$12 Billion For Training People For Jobs Of The Future

I have been away from writing and commenting for a couple of weeks. That does not mean I have not been been watching, reading, waiting and reacting to what has been going on in our nation. In the interim, Farrah Fawcet, Michael Jackson, Ed McMahon, and Billy Mays all passed away. But B-Rock marches on toward world domination.

When you get a chance try to add additional water to your toilet bowl by pouring a gallon of water into it. What you will find is that even though you are pouring more water than your bowl can hold the water level never rises as it is siphoned off to keep the water level constant. That is how I feel about the money our president continues to pledge to spend to the American people and to other nations around the world.

President B-Rock is proposing spending $12B on the nations community colleges in an effort to reach, teach and train more people for "the jobs of the future." That is all fine and dandy but the future is now. With unemployment sitting at 9.5% and the president himself stating that it will rise over the next several months, committing money toward training for jobs that have yet to be created will be a total waste of tax payer money. Pouring additional water into the toilet to keep it level!

But wait, we have already been there and done that with the $787B stimulus package that has yet to stimulate anything as only $60B of it has been actually spent. That is less than 10% of the total. But this president had to have a spending bill on his desk immediately after taking the oath of office. He had to be able to review it for five days(we all would have liked to have seen it for five days) before signing it and the American people were suppose to be able to view it for themselves. The water level is still the same but the results are getting worse!

B-Rock spoke today in Warren, Michigan, a state that has been hardest hit by this backwards running economy. The president told the citizens there that many of the jobs lost in the auto industry will not be coming back. Duh! A large dose of reality for those who are already figuring this out since the guberment owns and operates two of the biggest American car makers. But yet we still hold out for the 2 million, no I mean 3 million, oh wait I think the final number was 4.1 million jobs to be created or saved by this administration. Yet his proclamation was that his stimulus has created 150,000 jobs.

But back to the 'jobs of the future' training that the Nations community colleges are suppose to be gearing up to teach. Is the president putting the cart before the horse in this instance? I don't mean because he is anticipating creating new jobs but because he thinks these new jobs are going to come from new energy sources.

First he will need to get his 'Cap N Trade' cereal bill through the Senate and onto his desk in order to move this country toward Obama "energy independence." Then we need to figure out which former GM and Chrysler plants will be able to build wind turbines efficiently with union labor and where will these people get their training to build said turbines. Finally, and this is where the cart gets ahead of the horse, only some of the money he is proposing will not be allocated until the next fiscal year. As with the case of the stimulus money being less than 10% spent in six months time we could possibly have these people educated and ready to work by 2015. But the recession should be over by then, right? Still trying to change that toilet water level by adding more water to the bowl!

Here is the rub. B-Rock Obama has done little to improve this nation's economy. He is not the guy you want speaking about the economy or tinkering with it as his only ideas come in the form of pouring more water into the toilet only to see the water level never change. Some would wonder where he gets these ideas and how late he stays up formulating this stuff. Obama thinks an associates degree will be necessary for the 'jobs of the future.' So once again he wants to reform something, and that is the nation's community colleges but I have to ask, where does he get these silly ideas? Could the short answer to that question be, V.P. Joe Biden?

These are my words! Please post yours.

A Letter From Da Boss...

...to those employees that do not understand who created and own the job that they currently hold.

To All My Valued Employees;

There have been some rumblings around the office about the future of this company, and more specifically, your job. As you know, the economy has changed for the worse and presents many challenges. However, the good news is this: The economy doesn't pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job however, is the changing political landscape in this country.

However, let me tell you some little tidbits of fact which might help you decide what is in your best interests.

First, while it is easy to spew rhetoric that casts employers against employees, you have to understand that for every business owner there is a back story. This back story is often neglected and overshadowed by what you see and hear. Sure, you see me park my Mercedes outside. You've seen my big home at last years Christmas party. I'm sure; all these flashy icons of luxury conjure up some idealized thoughts about my life.

However, what you don't see is the back story.

I started this company 28 years ago. At that time, I lived in a 300 square foot studio apartment for 3 years. My entire living apartment was converted into an office so I could put forth 100% effort into building a company, which by the way, would eventually employ you.

My diet consisted of Ramen Pride noodles because every dollar I spent went back into this company. I drove a rusty Toyota Corolla with a defective transmission. I didn't have time to date. Often times, I stayed home on weekends, while my friends went out drinking and partying. In fact, I was married to my business -- hard work, discipline, and sacrifice.

Meanwhile, my friends got jobs. They worked 40 hours a week and made a modest $50K a year and spent every dime they earned. They drove flashy cars and lived in expensive homes and wore fancy designer clothes. Instead of hitting the Nordstrom's for the latest hot fashion item, I was trolling through the Goodwill store extracting any clothing item that didn't look like it was birthed in the 70's. My friends refinanced their mortgages and lived a life of luxury. I, however, did not. I put my time, my money, and my life into a business with a vision that eventually, some day, I too, will be able to afford these luxuries my friends supposedly had.

So, while you physically arrive at the office at 9am, mentally check in at about noon, and then leave at 5pm, I don't. There is no "off" button for me. When you leave the office, you are done and you have a weekend all to yourself. I unfortunately do not have the freedom. I eat, and breathe this company every minute of the day. There is no rest. There is no weekend. There is no happy hour. Every day this business is attached to my hip like a 1 year old special-needs child. You, of course, only see the fruits of that garden -- the nice house, the Mercedes, the vacations... You never realize the back story and the sacrifices I've made.

Now, the economy is falling apart and I, the guy that made all the right decisions and saved his money, have to bail-out all the people who didn't. The people that overspent their paychecks suddenly feel entitled to the same luxuries that I earned and sacrificed a decade of my life for.

Yes, business ownership has is benefits but the price I've paid is steep and not without wounds.

Unfortunately, the cost of running this business, and employing you, is starting to eclipse the threshold of marginal benefit and let me tell you why:

I am being taxed to death and the government thinks I don't pay enough. I have state taxes, federal taxes, property taxes, sales and use taxes, payroll taxes, workers compensation taxes and unemployment taxes, Taxes on taxes. I have to hire a tax man to manage all these taxes and then guess what? I have to pay taxes for employing him. Government mandates and regulations and all the accounting that goes with it, now occupy most of my time. On Oct 15th, I wrote a check to the US Treasury for $288,000 for quarterly taxes. You know what my "stimulus" check was? Zero! Nada! Zilch!

The question I have is this: Who is stimulating the economy? Me, the guy who has provided 14 people good paying jobs and serves over 2,200,000 people per year with a flourishing business? Or, is it the single mother sitting at home pregnant with her fourth child waiting for her next welfare check? Obviously, government feels the latter is the economic stimulus of this country.

The fact is, if I deducted 50% of your paycheck you'd quit and you wouldn't work here. I mean, why should you? That's nuts. Who wants to get rewarded only 50% of their hard work? Well, I agree which is why your job is in jeopardy.

Here is what many of you don't understand ... to stimulate the economy you need to stimulate what runs the economy. Had suddenly government mandated to me that I didn't need to pay taxes, guess what? Instead of depositing that $288,000 into the Washington black-hole, I would have spent it, hired more employees, and generated substantial economic growth. My employees would have enjoyed the wealth of that tax cut in the form of promotions and better salaries. But you can forget it now.

When you have a comatose man on the verge of death, you don't defibrillate and shock his thumb thinking that will bring him back to life, do you? Or, do you defibrillate his heart? Business is at the heart of America and always has been. To restart it, you must stimulate it, not kill it. Suddenly, the power brokers in Washington believe the poor of America are the essential drivers of the American economic engine. Nothing could be further from the truth and this is the type of change you can keep.

So where am I going with all this?

It's quite simple.

If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, my reaction will be swift and simple. I fire you. I fire your co-workers. You can then plead with the government to pay for your mortgage, your SUV, and your child's future. Frankly, it isn't my problem any more.

Then, I will close this company down, move to another country, and retire. You see, I'm done. I'm done with a country that penalizes the productive and gives to the unproductive. My motivation to work and to provide jobs will be destroyed, and with it, will be my citizenship.

If you lose your job, it won't be at the hands of the economy; it will be at the hands of a political hurricane that swept through this country, steamrolled the constitution, and will have changed its landscape forever. If that happens, you can find me sitting on a beach, retired, and with no employees to worry about....

Signed,

Your boss

These are not my words. But they are my sentiments. I have posted it as a response to the continued attack on those who create jobs in this country but are being told by our representatives and other wealth envy citizens that they do not pay enough and are too "greedy". Our government does not create jobs and cannot create 4.1M, 3.0M or 2.5M whatever number Obama thinks he can create in jobs. Government creates taxes and that is all. The federal government is the largest employer in the country with 1.8 million bureaucrats not including the quasi government postal service. So if getting a federal job is your goal then you can get a government created job.

Please post your words before it is too late!

Talking Out The Side of Her Neck

Maybe it is just me or is this woman getting ready for the "Brainiac of the Year Award."

Nancy Pelosi stated that every month that the stimulus package isn't passed, 500 Million Americans will lose their jobs........errrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

How can that be? Are we now to run deficit job losses? One of the latest estimates of the total number of Americans in July 2008 was 304 Million people. So According to Nancy the Great we are going to lose an additional 196 Million jobs thus putting unemployment at 164% of the American population. Never mind that the total US population is not employed or employable since we would include children and retirees in that number.

Our unborn children, grandchildren and possibly great grandchildren will be born into a nation of the unemployable since we will have to pay this job loss deficit back just to get to zero unemployment.

I didn't make it up. She said it. 500 Million Americans will lose their job each month.

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