Is Obama Lying?

7 Oct

I try not to be political on this blog but I am just amazed that during this presidential election, Obama has been given a pass in the press… I was just amazed then to see this on YouTube by CNN.

Cash Is What We Need!

1 Oct

cashI don’t claim to be the smartest person in the world but it seems that the solution to this is to get cash flowing. Right now, the people who need cash don’t have it and the people who have cash are hanging on to it. Regardless of how we got here, something has to be done. Here is my suggestion:

  1. Suspend capital gains taxes for at least 2 years – retroactive to the first of the year – this would encourage more investment (i.e. cash)
  2. Reduce corporate taxes – right now corporations are paying a very high tax. I know – I used to own a private corporation! Lower the rate to 10% or even 15% for a couple of years. That would free up some cash and spur growth.
  3. There has been some talk of insuring the bad debts instead of just giving them the $700 billion. That, to me, would be a much smarter course of action. How does that work? When I got my first VA loan, the loan was backed by the federal govt. The bank still held the loan but in case something happened, the fed govt insured the loan. This could happen to the current mess.

I’m sure there are other ideas out there that make sense also – I can only speak to what I have experience with. I know the effect the above steps will have on the economy would be positive.

The second part is that we need to “Enron” all those involved in Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and any other company involved in this fraud. I am discouraged that I don’t see any hint of an uproar over the failure of either one. From everything I have heard, they did the same thing to their balance sheets as Enron did.

Now – would a certain Maverick please step up! Someone has to lead!

I’m Tired

21 Sep

Corporate Cup Run 2008Sometimes I do things that I later wonder why I even attempted such a foolish thing. Today was one of those days. I signed up to run a 10K. That is 6.2 miles for those metric-challenged. It was the Corporate Cup Run in Omaha. I am not the fastest runner in the world but my main goal today was to finish the race without walking. I accomplished my goal. It is the farthest I have ran since I was hurt in 1991. Last year I was running every day – at least an hour a day, but this year, I don’t run as much. When I do run, it is a struggle just to run 45 minutes so today was indeed a challenge.

I’m sitting at home now – almost unable to move! 🙂 I knew it would be like this but I accomplished my goal. All of the pain I feel now is completely worth it because I accomplished something I set out to do.

Isn’t that how we should live our lives? Set a goal and no matter how much it hurts, or how long it takes, keep pushing until you achieve your goal.

For those keeping score – I ran nonstop for 1 hour 38 minutes! Like I said – not the fastest hare in the pack. More like the tortoise.

*** UPDATE ***
Official time results were released and I wasn’t as slow as I thought I was! Official time was 1 hour 36 min 41 sec.

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Bathroom Leadership Training

25 Aug

LeadershipOn one recent trip to the head (bathroom) I saw a Yahoo Finance article on the floor entitled, How To Lead In A Crisis. My first thought upon reading the title of the article was that it is usually a crisis where you find out who your leaders are. I think in calm situations, people can fake leadership. They can read the right things and pretend but when crisis comes they are often confused on what to do. It is the true leaders that shine under pressure. Can a person develop leadership skills? It is my opinion that leadership can’t be learned. It can be improved upon, enhanced, and sharpened, but leadership comes to certain people naturally. True leaders don’t crack under pressure and can think clearly in a crisis. Leaders are the people who can put emotions aside and make the necessary decisions required of a leader.

I remember a Lieutenant in the Marine Corps that crumbled under the pressure of having to actually lead in a crisis situation. Here was a Naval Academy graduate that had gone through all of the motions, said all the right things, passed all of the right tests to convince the Marine Corp to make him a leader, but when the pressure came and he was called to lead – he crumbled under the pressure.

Are you a leader? The article is geared toward a business crisis but you can use the bullet points in any situation:

  1. Project a Sense of Calm
  2. Take Early and Decisive Action
  3. Ensure That the Information You Receive is Accurate
  4. Manage Yourself First

For everyone else – would you follow someone who was reading an article on how to lead in a crisis while sitting on the toilet?

Love to hear your comments.

Best Race Ever!

11 Aug

If you haven’t figure it out yet – I love swimming. I especially love competitive swimming and last night’s Mens 4×100 Freestyle relay blew me away. To say that it was incredible doesn’t do it justice. You have to see the video!



Once you get your breath – check out the incredible numbers!