Man after my own heart!

[Dick]

This should sause some of you to think, "what if"?
This was sent to me, and I wish I couldd do something to help, but I am too far "down the road", for anything I would like to do, to have a chance of doing it. I have made my thoughts re "some changes
, but I don't have too much hope of kliving long enough to see them im,plememnted. And, I plan on living to the age of 125! That will be 2050 Think about it!

Remember Lee Iacocca, the VP at Ford credited with the birth of the Mustang, the man who rescued Chrysler, Corporation from their death throws, and the owner of the famous quote 'Lead, follow, or get out of the way'? Well, he's back! He has a new book, and here are some excerpts.

Lee Iacocca writes:

'Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder. We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, 'Stay the course'.

Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America , not the damned 'Titanic' , I'll give you a sound bite: 'Throw all the bums out!'

You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country anymore.

The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in handcuffs. While we're fiddling in Iraq , the Middle East is burning and nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving 'pom-poms' instead of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of the ' America ' my parents and yours traveled across the ocean for. I've had enough. How about you?

I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not outraged. This is a fight I'm ready for and willing to have.

The Biggest 'C' is Crisis !

Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis. It's easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk theory. Or send someone else's kids off to war when you've never seen a battlefield yourself. It's another thing to lead when your world comes tumbling down. George Bush, Dick Chaney and who is this Bozo coming up next? One of the most Liberal Idiots in the U. S. Senate and he is talking about disarming America . I can't believe the American people are not seeing what he is about to do to this country. May God have mercy on us all.

On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. A Hell of a Mess. So here's where we stand. We're immersed in a bloody war with no plan for winning and no plan for leaving. We're running the biggest deficit in the history of the country. We're losing the manufacturing edge to Asia , while our once-great Companies are all moving offshore. We're getting slaughtered by health care costs. Gas prices are skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent energy policy. Our schools are the worst in the world. Our borders are like sieves. The middle class is being squeezed every which way. These are times that cry out for leadership and we are getting ready to put the most Liberal Senator in the U. S. Senate in as our next President because we want to be fair and elect someone just because of his race. We don't have time to be fair, we need a strong leader.

But when you look around, you've got to ask: 'Where have all the leaders gone?' Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense? I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I hope you get the point.

Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo? We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we know how to do is react to things that have already happened.

Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane Katrina. Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response to the hurricane, or demanding accountability for the decisions that were made in the crucial hours after the storm. Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't happen again. Well guess what people? We are having more floods right now. What are we doing to help these people out? Now, that's just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a plan. Figure out what you're going to do the next time. Why are we allowing people to build in flood plains anyway? If you build in a flood area, expect to be flooded and deal with it. Don't expect the Government to bail you out.

Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. All they seem to be thinking now-days is getting themselves bigger salaries and bonuses. Who would have believed that there could ever be a time when 'The Big Three' referred to Japanese car companies? How did this happen, and more important, what are we going to do about it? Likely nothing!

Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the debt, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem. The silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at our country and milking the middle class dry.

I have news for the gang in Congress and the Senate. We didn't elect you to sit on your asses and do nothing and remain silent while our democracy is being hijacked and our greatness is being replaced with mediocrity. What is everybody so afraid of? That some bonehead on Fox News will call them a name? Give me a break. Why don't you guys show some spine for a change? I honestly don't think any of you have one!

Had Enough?

Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm trying to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope; I believe in America .... In my lifetime I've had the privilege of living through some of America 's greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our worst crises: the 'Great Depression', 'World War II', the 'Korean War', the 'Kennedy Assassination', the 'Vietnam War', the 1970s oil crisis, and the struggles of recent years culminating with 9/11. If I've learned one thing, it's this:

'You don't get anywhere by standing on the sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action. Whether it's building a better car or building a better future for our children, we all have a role to play. So let's shake off the crap and go to work. Let's tell 'em all we've had 'enough.'

Make a 'real contribution' by sending this to everyone you know and care about......our future is at stake!
Dick

[KurtS]

[eagames]

Some good thought from both of you

I see a big problem with stocks and how stocks can be a the downfall for a corporation.

Here's an example:

Lets say you have a gold mine and it gives you a steady 1 billion each year. You own the company without selling stock. Each year your company makes another billion and you rack up a fortune and stay in bussiness and your fortune grows and grows. Employees are happy with secure jobs.

Lets say the same gold mine is owned by a corporation with stock. It starts with a boom as it ramps from nothing to a 1 billion company the first year. Everyone loves the stock and company, the CEO has a lot of stock and options at the original price and wants the stock to rise. The next year it makes another billion. The stock holders get angry because there's no growth, just another billion like it made the first year. By the third year the stock is tanking, the analysts say there's no sign of profit growth. The CEO decides he must increase the yearly profit to get the stock to rise so near the years end he sells the mine operation for 2 billion to a foreign company, that year the profit becomes 1 billion from the mine operation plus 2 billion from selling the mine so the stock realy booms due to the 300% increase in profits! The CEO sells his stock and retires rich in Bermuda so he can avoid tax on his fortune. The fourth year the company has no profit, it's just an empty office with a new CEO with no mine so the stock tanks to nothing, everyone gets laid off and the stock holders have nothing.

My point is that stock tends to make the CEOs focus on short term profit and ignore long term sustainability. The opposite of what should be done.

[Dick]

ED, that is quite true, and just happens to be the same strategy that the Congreeemen are using for THEIR futures; Ridiculus salarys, and equal retirement income! That is why I sat LIMIT the number of term one can serve, in the houseor senate! And for the president:NO RE-ELECTION!!!
Dick

[KurtS]

And prison time for any politician (including presidents ) who violate the constitution--or break laws normally punishable by such. When nobody is above the law, that sets a standard for conduct all the way down the chain. A little trivia: during the Nuremberg trials, some of the first to be examined were the judges of courts under the Nazi regime. I think that suggests something about the importance of the level-handed administration of law.

Eagames, great story! This out of control emphasis on returns is precisely what motivated banks to devise the toxic credit derivatives--higher returns meant more than any measure of security. Has anyone learned the lesson...yet?

[Dick]

Kurt, only time will tell! The Stock Market indicates they haven't decided to "get it right", ot go back to "business as usual". Neither of the Nominees have made a determined effort to get thins back together. Too busy trying to cut the otherguys throat! Since Palin came on the scene, everyone wants to know all the dirt. As far as Biden is concerned, I have never liked him, or his "holier-than-thou" attitude, and his insolence when speaking to members of the armed forces! If it were up to me, He would not be a Senator, much less a vice-presidential candidate! I had never heard of gov. Palin, before she was selected by McCain, but I like her attitude, and spunk! I believe she will make a good vice-president, if elected. If Kphn McCain did not make it, (for what ever reason, age primarily), she would be a person to be contended with! That is what I refer to when I say, "we need new blood in the whole government"!IMHO.
Dick

[KurtS]

If I were to be honest, I think both sides are rather clueless as to the depth of the problem ahead--and they're generally saying what voters want to hear..."pssst, it's all Wall St's fault. Vote for me and I would fix everything". And in Europe, they're saying it's "America's fault" (untrue again). If you spent gobs of money that's not actually yours, you have nobody to blame but yourself...

I dislike politics in general and have voted on "both sides of the fence", so I'm trying to impartially observe this mess, despite living in a place suffering from chronic "liberalitis", which I find just as smug and irrational as the far opposite end. After observing a few of those same things Lee Iacocca wrote about, I'm looking critically at any politician who is protecting methods that clearly do not work--using rhetoric that appeals to people's fear. A clear example has been the scaremongering that Paulson has generated to push his $700Bn bailout through--that was rather transparent. I'd call that a "diagnostic behavior" that I try to apply equally to anyone. The stakes are getting too high to have the luxury of playing into my comfortable biases...America needs to find some collective goals to pursue.

[Dick]

Kurt, youi and i seem to think a lot alike. Maybe we should "write in" our names. It couldn't be any worse than it already is!
Dick

[coop]

Or you could vote for her?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFPVCfQ7uxM

[KurtS]

Dick, I'll write in yours. My campaign wouldn't be too popular by telling everyone simply "Don't buy stuff you cannot afford!--whether that means the banks, government, or consumers.

Coop--that's very timely; love it! Gotta laugh at everyone waiting for some leader to fix everything--part of the problem now, imo.

[Dick]

Right Kurt! And I'll write in yours! That way no matter which one wins, things will get fixed. Any move right now will be a move in the right way! Coop would make an excellent VeeP! They seem to be the ones who do all the work!
Dick

[coop]

I guess it better than "Mr Nobody!"

[KurtS]

Coop, yes I got the parallel.
Make no mistake, we're going to need real ideas for what's coming. But so far it's mostly finger-pointing, name calling, mumbling and other diversionary tactics. Get Americans to fight each other while crooks steal our money. Enough is enough.