The power of the law

Do we rely on laws to do the most important things in life? I would say "NO" emphatically with many examples to illustrate. Do we rely on laws to raise our kids to be successful? To have a good marriage? To stay safe when facing danger? "NO" "NO" and "NO."  Why is there such a clamor to have more laws to help keep children more safe after a murderous tragedy? Is it a guilt offering? Connecticut has more strict gun laws than other states and those laws were broken in the latest tragedy. The push for more federal gun laws will do nothing to keep children safer. The only message that gets through to a criminal is another armed person. In example after example they end up taking their own life when confronted by an armed protector. The mall shooting in Oregon was the most recent example, and the information about that confrontation was left out of the news reports. A conceal and carry person who defied the idiotic gun free zone was the unsung hero that saved many lives. Criminals do not follow the law-period. Isn't that an obvious point?  It is unthinkable arrogance and ignorance for people to think that laws will improve safety when there are FREEDOMS to carry arms in action that have actually proven to result in greater safety and saved lives. When we want to do something as important as protecting children, we must counter it with the only force that a criminal understands; another firearm.  When the NRA says we should arm our schools, they are offering the most practical and actionable advice to really help the situation.

Cost of Class Envy

We have "receivers" who benefit from the hard work of "developers.". Developers have worked hard to leverage technology and energy to make a high quality of living. What is deeply troubling in our current culture is that successful developers are now being called on to pay more and this is considered more "fair". Pretty soon the developers will decide that the risks they have taken are not worth it and will cash out of their unique business. When this happens it cuts off the path of transferring the invaluable skills of being a developer to a receiver. When the developers are demonized as being evil because of their success, the cultural divide is aggregated. The skills of developers are extremely valuable and not easy to transfer to the next generation even in a calm supportive environment. There is a lot more at stake in our current situation than dealing with a fiscal cliff. This is matter of risking cutting off the priceless skill sets of developers and not realizing it until they have all cashed out, retired and moved to Costa Rica.

Liberal legislation recipe.

After much thought on this over the years, i have come up with the constrict of a liberal legislation recipe. The pattern is clear in the two most egregious examples in our time. The affordable care act (Obama care) and the Wall street reform and consumer protection act (Dodd Frank). These two bills are creating levels of uncertainty in the economy due to the complexity and unknown costs. Companies are sitting on trillions of dollars and have no confidence to invest or spend because of these bills and the resulting stagnant economy.

Here is the recipe. 1- create catchy name for the bill stating the solution to a nagging issue 2-write 2,000 plus pages of endless confusion weaving in an increasing level of government oversight and control. 3-allow great latitude in regulations to be written so nobody really knows the final outcome of the bill. 4- make cost projections based on the most optimistic assumptions. 5- create smooth talking points declaring success as the outcome when the bill is signed 6- watch for signs of concern as bill is implemented and keep bringing forth talking points with declaration of victory over the nagging issue 7- demonize anyone raising issues against the legislation as those being against solving the stated problem. 8- seek a long enough period of embedding the legislation into the fabric of society and business to make it more difficult to unwind. 9- refuse to consider implications of how the bill is actually working and revert back to original talking points and demonization when needed.

This recipe approach needs to end and will not have as much traction when America is better educated on constitutional and economic matters. The age of being a taker dependent on the state must be replaced by the. If or of freedom and sound growth driven economic policies.

Economic recovery - how did we get here?

The tech bubble was driven by unending optimism on expected productivity increases from technology. Early growth in this was real because we did experience a huge increase in productivity due to automation and computers. Bubbles are a reality of making a market honest and pushing the value back to its real number. The housing bubble was the driver in the 2008 crash and this was driven by a policy to back mortgages with a gov funded agency (Freddie/fannie) and making mortgages to individuals who did not have adequate means to repay. If banks were left to themselves to make loans to those with adequate credit(their ticket to sustainability), we wouldn't have seen this crash. The fake increases in prices for many years was driven by the shortage of supply because more houses were being bought than were available. Social policies demanding "fairness" created the gov backstop and fueled this high demand. We now are faced with a situation where the housing bubble needs to return to true values but the pain of this is very hard to face. There is likely more potential for real economic growth from increased domestic oil production. Jobs here, dollars spent here, secondary services abound. Initiatives for solar energy have wasted tax payer dollars. Finding another means of generating electricity does not provide net economic growth. The supply is currently domestic and it shifts jobs from coal mines to other production lines. Businesses are speaking with their actions of showing the huge uncertainty of future costs and not hiring because of the hallmark legislation of this administration. Reagan saw historic job growth by lowering taxes of the richie rich from 70% to 35%. This administration is boldly trumpeting the idea that the rich need to pay more. The top 10% of wage earners pay over 40% of the taxes. Nobody gets an improved economic outcome from the government, except the crony capitalist such as the solar industry. The lack of recovery truly is the responsibility of this administration.

What is Discipleship?

Raising kids and making other disciples is basically teaching people to fight their own flesh, the world system and the devilish forces. One needs to reject lies, believe God's word, don't live by feelings or cave to impulses. Filled with God's truth in the head, the mouth, and the heart, the power of God overcomes the "big three"(flesh, world, and devil) to avoid sin, work hard, and influence others. Self has to die. Humility that brings God's grace is shown by disclosing weaknesses to trusted warriors and praying like a tornado.

Take Back the Dream

Take back the dream?  Who took it?  Why can't you just go out and get what you want?  As long as there is someone to blame, responsibility is averted.  Many drive right around these endless descriptions of road blocks, and move right to what they want, and get it.  Education, innovation, productivity, etc.  Let's start talking about what it takes to make something work in the real world, and and stop the endless chatter of what it will take to make things fair.

The primary motivation of leaders such as Jesse Jackson, Jeremiah Wright, and Louis Farakan is to stir up a deep suspicious conspiratorial message that blames and casts judgement on others and leaves the accuser free from getting their own lives into a state of being more productive and effective.  If Daniel in the bible as a slave could bring the entire kingdom to its proverbial knees, any level of past oppression or wrong on a group of people can be overcome.  As long as the sheep listen to this foolishness, they will stay weak and without influence, and be subdued by these wolves in sheep's clothing that wield power and claim that some form of fairness will be granted by those evil government leaders that are holding back justice.  If getting justice was a matter of race, then Obama should have been able to grant them justice, but there isn't any form of action that would either help or satisfy.  It is time to stress responsibility and highlight those who decide not to wait around in the complaint center, thereby showing that one can make something out of their lives if they step up and do what is needed.  Here is a quick list to hit on.

1. Don't have children out of wedlock
2. Stay in school and get a career path defined
3. Work harder than anyone around you
4. Be generous
5. Love your enemies
6. Speak words that help and heal
7. Don't let alcohol control you, and stay away from drugs
8. Honor your parents
9. Go back and do it all over again.

Real men

The Idea of a real man conjures up images of a guy on a Harley or wearing a hard hat or a tattoo. Others include being a successful business owner, sports figure etc. Did any of these images make Jesus a real man? Is there any doubt that Jesus was a real man? He was a "man's man" but I would rather call Him "God's man".

Jesus is fully God and fully man just to keep our theology on track.

I have this strange fear that because of my incessant tendency to compare outward features of people I see that if I were to see Jesus on earth, I would have dismissed Him quickly as not being great.

Jesus was a great man because of His OBEDIENCE!!! He didn't call the shots. He did what His father commanded and said what His Father told Him to say.

John 5:19
Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.

2 Corinthians 10:5
We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,

Hebrews 5:14
But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.

John 15:5
I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

By His power according to His word, let's pursue being a man - God's way.

Capital

Capital is considered evil by those wishing to control an economy by laws and regulations. Investment is not something the government can effectively execute, but is most effectively executed by investors seeking to use their financial resources to create wealth through growth. Economic growth is the result of increasing efficiency or by making a more sophisticated product from raw materials. If the government makes an investment, there is no discipline to make sure it is the right investment. There are also winners and losers from each investment because it simply cannot be performed equally across all parties that have an interest or stake in the matter. We have learned from eastern European countries that government cannot build a good car or a good anything. It all sucks. Unless there is the clear chance of both failing and succeeding in an investment, the right decisions to line up capital and innovation, are rarely made. The potential to make zillions must not be called "greedy" by the losers  who are driven by pure jealousy.  Remember, the basic premise of a free economy is that people make decisions to buy based on their freedom.  Nobody is being forced to purchase the goods, and all parties in the deal are acting voluntarily. The investor can either win or lose and are driven to perform  rigorous analysis to provide guidance on where investment dollars shout be funneled. The government has neither the insights as to how money should be invested nor the ability to make an investment fairly. Let this market move freely to determine where capital should be invested and we will see economic growth move us forward.  The billions in cash on balance sheets show the level of uncertainty of corporations because of policies such as Health Care and Dodd-Frank.  Turn this "capital driven economy" loose, and we will go beyond our wildest dreams in terms of economic growth and job creation.

Economic Growth and Value

There is a blurry mix of information swirling around regarding how to stimulate the economy.  I believe the Economic Value is central concept to understand when it comes to Economic Growth.  If we established that it would be valuable to employ 300 people with shovels to dig a large ditch, it would be laughable.  We have machines and energy sources that get it done much faster and at a lower cost.  In other areas of the world, this idea is central to how to get work completed.  We saw plenty of this in Africa.  Although this is an obvious example of labor inefficiency, President Obama gave us an example when he said that our economy was faltering because of ATM machines.  In this example, a live banker was considered of higher value to have the employee count, rather than the machine, which provides a more limited skill set.  Remember the example of the buggy whip?  In the days of horses and buggies, it was necessary to have whips to direct the horse, and manufacturers to make the whips.  When the automobile replaced horse travel, the need for buggy whips diminished significantly.  Should we have had a government program to support this industry?  This sounds very silly, but we need to watch out for this idea to creep into our policy.

The economy grows when we either become more efficient at doing the same work, or adding more production capability of what we are currently doing.  Economic growth is also defined by taking raw material products and ideas, and producing a more sophisticated or developed product.  Wheat into cereal and flour.  Wood into furniture.  Silica, glass, plastics, etc and design into electronic devices etc etc.  These concepts of growth must be front and center to any discussions about economic growth.

Let's take the issue of green energy.  The product is more expensive and it takes more labor to implement.  You don't really end up with the same product (more on this in future postings), but let's assume that it is similar enough to call it a "wash".  If you end up with a similar product, and it takes more labor to produce, there isn't any economic growth.  We would simply be using more labor to produce a product that is more expensive, and end up shifting resources from the users of electricity to those producing the product.  Remember the ditch example?  Buggy whips?  ATMs?   Those proposing the need for green energy are concerned about the CO2 emissions from conventional generation such as coal and natural gas, and they would state that any additional costs are justified(another source of future postings is the validity of these claims).

Let's get it straight in our heads that simply adding more labor forces will not bring about economic growth.  We can't be pushing for ideas that simply add more ditch diggers to the economy.  America is the land where raw materials, education, and innovation produce economic growth from new services and products.   This is driven by individuals who are operating in compliance to laws and regulations of the land.   Government doesn't bring this growth to the table.  No need to push this idea of "partnerships" with government (more on this later also).   Let the government  get out the way by lowering taxes and regulations to the innovators who provide real Economic Growth and Value.

Wanna See Results of Hard Work?

I have been going to a Larson's nursery for over 10 years. They are located off the beaten trail west of Norway Michigan. Richard Larson had a desire to start his own business while he was employed at a local paper mill. The business took off and the paper mill has since closed, thereby making the decision to start the business even more brilliant. Dick has dialed in the soil and fertilizer to a perfect balance. The colors on the flowers are impossible to describe. The story on how he learned more about getting the fertilizer balanced. Dick was seeking to get ahold of the Scott's fertilizer head chemist and wasn't getting through. Dick decided to pull out all the stops and call every 15 min until he would hear back. Scott's caved and Mr Larson was granted the head chemist's cell number. Once these two were on the phone, the circuits were melting with a vibrant information exchange. The results of the flowers are clearly seen. For a perfectionist like Mr. Larson to say that he is satisfied is quite a state of excellence. Hats off to small businesses. Hats off to hard work and perseverance. The proof is in the plants.

Energy That Works

Energy is the fluid that allows an economy to be efficient.  When people have energy available for heating, cooling, automation, and transportation, it allows a greater amount of time to be spent on higher value activities.  Imagine if your commute to work had to be on a bike, or walking.  You would have much less time for being able to work, or be at home.  We saw so many people walking when we were in Africa, and I kept thinking about all the time that was being wasted.  Certainly there isn't an obesity issue in Africa, and this is a positive of all the walking.  

Our entire way of life in terms transportation, food storage, housing, and industry completely relies on readily available energy.  Economic growth is driven by efficiency in getting tasks accomplished, and energy allows this to happen.  Machines that are automated make more product.  There are growing pains when systems are changed, plants are closed, and workforce numbers are reduced, but the bigger picture of overall growth must be kept in mind.  

Our education and political arenas are incredibly devoid of useful economic understanding.  It is high time to start a dialog on these issues and start to understand that our ability to produce efficiently is directly related to reliable low cost energy.

What Works in Washington to get our economy going May 11 2012

This economy is stagnant because business leaders have no idea what future financial regulations and health care are going to cost them.  Planning requires some level of where we are going, and at this time, all we hear about are how we need more green jobs, and healthcare.  These are the fundamental needs of our country.  There is an enormous economic engine waiting for some sign of Washington being able to buckle down and cut spending in meaningful ways, so we don't crash our economy.  Blowing the debt limits, printing money, and seeking to borrow more are all signs of not facing reality.  When leaders like Paul Ryan step up and show a plan that would make the difficult decisions on cutting back, and putting more areas of the economy into the realm of free markets, they are chided by our president as leaving old people out in the street.  Promises made to continue as usual are a nice sounding poison pill that will hurt more later.  No politician can be as honest as they need to be or it will cause panic in the streets.  Incremental change will be needed, but it must be deliberate and moving in the right direction.  Healthcare moves in the wrong direction - we need more decisions to made in the realm of markets - increasing health savings accounts is an example of this.  We need to stop making idiot promises about taking the risk out of markets.  Markets need to adjust at times, with winners or losers, or we end up trying to fund more losing ideas.  Increasing tax rates on the wealthy to pass more to the less wealthy doesn't help anyone.  It knocks down those who are most capable at creating jobs, and doesn't help those less wealth.  When those with less decide they want to work harder and take advantage of opportunities that millions have sought and found, real wealth is found.  No government program gets credit for this type of initiative, so it doesn't get much airplay.    We have a fundamental issue of making it clear what works, and what doesn't.   Liberalism is basically a construct of attractive sounding outcomes, without taking into account the reality of what motivates people, and what is truly fair.

This is a quick braindump on some key economic ideas that I believe are in need of being communicated.  More to come, and also postings on the silly, and the God stuff.