majority of any individuals who pay NO income tax at all. (AN UNSUPPORTED ALLEGATION)

THIS IS HOW OBAMA SUPPORTERS THINK:  (THERE ARE TWO SIDES TO EVERY ARGUMENT) AND YOU MUST DECIDE WHICH ONE YOU BELIEVE AND SUPPORT--AND THEN ACT ACCORDINGLY! 

Right now, GOP voters seem enamored with Rick Santorum.  His passion is inspiring--a characteristic I wish Mitt Romney exhibited more of…but Santorum is clearly a risky potential nominee.  Whenever the people of a Senator's home state vote him out of office resoundingly, you must wonder what they knew that current GOP primary voters have yet to learn.

I STILL THINK ROMNEY IS THE STRONGER POTENTIAL PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE--AND WOULD MAKE A BETTER PRESIDENT 

If Mitt Romney is the GOP Nominee, closer examination will reveal that he and Barack Obama are "polar opposites!"   Romney doesn't really understand fully how the lower/middle class feels and thinks about money (e.g., "I made a little income from speaking--$325,000!"), and we know that Obama is clueless about how a free enterprise system works, how to create jobs other than government funding (e.g, his most recent "Pass this bill!" Jobs Bill--and unfunded giveaway), how to balance a budget and how to lead a country to positive growth and prosperity.  Whichever we get as president would do well to understand the other's conflicting worldview. 

BUT REMEMBER---MITT ROMNEY WILL TRY TO FIX AMERICA'S PROBLEMS!  

BARACK OBAMA WILL MAKE THEM WORSE!

THAT'S JUST ONE  OF THE REASONS WE WROTE : 

HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency

(stay tuned for an update on its availability & launch date----likely by March 1+/-)

YOU MUST CHOOSE—DECIDE WHO MATCHES YOUR VIEW OF OUR COUNTRY AND ITS NEED FOR LEADERSHIP.  

BEST, JOHN

**********************

NEW BOOK COMING SOON: 

HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency, co-authored with D. M. Lukas, available March 2012 in paperback & Kindle editions at www.amazon.com

Author of the Award Winner: THE COMPLEXITY CRISIS, and the exciting novel: THE CHINESE CONSPIRACY.   Come see my blog posts on Forbes.com & American Express Open Forum: http://www.openforum.com/connectodex/small-business-trends?username=john-mariotti&isRecentPosts=True 

John L. Mariotti, President & CEO, The Enterprise Group,  http://www.mariotti.net,   http://mariotti.blogs.com/my_weblog/

THAT'S JUST ONE  OF THE REASONS WE WROTE : 

HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency

(stay tuned for an update on its availability date------)

YOU MUST CHOOSE—DECIDE WHICH ONE MATCHES YOUR VIEW OF OUR COUNTRY AND ITS NEED FOR LEADERSHIP.  

BEST, JOHN

**********************

NEW BOOK COMING SOON: 

HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency, co-authored with D. M. Lukas, available March 2012 in paperback & Kindle editions at www.amazon.com

Author of the Award Winner: THE COMPLEXITY CRISIS, and the exciting novel: THE CHINESE CONSPIRACY.   Come see my blog posts on Forbes.com & American Express Open Forum: http://www.openforum.com/connectodex/small-business-trends?username=john-mariotti&isRecentPosts=True 

John L. Mariotti, President & CEO, The Enterprise Group,  http://www.mariotti.net,   http://mariotti.blogs.com/my_weblog/

 

Half of Fortune 500 + US Govt Infected w/ DNSChanger Trojan http://ping.fm/MdkdV

THE ENTERPRISE--VICTORY BY DEFINITION? WHOSE DEFINITION?

THE ENTERPRISE--VICTORY BY DEFINITION? WHOSE DEFINITION?

ONE OF THE CHAPTERS IN OUR FORTHCOMING BOOK HOPE IS  NOT A STRATEGY: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency is entitled "Victory by Definition Isn't Victory"

The attached piece from John Mauldins's fine newsletter explains why the so-called "recovery" about which Barack Obama is so proud, may be no victory at all--except if you do what he does a lot--"redefine victory."  Recall the "jobs created" promise, which quickly shifted to "jobs created or saved," which no one could figure out how to measure accurately.

A NEW POST ON MY AMERICAN EXPRESS BLOG--I AM RESPONDING TO A COMMON QUESTION ABOUT JOBS

http://www.openforum.com/articles/get-ready-for-new-us-jobs-heres-where-to-find-them?cid=email_articlefeed_articletitlelink

I DON'T USUALLY QUOTE RUSH, BUT HE'S RIGHT ON THIS ONE!

Rush: "Obama's Jobless Numbers Are 'Corrupt'!"

The jobless rate reported today is “corrupt as it can be” because President Barack Obama’s administration has decreased the size of the workforce, Rush Limbaugh said on his radio show.  According to the Department of Labor, employers added almost a quarter of a million jobs in January. According to Limbaugh, it eliminated 2 ½ million positions.

“The number of jobs not available to be filled exploded by an unprecedented, record number of 1.2 million,” he said. “That’s not a typo. That’s part of this 2 ½ million fewer jobs. It is corrupt as it can be.”  He said the shrinking of “the overall universe of jobs” led to the misconstrued dip in the unemployment rate, to 8.3, from 8.5 in December.  “No president has ever been re-elected when the unemployment rate’s over 8 percent, so guess what it’s going to be by the time we get to Election Day,” he said.

 

FROM JOHN MAULDIN (www.JohnMauldin.com)  A GREAT INSIGHT ON THE GROWTH OF THE US ECONOMY

The 2.8% number is softer than it looks. Two-thirds of that growth (1.9%) was from inventory build-up (standard accounting practice says that growth in inventory increases GDP, while sales of inventory reduces it). “Real final sales (GDP less inventory changes) expanded at an anemic 0.8% annual pace in the fourth quarter, a sharp slowdown from the third quarter’s healthy 3.2% rate. That paints a different picture from the apparent pick-up in headline GDP growth from the third-quarter’s 1.8% yearly rate. The difference reflects the shift to inventory building in the fourth quarter from a drawdown in the third quarter.” (Barron’s)

I suppose one could spin inventory growth as businesses being optimistic about future sales and building inventory, but given the weaker retail sales of late (in comparison to previous years) that is rather doubtful. And so all that really happened was a total reversal of inventory sales in the previous quarters. There will be a drawdown of inventories over the next few quarters, which will be a drag on future GDP numbers, much like the pattern we have seen the past few years.

Retail sales growth was not strong. And for the last year, 90%-plus of total retail sales has come from decreased savings, as the savings rate dropped from 4% to 2%. It will be hard to go much lower, so the “boost” we got last year from retail sales accounts for most of the year-over-year growth in GDP. If most of retails sales growth came from reduced savings, that suggests that retail sales will not offer much in the way of growth for the coming year. Just saying.

Further, when calculating real GDP, one subtracts inflation. The Fed prefers an inflation measure called PCE (Personal Consumption Expenditures). It is essentially a measure of goods and services targeted toward individuals and consumed by individuals. The number you read in the various media is the CPI or Consumer Price Index. The CPI is inflexible, in that it’s always the same basket of goods. PCE on the other hand, is supposed to take into consideration the notion that if steak is too costly, we’ll eat hamburger. The CPI is typically 0.3-0.5% higher than the PCE, which is convenient if you want the GDP number to look better.

...Fast forward to today, and the year-over-year change of CPI was 2.5%, with the PCE only rising 1.7%. And last quarter was down sharply, to +0.04% on an annual basis. An anomaly of lower energy and commodity costs? Partially, for sure. So if their target rate of inflation is 2%, using PCE gives the Fed grounds for a looser monetary policy.

All in all, GDP was helped by numbers that are not likely to repeat. For a long time I have maintained that the US economy is in a Muddle Through range of around 2%. I remember when last year at this time we had estimates of 4-5% growth for 2011. I looked so bearish. Now, not so much, as 2% would have been better than what we got.  I think we will be lucky to Muddle Through again this year. Mind you, if it was not for a potential shock coming from a serious European crisis and real recession, the US should not slip into outright recession this year.

TEN THINGS TO WORRY ABOUT?  2012 ELECTION PROSPECTS

1. Blacks will vote for Obama blindly.  Period.  Doesn't matter what he does.  It's a race  thing.   "He's one of US."
2. Too many college educated women  will vote for Obama.  Though they will be offended by this, they swoon at his oratory.   It's really not more complex than that,
3. Liberals will vote for  Obama.  He is their great  hope,
4. Democrats will vote for  Obama.  He is the leader of their party and his  coat tails will carry them to victory  nationwide,
5. Hispanics will vote for  Obama.  He is the path to citizenship for those who are illegal and Hispanic leaders recognize the political clout they carry in the Democratic  Party,  
6. Union members will vote  overwhelmingly for Obama.  He is their  key to money and power in business, state and local politics, 
7. The  media love him and are openly biased against his opponent(s).  They may attack the people who work for him,  but they love him.  After all, to not love him would be racist, 
8. Most other minorities  and special interest  groups will vote for him.   Oddly, the overwhelming majority of Jews and Muslims support him because they won't vote Republican.  American Indians will support him.  
9. Obviously homosexuals tend to vote Democratic.  And lastly,]
10. The "dependent class" not mentioned above will vote for Obama, which includes all of that 4&% who pay NO income tax at all.

Then, approximately half of independents may vote for Obama, and he doesn't need anywhere near that  number because he has all of the groups previously  mentioned.  Given his $! Billion campaign war chest, the President is the favorite to win in 2012.   

ONLY WE CAN CHANGE THAT--AND FOR AMERICA'S FUTURE--WE'D BETTER DO SO.

BEST, JOHN

NEW BOOK COMING SOON: 

HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency, co-authored with D. M. Lukas, available March 2012 in paperback & Kindle editions at www.amazon.com

 

Author of the Award Winner: THE COMPLEXITY CRISIS, and the exciting novel: THE CHINESE CONSPIRACY.   Come see my blog posts on Forbes.com & American Express Open Forum: http://www.openforum.com/connectodex/small-business-trends?username=john-mariotti&isRecentPosts=True 

John L. Mariotti, President & CEO, The Enterprise Group,  Phone (mobile) 614-499-5577  http://www.mariotti.net,   http://mariotti.blogs.com/my_weblog/