THE ENTERPRISE--A LOT GOING ON THIS YEAR…A LONG EDITION, TOUCHING ON THE BIG ISSUES AS 2021 ENDS
DO NOT DESPAIR—many of the bad things that are predicted never happen and there is little we can do about the others. The best solution is to stay well-informed from reliable sources—and use your insights to elect better, more competent people to lead the US government in 2022 and 2024!
SUPPLY CHAINS HAVE BEEN REFINED SO MUCH THEY HAVE NO SURGE CAPACITY, “LEAN" WAS GOOD; NOW IT’S NOT SO GOOD
What’s going on with global supply chains? Years ago I wrote the column posted below in a .pdf file. Notice the emphasis on “lean” and communications. Over the decades since I wrote this, more and more communications technology has permitted every one to wring out the excess supply in the supply chain. Most folks know of JIT—Just In Time. Few have heard of JTL —Just Too Late.
Consider the complex global networks that are called a “supply chain.” These are not actually chains, but rather a very complex network spanning the globe. Throw a few unexpected problems into them—like Covid, labor shortages (no truck drivers), overloaded ports, shortage of storage space, unbalance of material flow, and a surge in demand caused by the USA handouts to stimulate a recovery. Throw money, we don’t have but can borrow, at every problem. And voila’ the problem gets bigger and nastier.
US PORTS ARE UNABLE TO HANDLE THE NEEDED FLOW OF GOODS—TOO FEW PEOPLE, TOO LITTLE EQUIPMENT & TOO MUCH POLITICS
California’s regulations alone are obstructing the flow of goods through its ports. Labor, space, equipment and environment are all constricted. This one will be around for a long time, because few understand what to do and ever fewer know how to do it. Goods from across the ocean (especially the Pacific) are floating on ships, waiting to be unloaded, but there’s not enough manpower, space or equipment to handle the flow of containers. The result: wait and wait and wait. Christmas gifts will be late. Necessities will be late. Logistics tells where the goods are, but not how to get them where they need to be.
GLOBAL WARMING: HUMAN BEHAVIOR DOES AFFECT WEATHER, BUT HAS LITTLE/NO IMPACT ON CLIMATE — OVER DECADES OR CENTURIES
All promises to be “carbon free” by 2035 or 2050 are PIPE DREAMS of politicians who have no idea what they are promising. Just watch this short video (skip the ads) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqppRC37OgI You’ll see the true issues, and how big lies are being used. People impact weather, that is true. They build where they should not—on unstable ground—in the random path of storms, which leads to damage and loss of life.
CLIMATE SCIENCE IS NOT SETTLED—NOT AT ALL
I wrote an entire edition of THE ENTERPRISE on this topic. The best information I found is summarized in Steven Koonin’s book: “Unsettled.” Koonin was Obama’s expert in this field for 5+ years—until he determined that the Climate Change panic was all “bunk”—resigned and wrote Unsettled. See more here: https://a.co/bpAAs4t …and if that doesn’t convince you read what noted Australian Geologist Ian Plimer’s book "Heaven and Earth” written a decade ago. Yes, it seems humans are impacting climate, but the true science says, humans have not altered climate for centuries. It just goes in cycles. Headlines that say “this is normal” or "everything is going to be fine” don’t attract readers, or money because they are not sensational even if untrue or distorted.
(NOTE: You can scroll backwards through editions of THE ENTERPRISE on my blog site https://mariotti.blogs.com/my_weblog/ read the Sept. 21, 2021 issue)
RUSSIA IS THREATENING A UKRAINE INVASION—BAD NEWS
Numerous fictional books have described this potential next bold invasion by Putin, who is unscrupulous, and devious. Russia wants Ukraine back and it's amassing the troops to take it back, sooner rather than later. Putin will “dare" NATO to intercede, and NATO will back down. Russia as a country is still powerful but also broken—failing economically. Only by taking back more of it’s lost territory, does it hope to grow.
CHINA IS THREATENING TAIWAN & SOUTH CHINA SEA & HAS HYPERSONIC MISSILES—WORSE NEWS
Premier Xi, unlike Putin, is not masking his aspirations for China and they are SCARY. He plans to take back Taiwan, using whatever force is necessary, daring the US to intercede militarily. China is building a Navy with more Warships than the US, while US government leaders dither and quarrel. China dredged entire islands to build military airfields in the South China sea, (which China claims is its territory). Last, and maybe scariest, is China’s Hypersonic Missiles that are now a reality. Too fast and elusive for America’s existing defenses, and nuclear-warhead-capable. China building silos across its vast country, from which to launch missiles. Be afraid; be very afraid, if this happens.
IRAN IS ENRICHING NUCLEAR MATERIAL FOR WEAPONS; SO IS NORTH KOREA—MORE BAD NEWS
Few things are worse than having a fight with a “crazy person.” That kind of foe doesn’t know when to quit, or if to quit, ever. The latest two irrational foes are North Korea and Iran. Both country’s leaders (Kim Jong Un in Korea, and the Mullahs in Iran) are nearly ready with enough enriched uranium (weapons grade) for bombs—and can buy the missile technology to deliver them. Both are zealots, just of different kinds. Nukes in the hands of the wrong kinds of leaders/countries are a threat to the entire earth.
THE USA THREAT: INCOMPETENT AND INEPT LEADERS IN GOVERNMENT— WORSE NEWS
Anyone who has watched President Biden try to read a Teleprompter and get it right, sees that he is cognitively slipping. Who’s guiding US foreign policy? John Kerry? Bernie Sanders? Democrats in Congress? Or the cast of second rate appointees Biden is pushing into his administration. Certainly not VP Kamala Harris, with her scary laughter ? For this group of people to be who we rely on to lead the world's largest economy, and contend with threats like the ones noted above. This may be the SCARIEST THREAT OF ALL. It seems like “the inmates are running the asylumIn” in the USA. And yet, millions of people are flooding across the US uncontrolled borders, clamoring to get into America—because with all its problems, it is far better than where they come from.
BIDEN HAS UNDONE MOST OF THE GOOD THINGS TRUMP PUT IN PLACE—AND AMERICA WILL PAY THE PRICE, AND MORE
Trump may have been a personal mess, but his career in business, and ego-driven actions to keep his campaign promises, helped get America moving again. Because Congress opposed and attacked him at every turn, he could only do most things by executive order. And Biden has reversed most of these, like throwing a fast moving vehicle suddenly into reverse. Everyone knows what happens when you do that! Chaos, turmoil and damage, and lack of clarity on the direction to move. MAGA WAS TRUMP’S (REVILED) MOTTO, BUT IT WORKED. BIDEN’S BBB IS NOT WORKING, IT HURTS AMERICANS.
AMERICANS ARE SPENDING IRRESPONSIBLE BIDEN & THE DEMOCRATS' SPENDING IN PLACE OF TRUE LEADERSHIP—SPEND MORE!
Biden learned this as Obama’s VP. When you are clueless about how to solve a problem, "Throw money at it." That makes everyone feel better temporarily, and no one worries about where the money comes from (taxpayers and debt. This kind of action will be followed certainly by INFLATION! WATCH!. IT IS AT ALMOST 7% ALREADY. HOW MUCH HIGHER WILL IT GO, REDUCING THE VALUE OF EVERYONE’S “NEST EGGS?"
OUR BORDERS ARE OVERWHELMED WITH IMMIGRANTS, MANY BRINGING DRUGS, DISEASE AND/OR DESPERATION TO AMERICA
One of "Biden’s Bonehead" moves was how he opened the American borders to all comers, without any regard to the consequences. Crime, Covid, Cocaine, Fentanyl, death and sadness. ICE was overwhelmed. Next came fragmented families and abandoned children, sent ahead alone (with Coyotes) because parents couldn’t come. When a fool is in charge of anything, it gets worse not better—just look—and Biden sends Kamala Harris, a big city lawyer, to fix it? She didn’t even want to go near the border, let alone know what to do about it. Her mantra is “find the ROOT CAUSE of immigration problems. HELLO: It is “you guys” and your policies!
AMERICANS HAVE ABDICATED THE WILL TO WORK—TOO MUCH WELFARE—AMERICA NEEDS A RETURN TO “WORKFARE”
“The behavior rewarded is the behavior repeated.” This is a truism. If you give people enough money to live on and stay home, they will stop working. After a while, that irresponsible freedom is like a drug too. They believe someone (who) owes them a living, so they want more, for longer. More food stamps, more unemployment. More freebies of all kinds = millions of unfilled jobs and millions of unemployed people. Sooner or later “Other people’s money runs out.” Socialists should have learned that, because Socialism has never worked. A WHOLE GENERATION THINKS “SOMEONE” OWES THEM GOOD PAYING JOBS—WRONG! THERE IS STILL NO "FREE LUNCH"—NEVER HAS BEEN—NEVER WILL BE—SOMEBODY HAS TO PAY SOMEHOW, SOMEDAY
THE OVER-HEATED STOCK MARKET IS LULLING PEOPLE INTO A FALSE SENSE OF FINANCIAL SECURITY—BEWARE A BIG “CORRECTION”
The laws of gravity say, “What goes up, must come down.” The only question is when and how fast. In the meantime, Americans feel wealthier and are spending the government largesse on things they want and need—if they can get them. So far, only America’s role as the world’s reserve currency and being the best place for foreign investment has saved it. Will that continue? We can only hope so.
THE TRUTH IS STILL THE TRUTH, RIGHT IS STILL RIGHT, WRONG IS STILL WRONG—BUT AMERICAN MEDIA NEITHER SAYS SO NOR ADMITS IT
There is a danger in finding easy words to describe wrong-minded thinking. Being able to rationalize bad behavior or poor choices is an attractive trap. Beware. We all know, deep down, what’s right and what’s wrong. Pay attention to that little voice in our heads that reminds us of both.
THE WHOLE “WOKE”—POLITICALLY CORRECT TREND HAS DAMAGED COMMON SENSE AND ACCOUNTABILITY
COVID CONTINUES TO SICKEN AND KILL TOO MANY PEOPLE WHO REFUSE VACCINES (& AVOID COMMON SENSE PRECAUTIONS)—COVID IS RUNNING WILD DUE TO ANTI-VAXERS
I’ve been told by many people why they are afraid or the vaccines. Side effects, unknown long term effects, and the belief that they can get by, or get Covid and survive it, building natural immunity—and some of them are right. But far too many are wrong, flooding hospitals and even dying. Protect yourselves and your loved ones. Take whatever precautions you can, because the ultimate side effect to fear is suffering and death!
PEOPLE LIKE THE FREEDOM OF WORKING FROM HOME, NO COMMUTE, NO HOVERING BOSS, BUT NO WAY TO “MANAGE” THAT EITHER
The days of the big HQ offices are gone. The illusion that all being in one place (the office) caused people to work together harmoniously has been shattered. Some of the time, in some of the places, this togetherness promotes collaboration—but not always. Now more people are quitting their jobs to be their own boss. Too many of them don’t realize that they may not be qualified to do that—or able to earn a living that way. The shock of that realization comes when they can no longer “make ends meet” and pay their bills. Early retirement is no panacea either, unless people have plenty of financial resources carefully built up over years of work. A single big catastrophe can deplete even sizable savings & retirement funds. Caution: proceed very care fully.
TRYING TO UNDO DECADES OF DISCRIMINATION HAS LED TO A DIFFERENT KIND OF DISCRIMINATION
Yes, black lives matter, so do white, brown and every other shade of skin color. It’s wonderful that dark-skinned people are getting opportunities they’ve never had before—IF they are prepared to capitalize on them. For years “proportional representation” (by racial minority) has been a goal for casting directors in TV, Movies and public-facing positions. Now the pendulum has swung the other way. Far more “shades of brown-skinned people are featured in media that are represented in the 30+% of the general population. Let’s hope that this trend finds the right mix to represent Americans of all skin colors. Remember, skin color is contained in only a very thin layer of the outer skin. What matters is what's beneath that skin—what’s inside. As intermarriage and immigration continues, America will become increasingly all shades of light and dark, but above all, we must hope it will still be an America we can feel proud about.
SOMEHOW, EVEN WITH INEPT, CLUELESS, LEADERSHIP—ALREADY POLARIZED BY THE QUEST FOR PARTY & POLITICAL POWER—AMERICAN CAN WIN — BUT POOR LEADERSHIP CAN CONTINUE TO REDUCE THE QUALITY OF AMERICAN LIVES & REDUCE THE JOY OF WINNING
IF We pay close attention to who we choose as our elected leaders in 2022 and beyond, "We will reap what we sow.” Choose good leaders to elect, with the right motives and integrity, and they will help preserve and protect our great country. Choose the wrong one, selfish ones, or those misguided about how America’s growth and success came about—and we will suffer the consequences.
The best way to close this edition is to cite what it says on our currency—and believe it—IN GOD WE TRUST, and E Pluribus Unum (out of many, one).
In following those mottos, we can hope for a better, happier, healthier and more prosperous 2022.
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL.
JOHN
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