A Note to Wall Street: It’s Time to Leave…

I was born in New York City, grew up there, have family that still live there and I have always had a place in my heart for NYC. But it has become a cancer in this great republic. If this cancer is allowed to spread it could take much of the country with it. The way to cut this cancer out is to show the rest of the country that we as Americans no longer can accept the demonization of free markets, freedom, and capitalism. The message must be clear that if we hope to turn this country around we need to support and promote the greatest economic system in the world.

Wall Street is the heart of capitalism. It is where the world comes together to invest in the millions of ideas and organizations that drive global wealth. The fact that it is in the heart of one of the most hostile and socialist cities in the world give it the opportunity to start the reform back to common sense. The newest Mayor of NYC is a socialist that campaigned on destroying the wealth that built the great city of NY. He wants to punish success and take the money from the people that earned it and give it to people that did not.

The Governor of NY just declared there is no place in NY for conservative Americans. The environment in NY is more like the Soviet Union than the United States. It is time for all hard working, successful people and institutions to move that success to a place where it is appreciated. There are many states that would love to host these successful Americans, and if the Stock Exchanges that are currently hosted on Wall Street want to protect the future wealth of this country they should move on out. That’s right; it is time to find a new location.

I think that Wall Street firms and financial institutions should put out a RFP (Request for Proposals) on real estate that could house a new center of capitalism. The financial markets need to find a more hospitable place that does not punish their success or the success of the people that make the financial markets tick.

I am sure that Florida and Texas would respond to the RFP. I think North and South Carolina, Colorado and many other states would love to house and support the center of our capitalist system. Think of all the benefits for the state that is on the receiving end of a successful bid. Think of the boom for that state and its economy. Think of how wonderful it would be to see capitalism celebrated rather than demonized!

There has to be a group at the exchanges and financial institutions that have the guts to get the process rolling. There has to be someone that says enough is enough. Sean Hannity is the latest high profile entrepreneur to make the move out of NY. Rush Limbaugh has moved his operations to Florida, and Glen Beck has moved his operations to Texas. They have put their money where their mouth is and have stood on principle. They are only a couple of examples but by just the three of these conservative and successful individuals leaving NY they have taken millions of tax dollars with them. They have taken business taxes, property taxes, employee taxes, and all of the sales taxes that they generated while living in NY. Imagine if the financial center of capitalism did the same?

It is time to send a message to politicians and the people that when you target successful people they will leave. It is a lesson that must be learned and the example must be set for future politicians that free markets and capitalism are to be honored not demonized.

It is time to defend our country from the current assault that has become more brazen by people that don’t have a clue about what really makes this country tick…

This Pope is Wrong, Really Wrong…

Pope Francis has the noble goal of ending poverty. But the Pope has the wrong solution; spreading socialism. In his first “position paper” as the Pope, he attacks the free market calling it a “new tyranny.” This Pope may be popular but his thoughts on how to create the best opportunity for the poor is dangerous.

This Pope has grown up in an area of the world that is rich in resources but poor in access to those resources. The government in the name of “helping the poor” is doing the exact opposite. What socialists like the Pope fail to realize is the absolute truth of the Bible story “Teach a Man to Fish.” Socialism is about punishing success. It takes away an individual’s incentive to work hard because no matter how hard you work under socialism (unless you are a politician); you make the same as the guy who doesn’t work at all.

Compassion is a great trait to have but not at the expense of other people’s individual right to keep the harvest of their labor. It is easy to feel bad for the poor but it is exactly that feeling that destroys the poor’s incentive to help themselves. Compassion should be measured by how many people can take care of themselves - not how many people the government supports through re-distribution programs.

The Pope talks about the unhealthy pursuit of money. But it is not money people pursue; it is the lifestyle that having money provides for the people that have money. Human nature is proven through history and a billion studies. Human nature defines the actions we take to survive and thrive. When we are incentivized with rewards, have the ability to create and keep wealth, we as humans then can focus on helping others. The United States is (although we are slowly losing the opportunity) the best example of compassion. Because we value individual wealth creation, our nation boasts of being the most charitable nation in the world. It is because of excess that we can be charitable. If our wealth is confiscated by governments, our ability and will to be charitable is diminished.

This Pope would do well to understand why people have been leaving his church in droves, especially in the United States. The lack of women in the priesthood, the bureaucracy and the lack of connection with the way the world works today are just a few of the reasons. I believe tradition is important but the tradition of who is allowed to lead in the church is a tradition that should end. It can’t be defended and is the ultimate “good ol boys club.” The patriarchal nature of the Catholic Church is a stumbling block to connecting with more and younger people. That is where the Pope should spend his time. But this is hard work and disruptive to the Church’s empire. It would also help with his socialist message to divest of the wealth of the Vatican and all of its holdings by giving them directly to the poor.

I know it is easier, and accepted, by many progressives in the world to denounce capitalism, greed, and wealth but it is the wrong message to send. This Pope seems to like the role of playing the “regular guy” and God Bless him for getting out into the real world. But if he really looks around at the real world what he will find is the enemy of the poor is not money, capitalism, or wealth creation. It is an ignorance of the economic realities that create the greatest opportunity for the poor.

This Pope should be out there spreading the word that government creates more poor, socialism creates more poor, and the answer is individual accountability and opportunity that is the path to a healthy life. “Give a man a fish and he eats for a day, teach a man to fish and he can feed himself for life.” Give the poor the wealth created by others and they soon become incapable of creating wealth for themselves. That serves no one, especially the poor…

The Pope is Right and Wrong

The Pope recently chided the world for the worshiping of “the God of money.”  The under tone of the comments were a criticism of capitalism. The Pope was right that worshiping money for the sake of money is to have an empty life. But the Pope was wrong when he said “"We don't want this globalised economic system which does us so much harm. Men and women have to be at the centre (of an economic system) as God wants, not money.” "The world has become an idolator of this god called money," he said. This argument is too simple and could easily be heard by any two bit dictator of the world rousing the people’s ire.

The greatest way to end poverty is to unleash the human desire to take care of one’s self through the creation of products and services to be used by fellow humans. Capitalism is the answer to the world’s woes. To say that the worker is the where we need to focus is wrong. We need to nurture the free exchange of goods and services by individual and every size business. When we nurture business we create jobs. When we create jobs we need workers. To say you support workers but demonize the people that create work is a circular argument that ends the same, no work or workers.

Money is not evil. The pursuit of money is not evil. Money is simply the mechanism used to exchange goods and services in a market. The more money you make the better off your circumstances. The Pope needs money to travel. Nothing is free. So the idea that the pursuit of money is the problem in the world is a really disingenuous argument to create envy among the people. The Pope seems to want to blame capitalism and the pursuit of money as the reason for poverty in the world. The reason for poverty in the world is government control of the economies of the poorest nations. Show me a poor country and I will show you a corrupt government. Socialist, communist, and dictatorships are the cause of poverty. Any attempt to control people and markets smothers the economy.

There are greedy people in the world and they are usually found in those corrupt governments. There are some captains of industry that are greedy but in America most contribute to the many charities and causes that help the less fortunate. It is their choice to do so and that is the way it should be. To take their hard earned money under the guise of “fairness” is the real greed. That is what corrupt governments do.

The Pope needs to be a promoter of capitalism around the world if he really wants to help the workers of the world. To stoke the fire of envy in the world is below the dignity of his position. The Catholic Church has a history of keeping property in the ownership of the Church. One of the many reasons Priests were forbidden to marry has roots in keeping property in the “family.” In the 9^th century priests that were married willed property to their wives and in 1123 celibacy was made was made official. Was that dictate out of greed? Why not share the accumulated property of the church? Why not sell the Vatican and its furnishings to give to the poor?

I am not trying to bash the Catholic Church. I was raised catholic and we had family friends that were priests. But the Pope needs to nurture the spirit of the human condition which is fed through freedom, the dignity of work and the ability to be compassionate. The most compassionate people are those that have succeeded through a capitalist economy. The Pope needs to support capitalism and the pursuit of a better life for all and that requires money…

 

Real Poverty is Coming…

The Census Bureau recently released a report on poverty and the reporting on it in the media was predictable. The mantra was the “rich get richer”, “the gap between the rich and poor widens”, etc… Instead of an analysis of the cause of poverty, and how we could all be headed to real poverty, we heard the typical emotional arguments about the unfairness of some people doing better than others. Here is my analysis.

Let’s start with the definition of poverty: “state of being poor: the state of not having enough money to take care of basic needs such as food, clothing, and housing.” In most of the world this definition applies but in America, most people in poverty have plenty to eat, drink, and have a place to live, have a TV, cable, iPods, computers, cell phones, and a car. So how can this be poverty as compared to the rest of the world? This is not poverty this is income redistribution and an effort to foster class envy. It is also unsustainable, and if not corrected could be the beginning of the end of our way of life as we know it.

The democrats are notorious for stoking envy but the republicans are not exempt. The reason the opportunity class is shrinking is because the federal government is taking the wealth through taxation. The median income is down to around $50,000 per year, the lowest it’s been in a very long time.  Every dollar the federal government takes from the productive people to give to people in “poverty” the less money is available to be put to productive use in the economy. The people in poverty are getting what would be equal in value to a productive person bringing home $38,000 in wages. Is this poverty? We need to bring back real poverty so people have an incentive to climb out of it. We should feed people who can’t feed themselves and provide a basic roof over their heads but everything else must go.

Who defines poverty? The government and that is the problem. The government has a self-interest to increase its tentacles to ensure its survival and growth. It needs to be stopped or we will all be in poverty. Before you say, poverty doesn’t seem that bad, the poverty we will all encounter will not be what we see today. It will include a collapse of the financial system, food shortages and absolute chaos which will generate more calls for a government “solution” which is exactly what we don’t need. We need to collapse the central government.

The generations of people in poverty are mostly people that have failed out of the education system, depended on government for their subsistence for generations, are disproportionately black and minority, and are the most vulnerable to a struggling economy. They are squeezed out by the educated in society which are mostly white. That is where the dishonesty and racial politics rears its ugly head.

Poverty is the result of poor choices not race or some other demographic. Most people in poverty failed out of school, had children out of wedlock and in their teenage years, and have an attitude that someone else is to blame. Every one of the causes of poverty is subsidized by the central government for political reasons. The public education system is broken; the government undermines family, and the culture, and pays the poor for bad choices. Until we call it what it is we will continue to have the poor.

If we don’t reduce the power of the central government we will all become poor but not the poor we see today. We have a choice to make and little time to make it. What we need is a return to self-reliance and the greatness we achieved through freedom and free markets. The federal government is subsidizing the cause of poverty and it must be stopped by returning to our founding principles…  

Building the Economy “from the middle out”?

If you are confused by the title of this post, don’t feel bad, you should be. It is the most recent statement on economic policy by President Obama. A President that has next to nil experience in the private economy of the United States, not even a lemonade stand. He is an agitator, and a very good one. He agitates many Americans with statements like this.

Let’s look at and analyze the suggestion of “building the economy from the middle out, not the top down.” If you look at this statement from a purely political perspective, he is attempting to divide Americans by class and agitate people to blame the “top.” The top being the “rich”, the rich being the people that create the jobs. This president has no problem with the rich that donate to his campaign, and the rich people he gives our tax dollars to for businesses he supports, like solar companies, but the rest of the “rich” he despises. The people that actually create jobs from the “top down.”

“Top down” job creation is actually not top down; it is from “nothing to something” job creation. It is people that take an idea and put it into action which attracts customers to purchase that idea, and then it grows, and the person that started from nothing has something that they need help to keep growing. Whew! Did you follow that? That is where the person that took “nothing to something” now hires people and like magic you have job creation. These people are to be celebrated, not demonized or ignored as the president wants to do in his newest transformation as a job creator from “the middle out.” Creating jobs from the middle out?

How do you create a job from the middle out? In the real world the only way that happens is that a worker leaves the current company they work at and start their own company. If the person from the “middle class” steps from that job to take the risk of opening a business, they have now become the “top down.” They are the owner, entrepreneur, CEO, sole proprietor, etc…, and no longer are in the middle. Starting a business puts you at the top. That’s how I see it and how any sound business person would interpret the President’s message of “middle out”. But we would be wrong!

What the president is suggesting is that we need to grow the “middle” without the “middle” stepping out and creating new companies. He is saying that the government must “invest” (tax dollar confiscation from the “top”) to add people in the “middle” without the “top” creating new jobs. The only way you can do that is to transfer wealth from some other source. There are two choices: the taxpayer and the “top.” Both of these choices creates nothing new and destroys the wealth creation you already have. The pie doesn’t grow it just gets sliced up in a different configuration. The pie actually gets smaller because the “top” leaves and finds a better country to do business or just stops doing business because they are punished for their success.

This is economics 101 and a class the President obviously failed or skipped to hang out with his fellow agitators at Harvard. Actually it is part of the left, liberal, social democratic plan to destroy the wealth of this nation and put government in control of a failing economy. It is all about power, envy, and contempt for our capitalist, constitutional republic. It is because the left despises freedom, free markets, and limited government intrusion in our lives.

This President is an economic genius for the political philosophy he embraces. He is a failure to the people that love and believe in this country. His term can’t end fast enough. I just hope our economy can absorb another three years of this president’s attempt to destroy it…

I Love to Think

One of the most enjoyable activities of my day is taking time to think. I love to think about the ramifications of actions or ideas often promoted in articles. It can be in business or politics, but I find myself never, ever taking the information on face value. I know I’m not alone but I often wonder how many people actually look at the ramifications of policy.

For example: I look at the intentions of government welfare programs and I think to myself, do the results of the program match the original intent? Having grown up in NYC I have had a lot of exposure to the results of these programs. Section 8 housing was intended to provide housing for low income families. The result was the destruction of neighborhoods, gang violence, and too many people becoming prisoners within their own apartments. Welfare for poor families has led to the destruction of the family. You see, in order for woman to get welfare they can’t have a male in the house. They also receive additional benefits for having more children. The result is more single parent households with lots of latchkey kids running around without supervision in dilapidated apartment complexes.

The results of welfare have been the destruction of the inner city and especially the minority communities. There is no incentive to get off the program because the benefits package adds up to more than most people with the same education level can expect from full employment. So as I think about and observe the results I can’t help but wonder is there a better way?

Human behavior is easy to predict. It has not changed throughout the ages. You give people stuff and they become entitled. Teach and man to fish and you know what happens? People in America have been blessed with a system of government and an economic system that has produced wealth beyond any past historical comparisons. It has given us the luxury to be compassionate. We want to feel that we are doing something to help the less fortunate so we support any program that intends to help people. But the government is not the best distributor of this generosity. It is the local church or non-profit.

The intent of the new healthcare law was to insure everyone and make healthcare affordable. Who could argue with that? But the results are already being seen and if we look at the track record of other well intended government programs we can predict failure and the destruction of the best healthcare system in the world. All we have to do is think about it. The evidence that the government is not the answer is everywhere.

I love to think. I hope you do too…

Capitalism Works Every Time…

If you replace the word capitalism with “individual choice” you start to understand the reason we are so prosperous as a nation and people. This election cycle we are seeing a very dangerous tactic by the president and his supporters by demonizing “capitalism.” In the view of too many Americans, Capitalism has become a negative word. As a nation there is no quicker path to the bottom than to bite the system that feeds the prosperity we enjoy.

“Individual choice” to engage in trade with others works best because the individuals involved in the transaction know what is the best outcome of that transaction. The two parties assess the others offer and decide if it is worth the exchange of value to each party. An example would be a person needs food and a farmer needs a barn. The farmer and the carpenter decide what the value is in the transaction. The carpenter may ask for 6 months’ worth of corn in exchange for building a barn. If that trade is acceptable the two parties transact business. If not they either renegotiate or find another person that will find the transaction terms acceptable. The final transaction will be the result of “market” principles in action. Individuals decide for themselves the value of goods in the market.

The introduction of a third party like government into the market to decide what the “price” for goods and services is and the way they are distributed is socialism. A third party decides how much time people need to spend working and what wage they will receive for that time “spent” on the job. This third party is not part of the transaction except for the part of deciding how the transactions will take place and how the terms will be distributed. No matter what the individuals in the transaction think about the terms, the terms remain the same (“equal”). If those terms are not acceptable to the parties the parties remove themselves from the “market’ and the market stalls, and dwindles away. Nothing gets done and things stagnate or more likely a “black market” is created to get around the third party arbiter.

The economy and the world revolves around billions of “individual choice” transactions that all together make up a vibrant economy. The reason the “individual choice” model is so efficient is because people will only do the transactions that make sense to their individual circumstances. They make the best choice for themselves and their families. They control the choices they make and every transaction adjusts based on the needs of “individual choice.”

There are times when “individual choice” is “cruel” to the other party by rejecting what they have to offer. But unlike a system like socialism that attempts to force the transaction to move forward, in the “individual choice” model that rejected party must rethink, retool, reduce the price, (or many other possibilities), make a change that is acceptable to the other party.  It forces changes that can result in failure but can also result in a more efficient offer or product. It forces people to be creative, diligent, hardworking and in a word it is competitive. The strong survive and the weak either change or fail.

So even though socialism touts “fairness” it is not fair at all. It distorts the “individual choice” and replaces it with forced transactions. It never works for a greater length than individuals figure a way to work around it or stop working at all. So the next time you hear someone criticize capitalism ask them if they believe in “individual choice”? Most likely they will and then explain that capitalism is a system of individual choices which produces the best outcomes for all willing to work hard in our society…

Economics 101, Again!

Wealth is created when someone provides a product or service someone else is willing to pay for.

The price of a product or service must be greater than the cost to produce or provide that product or service.

Costs include the wages paid to employees. The wages are part of the cost and cannot exceed the value the employee creates.

Profit is what the producer (owner) of the product or service keeps after paying all of the costs; rent, manufacturing, research & development, packaging, shipping, marketing, and wages.

The money earned by individuals whether they are wages as an employee or profits as an owner or investor is their money.

The more cost the government adds to a product or service; taxes, regulation, minimum wage, etc… - reduces the ability to create more wealth and wages.

The less cost the government adds to a product or service the greater the likelihood wealth is created to create more wealth and wages. This cycle is the reason we are so wealthy.

If employees don’t think they are paid enough they have the right to leave and get a new wage or create their own product or service.

Employees do not have a right to the wealth created by the owner.

Jobs are not the goal of wealth creators, jobs are the result of a need for help in producing a product or service to make additional profit for the owner or investor.

People that believe someone’s success is the reason for their failure is the victim of their own lack of initiative. Blame, envy, jealousy, and social justice are not products or services. They are barriers to individual success.

Capitalism offers everyone an equal opportunity to succeed or fail. Failure is a natural result of bad ideas, management, and laziness. Government trying to limit failure actually escalates bigger failure.

Markets decide winners and losers. You as an individual are part of the market. Every choice you make in the marketplace has an impact on the success or failure of the market. Government interference limits your choices in the marketplace and by asking for fairness you are guaranteeing higher prices and less choice.

Taxes should not be used to re-distribute wealth. Re-distributing wealth reduces the incentive to create wealth and everyone loses.  

Capitalism is Compassionate…

The most compassionate nation in the world is the United States of America. We are not compassionate because we have special DNA or are some special form of human species, we are compassionate because of capitalism. Capitalism has given us the gift of excess goods, services, and resources that we share with the rest of the world.

At the heart of capitalism is the ability of individuals to produce and create wealth for their own personal use and their family. As human beings, we first must take care of ourselves by producing food, clothes, and shelter. It is the nature of survival that is first and foremost in the human condition. In most economies prior to the capitalist system of the United States, goods and services were assumed to be owned by some ruling class. Production was stifled because the people producing wealth for others is much harder to manage than a system that allows for individuals to keep what they produce for themselves.

Capitalism rewards the hard work of individuals and is destroyed by the policies of taxation or confiscation without due compensation. It is a simple premise that is rooted in human nature. As we create our own wealth beyond the basic survival needs, we create additional wealth that allows us to become more compassionate. Whether that is on the personal scale of donating food to the local food pantry or the on the corporate scale of creating foundations that help other nations climb out of poverty, it can only happen when we create excess wealth. Excess wealth only happens in a capitalist economic system.

There are people and companies that abuse the system but on the whole most people and companies in the United States are a great example of how capitalism is the only system that works is a free society. As the government tries to regulate business and the capitalist system they impede freedom, freedom of individuals, and freedom of markets to conduct business. This limits wealth, reduces freedom, and smothers compassion.

So as you listen to all of the political posturing in 2012, remember capitalism is the most compassionate economic system in the world. It produces both winners and losers. The losers often come back into the market to become winners. But that can only happen when the government keeps its hands out of the arena. Any business or business person breaking the law should be punished. But any business or business person that fails in the market must be allowed to fail and not bailed out by the government.

If the government continues to distort the market capitalism is dead. Once capitalism is dead so is wealth and compassion. It’s that simple…

A Failure to Educate…

What we are seeing with the “Occupy Wall Street” crowd is the result of a failure to educate our citizens properly at the elementary and high school levels. It is embarrassing to listen to these protesters who have little clue about capitalism or the reason they exist in this world.

One of the protesters was asked if you want to change the capitalist system, what would you like to replace it with? The blank stare said it all. The student had no idea what the alternative should be and I would guess didn’t even understand how capitalism actually works.

This country is the greatest economic and moral engine of the world. It is the greatest economic engine because we have a capitalist system. We are a beacon for the world because our moral foundation is based on Judeo Christian values. We have a constitution that limits the federal government from infringing on both of these attributes but the current administration along with previous administrations have ignored these limits therefore giving us the malaise we are currently in.

We spend too much time teaching about recycling, diversity, and political correctness and not enough time on the American history, economics, the constitution, and American values.  We need our kids to be taking a full four years of American history, the constitution, and the capitalist system of economics in High School. Too many schools can’t even teach kids to read by the time they graduate High School. Colleges are now forced to have remedial programs in order to accept certain students.

The United States has been the means of good in the world because we have values and an economic system that enables us the free time to worry about others. Our religious institutions are an engine of compassion. To protest against the foundation of our success is ignorance.

What these Occupy Wall Street people need to realize is the reason they are unemployed is the fact that the capitalist system is being undermined by an out of control government. They should be in Washington DC not Wall Street or Main Street. It is not Wall Street “fat cats” that are the problem. It is politicians and business executives that are stealing tax payer dollars and conducting “crony capitalism” that should be the target of the protest. The problem resides in DC. If these people had the proper education they would be in the Tea Party.

Success begins with education and there are many schools that do an OK job. But the public system needs to be completely overhauled and handed back to communities to control. The federal government has been destroying the family, the economy, and personal accountability for long enough. We need to take back the education system because that is the root of the problem.

Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to the history and future of our country…

Government Intrusion Making us Sick…

Pfizer recently announced reducing its budget for the research and development of new life saving drugs by a whopping $2 billion dollars. Even if the money and jobs doesn’t concern you because you hate big “Pharma”, evil corporate executives, and capitalism in general, the new drugs that may have been developed to save your life one day are on life support.


Capitalism is simple; investment is made when rewards can be realized. The rewards are profits that can be used to pay people to develop more products to make more profits. The outcome is jobs, investment, charity, and overall economic growth. The reason the company has made this decision is based on the reality of the FDA’s over bearing regulations that will most likely make any of these investments into new drugs a total waste of time. The company does not believe any drugs in the future will be approved by the FDA. So the investment being made is unlikely to be realized. In the real world what that means is an assault on our system; capitalism.

Obama talks about innovation and corporate “responsibility” as he enters campaign mode, but what he has created behind the scenes is a bureaucratic nightmare. Obama talks about a “partnership” between the private sector and government. There is no such thing. The only responsibility of the government is to insure commerce moves between the states in a regular fashion. The federal bureaucracy is out of control and now trying to regulate us to prosperity. You can’t regulate the economic prosperity by being the gate keeper of new drugs into the market place. The process to get drugs to market has become so burdensome that it is no longer worth it to make those drugs. That is what the government has done as a “partner”.

The rule of law needs to be enforced in a free market place. That is the role of government. It is not the role of the federal government to micro manage as a “partner” in the private sector. That is a complete distortion of the free market economy. This president has NEVER created a job in the private sector. He has never worked in an industry that had to innovate and develop a product to survive. He is completely ignorant of the free market and is creating an atmosphere that is stifling American ingenuity. Why do you think companies are moving offshore? It is not simply lower wages; it is because they are looking for places that still respect the free market.

Companies do not exist for the sake of creating jobs and investing in communities although that is the result of successful companies. Companies exist to make a profit. If they can’t make a profit here in America they will go where they need to or go out of business. The government’s role is to stay out of the way unless laws are broken in the process. Less regulation and intrusion will fuel economic prosperity.

Pfizer is just the beginning and the effects will be felt for years to come if we don’t reign in this out of control federal bureaucracy. The future drugs that may have prevented or cured common diseases of today have been stopped by the FDA. One day we will look back and wonder why our mortality rate has rescinded. This administration and philosophy is making America sick…

You Make Too Much Money…

The president yesterday was quoted saying "Now, what we’re doing, I want to be clear, we’re not trying to push financial reform because we begrudge success that's fairly earned. I mean, I do think at a certain point you've made enough money." (See video here)

I think $30,000 a year is enough. So as Governor of Colorado I will confiscate any income made over 30K. I will take that money and give it to the homeless, helpless, children, elderly, and whoever else needs it. Why would anyone need more than $30,000 a year? What would someone do with such extravagance?

If this was truly my position as Governor would you vote for me? Why not? The most probable answer is that 30K is not enough to live on. But that is exactly what the president has said yesterday but he failed to name the amount of money he considers enough. The president would more than likely use his favorite number of $250,000 a year per family. But in a free society no matter how much you make the concept of capping wealth should be rejected.

The reward for hard work and ingenuity should have no limit. The rewards of labor in a capitalist society are the engine that creates wealth for everyone. When you limit wealth, you limit hard work and ingenuity. It is also a moral issue. There is no right to other people’s hard work because some politician believes it is too much and is offering you a piece of the pie. The pie will quickly be gone. If you look at the people that have made the kind of money this president despises, and believe me he despises wealth for you, most have worked extremely hard or taken risks others would not. They also tend to be the engine for charitable giving. Just look at the Gate’s Foundation. I would rather have Bill Gates directing his charity than any politician.

So if you think that capping pay is a good idea because you think you will never make 200K, 300K, a million or a billion dollars a year or a lifetime, you should consider this; by limiting reward you crush incentive. And the people that make that kind of money will close up shop and go somewhere else in the world more inviting. Singapore comes to mind. And the $30,000 cap I mentioned above will look like a million because we will have created a massive economic depression in this country with wealth and jobs heading for better opportunities…

“Control the People”; not in Colorado…

The evidence is mounting to validate the claims many of us have known about Obama and his administration that this is a war against American values, the American Dream, America’s economic system of capitalism, the individual American citizen, and our constitution. That is why the 2010 elections of not only our federal representatives are critical; every race for Governor in 2010 is an opportunity to build a constitutional wall against this assault on our values.

Today we have the video of Democratic Representative Dingell stating this healthcare bill is designed to “Control the people”, and we have Secretary Sebelius of HHS saying, they are going to reduce the profits of drug companies by statute which has always been “part of the strategy” of the healthcare bill. We have the administration as part of the HCR Bill taking away the private market availability to get a student loan, which few people are talking about, as part of the strategy to nationalize our economy away from the private sector.

Anyone that believes that limiting profit or profit motive, nationalizing industry, and controlling the people is the right direction, is about to realize how Cuba, Venezuela, Mexico, Columbia, Russia, and Chinese governments treat their people. We are treading dangerously on realizing a government not of the people but a government thrust on the people.

I know people don’t want to think this can happen in America but it is; right under your nose. The stink you smell are rotten politicians stealing your freedom while they feed you crap about taking care of you.

The 2010 campaign for Governor of Colorado isn’t simply about conservative and liberal ideas, free market VS. Government’s role & responsibilities, public VS. Private education; it is about stopping the federal takeover of our lives. We need to reinforce the battle field by utilizing the Tenth Amendment and standing up against this unconstitutional federal government.

We can no longer stand by and complain about unfunded mandates and dictates, and regulation, and high taxation, we must stop it. Governor Ritter is not supporting our AG Suthers constitutional lawsuit against the federal healthcare takeover. It is a good thing for Colorado that he has chosen to not run again. We need to support the AG in his effort to stand up for our sovereignty as a state.

As Governor I will be the Obama administrations worst nightmare; a man of the people that understands the constitution, willing to use the constitution to stop the federal government, and will continually drum beat the need to reset the roles of government with the will of the people. Don’t listen to the people that discount the power of the constitution. The constitution with an energized constituency is the exact remedy for taking back our country, our dreams, our economic system, our state and individual rights…

Capitalism; The fuel of Compassion and Freedom…

Too many politicians demonize the capitalist system as greedy and ruthless but that characterization is stereotypical and dangerous. It is stereotypical in nature due to the overexposure greedy executives get in movies, in particular “Wall Street”. It is dangerous to demonize capitalism because it is the engine of freedom, and without the profits and charity of successful businesses and individuals, we don’t have the funds necessary to protect our country or fund our benevolence.

The simple reason capitalism is successful is it harnesses the power of individual human nature to survive and compete. When this quality of human nature is incentivized within a framework of laws it unleashes unbridled dreams and passions that individuals have to provide a prosperous life for them and their families. It is only when the laws of this system are broken do we see the greedy aspect of capitalism. Greed is the exception not the rule. The ability to make and keep profits is the reason we work so hard and are so compassionate. If we were not able to keep the reward of our labor there would be no reason to work. You could be forced to work to eat and have a roof over your head as many a socialist system has, but this is counter to human nature. It fails everywhere it is tried. We as individuals do everything for our own benefit. Now this may seem counter intuitive to compassion but compassion cannot exist without first satisfying our basic needs. And capitalism satisfies those basic needs quickly and fully which fuels our ability to be benevolent.

In my mind it is simple so why do politicians continue to bash the system that feeds so much benevolence? Envy is the answer. Capitalism is an objective system that doesn’t care what demographic group you come from; it simply rewards and punishes behavior. It rewards people that work hard, create needs in a market, fulfill that need, and have the ability to change when the market does. It punishes laziness, bad ideas, and businesses that stagnate and become obsolete in the marketplace. It is the fairest system in the world. Although politicians claim to support fairness they actually thrive on creating a false sense of envy. They harvest the emotion of envy to fuel their own interests most often to get and stay in elected office. They take the fairest economic system in the world and claim it favors certain groups more than others. They ignore the hard work it takes to be successful and suggest that these people are only successful because they have an unfair advantage over others. It is completely false but for many people that don’t want to do the work or haven’t been as successful they embrace that argument and support programs that punish success; including their own.

If we want to remain the most benevolent, prosperous, and free nation in the world we must support capitalism. We must work as hard as we can to make as much money as we can so we can share our success with the causes close to our heart. The government has no heart and the more programs government creates to be “benevolent” the less benevolent people become and the more people are destroyed by these government programs.

Don’t be fooled by the stereotypes and mis-characterizations of people that are successful. It is a ploy that must be recognized and ignored. We are compassionate because we are successful. We should be proud of that in America. And it is only possible because of capitalism…

Root Cause Analysis

Root cause analysis is a process used to find not just a symptom of a problem but what the underlying cause is so it can be rooted out and fixed. I would like to apply it to three major problems we face today; a failing economy, a divided citizenry, and the pending bankruptcy now projected to be upon us within ten years if something isn’t done right now.

The root cause of our failing economy is a movement away from the free market principles that once were the foundation of our capitalist system. We allowed government to intervene in the process of loan qualifications. Instead of 20% down on a mortgage the government encouraged no verification loans to get specific groups of people qualified even though they didn’t have the income to pay back the money they borrowed. The private sector went along because the government threatened them with closure and more importantly promised to take the risky loans off their hands through the Fanny Mae Freddy Mac scam. This not only created a housing crises it created a culture of corruption because bad decisions were now acceptable and the flow of money drove the worst out of the people in the financial industry.

The moral compass of the American people turned for the worst and everyone wanted to get on the band wagon and forgot the principles of hard work and saving. Against their better judgment Americans went along with the government housing scam and leveraged their safe assets to get in on the boom. The result today is clear. Our core principles were abandoned therefore our economy collapsed.

A divided citizenry is the result of the two party political system. We have drifted from our founding principles of individual freedom to a clear delineation of group think within what is now called the Republican and Democratic Party’s. All Americans at one time were thriving for the dream but today politics is built around demographic groups stealing from each other through the government apparatus fostered by the two political parties. They have become brands that represent specific groups determined to use the government to get ahead economically. The democrats steal our individual wealth for the “working” man and the republicans steal our wealth for the corporations. They both use the other to raise funds, distract from the real issues, and both are consistently growing government for their own benefit. Long ago are the days that we united around our constitutional principles. The parties are divisive and a cancer that eats away at our ability to be individual Americans.

At today’s pace of spending and borrowing our debt will take up 98% of total Gross Domestic Product. That is the total amount of goods and services created in this country. We will have no money in less than ten years. The root cause is our drifting from our constitutional republic that insisted on limited central government. We have ignored our constitution to our peril. We are spending on programs that shouldn’t even exist. We no longer fight for our rights; we fight for a piece of the “bacon”. The bacon is the wealth of individual citizens that is stolen unconstitutionally from us with the blessing of our two parties.

The way to solve these critical problems is simple; reaffirm our constitutional republic by electing and holding accountable our elected officials to our constitutional principles. It all comes down to living up to our founding documents, returning to our moral roots, and living as individuals under a common principle of government so eloquently authored in our constitution.

The solution is simple when you know the root of the problem. We know the root cause so let’s take the steps to fix it before it is too late…

Individuals Create Economic Stability

The president is going to talk in his State of the Union speech about renewing his call for economic “stability.” Translated in real terms he means socialism, class warfare, and redistributing wealth. We must stop this man and his Marxist tendencies from ruining our country.

The only way a government can attempt to create economic stability is by stabilizing our economic activity to where we are all miserable. I know after watching this president at every turn; he is a dictator at heart. He uses populist message that sounds good but has no practical application in the real world like, limiting executive pay, making access to student loans available to anyone and everyone, and returning “fairness” back to the struggling middle class. What we need to return to is free markets and capitalism.

It is all a bunch of empty rhetoric from an empty individual that is doing his best to ruin this nation with government expansion in the auto, financial, and healthcare industries, with an eye toward as much of the economy we will let him steal. The only light is the people have awoken from a political slumber.

We must reject this president and his policies and bring back our constitutional government by fighting this takeover with the greatest weapon we have; the US Constitution.

Punishing Achievement…

We teach our children to work hard, manners, always respect our elders, save for a rainy day, get a good education, don’t use credit cards unless you can pay the bill at the end of the month, be honest and trustworthy, and take care of those less fortunate than ourselves. We try to instill the American values that have been the foundation of our success. But lately it seems that the people that never learned these lessons are the ones getting all the “goodies” of government. It seems that we have a greater interest in taking care of people that are not citizens than those that are.

People that have chosen to accumulate debt, drop out of school, forget to pay their taxes, make really bad decisions in life are the people getting the attention of our politicians. Not in the way they should like a good scolding, but through a transfer of tax dollars from the people living by the rules to the people and companies that don’t, through bailouts and programs designed to save people behaving badly! We are rewarding bad behavior. And if there is one thing we know about human nature is you get more of what you reward people to do. But what does that mean to our future?

It means people that have played by the rules are going to stop playing by the rules. You would be a fool to keep paying for the bad behavior of others through hard work, savings, and investment. The time is coming when we producers are going to take a stand and kick back like all the rest of the entitled masses and wait at home for our check to come from the government. We can play that game too if we have to.

When will government intervention and intrusion get the scrutiny it deserves? The people in charge of our government right now are radical incompetents; know nothing about how our economy works, and what has made this nation great. Incentivizing individual opportunity has been the engine of this nation’s success. No government bureaucrat has ever been more than a drain on the American economy or dream.

We have a choice; run these bums out of town or get on the gravy train of government entitlement. If you are already on the gravy train; how is it going to work when we all get on the train? As a producer, I am getting involved by running for office. I encourage you to get involved before we are forced to pay more for the train of entitlement. Entitlement is such an ugly trait and is a last resort for most producers. It is not in our constitution. As a matter of fact, it isn’t in the U.S. Constitution either…

Our Kids Know Better…

I have to say that when you explain certain things to your kids they often react with: “that doesn’t make sense!” A good example is the effort of some adult’s years ago to stop keeping score at sporting events. The effort was spearheaded by parents that just hated the idea that sometimes our kids lose.

Losing builds character just like winning does. When kids lose they understand very quickly that winning feels better. That’s how the world works, and to try to change that is a fruitless effort. This effort defies human nature. Kids were keeping score even if some parents were trying to act politically correct and thinking they were supporting an effort to build “self esteem.”

It’s all bunk! Kids are smart, and when adults do stupid things like trying to eliminate a kid’s experience of losing they know this is not in sync with real life. The same effort is going on today in politics. Adults dressed up as politicians are selling a bag of poop as a bag of gold, and the kids see right through it. They know that spending trillions to make things “fair” doesn’t work because the world isn’t “fair.” You just have to look around to see it. Some kids are more talented than others and have a drive that will help them achieve more in life. That is the reality.

Kids know if you work harder and are more talented the results will be different than kids that don’t have a specific talent or choose to work less to achieve their goals. Kids that excel in math have a better chance at being an engineer than kids that excel in English. The kids that excel in English have a better shot at being a writer, and so on. Having talent and equal opportunity is the American way. Trying to have an equal outcome is a really bad parental experiment.

Politics today is permeated with the parents that want equal outcomes. The rest of us know better. That is why I am running for Governor, and hope to attract the future generations to join this movement. I will support policies that give all kids equal opportunity and celebrate the winners. When we celebrate winning we create a culture of competition and engagement. Everyone that enters that arena ends up better for their efforts.

Sometimes we lose and it feels crappy. That is the power of losing; it builds character and helps us understand what we need to focus on to win. I wish more politicians focused on celebrating the wins and not so much on the ways we can make everyone a “winner.” We can give everyone the opportunity to be a winner but we can’t make everyone a winner. That is up to each of us. Kids know that so why don’t our politicians…

BTW: It is my 19th Anniversary and I have been blessed to have such a great companion on this crazy journey of life! Justine is a great caregiver in the nursing profession that I am so proud to have spent the majority of my life with. Thanks sweetie!

Without Profits There is no Efficiency or Accountability…

I have been listening to too many commentators discussing the problem with healthcare organizations, whether it is doctors, nurses, hospitals, or insurance companies, focusing on profits. There is this tone that profits are immoral, part of the problem, or simply evil.

The reality is that profits come in many ways, and without a “profit” motive there can be no efficiency or accountability. That is why politicians demonize profits. Profits are simply the rewards for providing a service the customer wants efficiently and effectively. So what are profits? In the traditional sense they are the money left over after all expenses are paid. In a “non-profit” sense (yes, non profits must produce a profit) it is the ability to pay salaries to the people that provide the product or service that the non-profit is involved in. You see many non-profit executives’ make six figure salaries. Many non-profit buildings are some of the nicest in the country. The benefits and perks are on par with any profit organization.

Non-Profit budgets can be easily manipulated to hide profits by including many expenses that might ordinarily be much leaner in a for profit organization. This can include more generous salaries, expenses, training, travel, education, etc. The good feeling people get by working for a non-profit is all emotional rather than real. If the revenue does not cover the expense, cuts must be made in a non-profit which usually means cutting jobs. So the incentive to be efficient in providing a good service is driven by people that want to continue to have a job. There is an incentive by all in the organization to remain effective, and accountable. United Way, AARP, and AAA are examples of not for profit organizations who employ many employees and provide many services at a “non” profit.

In the for-profit sector, profit is the “extra” money the company makes to spend, save, invest, or burn depending on the owners of the company. But this drive to make money after expense is an even greater incentive than a non-profit because this ability to create profit increases the ability for the company to invest, grow and create even greater profits. This means more jobs and more profits.

If a for-profit company fails to make a profit it means only two things; the company has become inefficient at providing their product or service to the market, or the product or service is no longer important to the market.

If a non-profit can no longer raise the revenue it needs to provide the product or service to the market and pay the salaries of the employees it means only two things; the company has become inefficient at providing their product or service to the market, or the product or service is no longer important to the market.

Profit is hidden in a non-profit, apparent in a for-profit, and absent in the government. If the government takes over healthcare there will be no reason to be efficient, accountable, or effective. They get their revenue from confiscation of taxes from the public. If revenues fall they print money, borrow money, or raise taxes. There is no mechanism to drive efficiency in any government organization. There is no profit motive. It is completely political and confiscatory.

Many of the proposed healthcare Bills are unconstitutional. The constitution outlines our right to contracts. The most efficient, effective and productive relationships are between two parties contractually obligated to provide a service for a price. It often includes a profit built into the agreement that provides the incentive to perform efficiently and effectively. The contract holds both parties accountable. It is the foundation of any good relationship. The government will replace and outlaw our ability to contract under the new healthcare bill.

Do you want a government outlawing your ability to contract with your doctor or hospital? Or do you want to protect our constitutional right to contract with our doctor or hospital? That is the question.

Your doctor or hospital should want to make a profit and will most likely be efficient, effective, and accountable to your health needs. Why would we give our healthcare to a government that has no motive to be efficient, effective, or a need to be accountable?

Profits are not evil, they are needed…

Constitutional Authority?

Congress is demanding documents from insurance companies that provide health insurance. The purpose of this request is to demonize the spending practices of these companies. I know a lot of people hate insurance companies but I have to ask you; what authority does congress have to investigate a private company without evidence of wrong doing? The federal government is out of control and out of their constitutional bounds.

Most insurance companies are regulated at the state level and have to pay for mandated services and yes, still make a profit. But why should these companies hand over any information to congress for the purpose of demonizing what the company chooses to do with their profits?

This congress is collecting this information to say that it is better to have the government provide insurance because they will not spend their money on high salaries, conferences, corporate training events, and maybe a company car or plane. But we know better; congress will bankrupt healthcare just like they have Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, the mortgage/finance business, and soon the car industry.

The CEO’s of these companies need to stand up and say no! They should say no we will not provide this information to a panel of corrupt congressman to demonize a legitimate American business. They should ask for the constitutional provision that gives them the authority to take their private records. I will bet that these particular congressmen have never read the constitution and more likely would care less what it says…