Kavenough hearings - Flake’s compromise

The look on Jeff Flake’s face on face the nation when answering the question “could you have done that if you were running for re-election?’ Tells it all. He looked over at Senator Coons and they had a very chummy glance.  Flake is being used and the virtuous sounding approach of “reaching across the isle” is going to result in pulling this process into an increasingly and exhausting cloud of innuendos.

The delay for one week is already being pushed back by one of Ford’s attorneys.  If anyone testifies differently to what has already been said, they will purger themself.  The intent of the investigation is to create a cloud over Kavenough that his drinking habits were so extreme that he couldn’t remember the events in question.  There is a reason why there hasn’t been an investigation until now.   All they have is “100% certainty” that it was Kavenough as Ford testified without any other potential witnesses agreeing with the account.  A very crucial point to know is whether any hypnosis was used in “therapy” sessions.   Using hypnosis to identify a potential perp has been ruled as not admissible in court. We are caught in a vortex where the legal requirements of a criminal proceeding are being quickly dismissed as not applicable and instead, people are taking sides based on political bias and being swayed by the seriousness of the allegations.

Flake has a weak will to actually stand up for a principle and was used by a ferocious machine who has deemed the value of at least two families as being collateral damage.

Those two ranting souls that were conveniently recorded asking Flake the question “who will defend us” near Flake’s elevator were said to be what pulled Flake into that moment of “bipartisanship.”  Think about what practical help those women were asking for.  Is that something that a Supreme Court justice would either be able to provide or deny them?  

Liberalism is a ruse of declaring a superior level of “caring” and being able to solve complex solutions while continuing with relentless clawing and running over every obstacle to stay in power. Once in power, the reality of liberalism, not being able to actually deliver on its promises, is smoothed over with an endless series of talking points and excuses.  When someone comes along and declares that liberalism has no clothes on (like that famous king not having any clothes), they are shouted down as being ______(too harsh, uncaring, etc.)

GOP and healthcare

 There's a lot of concern being raised right now about the Republicans lack of ability in the Senate to pass a bill to get rid of Obamacare.   President Trump has made it clear that he's in his office waiting to sign a bill.  Although it is very important that Republicans follow through with their promise in repealing and passing some form of healthcare, there's an incredibly important point that I think is being missed by virtually every pundit that I've heard lately.

The Democrats have mastered the art of messaging. When they have an agenda they all get together and they determine exactly how they are going to communicate the points that they are wanting to make with the American people. We can blame it on the Press or we can blame it on individuals that don't want to get on the bandwagon, but when it comes right down to it, the Republicans have absolutely been inept at communicating their ideas to the American people.  No matter what Bill will pass the Senate, there will be accusations by the Democrats and by the CBO on how the Senate Bill falls short of an expectation for government to filfill its "duties".   If the Republicans don't hammer out exactly their message on what they are wanting to accomplish, they will always fall short of giving enough and doing enough.  Thus will take more discipline and effort than most are willing to pursue.  The democratic liberal message is really simple. "We can give you things." "We can solve complicated lifelong problems, as long as we are the ones in power."  Conservatives realize that the real world is much more complicated.  The conservative messages is much harder to convey. It's like saying to a child who is growing up "I can take care of you your whole life, you never have to work"  "all you have to do is play video games your whole life." Do you think that would be a hard-sell? No, that would be very easy to convince someone as they are growing up that they need you forever.  What happens when some of 35 years old and they still live in their parents basement? It's unbelievably inapt. And yet that is what is considered acceptable as people become more and more dependent on government.  The conservative  message of encouraging your children to accomplish the training necessary for them to be self-sufficient is a much more complicated message.

President  Trump needs to realize that what is obvious to him is not obvious to everybody else.    Trump was elected because he mastered the ability to clearly communicate that the system is broken and that he will fix it.  It is important that the system is fixed by that which really works and not simply that which parties wrestle and eventually agree with. There are principles that must be adhered to in order to make sure that the ideas are successful. Let's say that there are five key principles that must be hammered out and communicated in order to pass health care. Everyone involved needs to know those principles and say them in exactly the same way.   It sounds so stupid. But if this is not followed, the mumbo-jumbo messsge from Paul Ryan will not be the same as the mumbo-jumbo message from Rand Paul.    The Democrats are willing to say that the Republicans are not offering enough or that they're not working with Democrats or that their grandma will be shoved off the cliff. Their message will happen and it will be against the Republicans. The only chance of the Republicans have is to have their hammered out points communicated  to all parties so they can say the same thing to the American people. We're not stupid but when we hear the same thing from multiple sources, it resonates and we get it deeper then when everybody just says things in their own way.  

Liberalism has been deeply threatened by the election of Donald Trump. The fact that their ability to continue the deception of saying that the liberal ideas work has been interrupted, and this is of great concern to liberals.   It's time for conservatives it's time for Republicans to pull together and hammer out exactly how they are going to repeal Obamacare and what they're going to do if anything and replacing Obamacare.  Messaging will take them to where they need to be. It will not happen in tweets from Trump. It must happen by pulling together the leaders from the Senate and the house in determining exactly what they're going to pursue in this endeavor have a place in Obamacare.   Once they pursue and see the benefits of having consistent messaging, they will then be able to pursue economic development and tax cuts. Without pursuing this, we will flounder we will get beat up in every imaginable way they will not move forward in their endeavor to implement the Trump agenda.

Trump trumps Mitt

Mitt's mush talk to the establishment choir will change nothing for Trump supporters.   Republicans have been defined by the democrats and have had zero courage to really say who they are and what they can do to improve our country.  The establishment doesn't have the courage to say they are mush and they keep trying to act like are conservative to fire up more voters.  Trump is calling a spade (liberalism) a spade.  He is clearly saying it's broken and he will fix it.  Trump had blazed a trail to stand up to the media and not turn tail and run.   There are many itemized concerns about the way that Trump has said he will fix things, but I (who voted for Cruz in our caucus) am willing to vote for Trump because I believe he will course correct for how he will deal with issues.  What I know for sure is that Trump will not fade off into the mushy background of not calling out issues that need to be fixed.  He will do what is needed to fix the economy.  Fix healthcare.  Fix immigration.  Strong leaders are not easy to deal with, but weak leaders are much more dangerous.  20 Trillion dollars in debt doesn't mean anything to someone who hasn't been in business.  I believe the fears of Trump being an out of control dictator are irrational.  Congress will not pause if there is a need for impeachment.   I have been so weary of seeing the GOP trying to sound conservative and then doing what they want that I willing to take a chance on Trump if he is the nominee.  The establishment pigs are squealing loudly as we heard from Romney, and this is a sign in my mind that we are hitting a painful  nerve that the republicans don't know how to handle someone has a steely determination to really bring about needed change.  

Gun control nonsense

Calling more gun laws "common sense" and "something we can all agree on" is incredibly condescending and arrogant. Any dreamt up restriction that has the smell of making kids more safe is completely void of fact and proof.  The story is ignored of over five hundred a year being killed on the streets of Chicago.  There are more people killed with guns in the areas that have to strictest laws.  Every time there is a change in law allowing law abiding citizens to purchase and carry firearms, crime rates go down.  The number of guns in our nation is not proportional to our murder rate.  There are no counties in the world where the correlation holds of more guns = more crime.  And here is the most shocking truth of all:  criminals don't obey gun laws!   So stop wringing your slimy tyrannical hands saying we need to "do something" when your ideas are baseless and empty.  Stop blaming the NRA for the opposition as something evil.  The NRA is simply saying of what millions of Americans believe.  

The second Amendment stands. 

the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. 

The common sense solutions that are proven to reduce crime rates in every single place are rejected by the pompous ruling class.  They cling to  those nice sounding theories and ignore those pesky increasing crime rates and murders.

TransformingTalk Galt.io cause

TransformingTalk Leaning how to define and communicate conservative ideas in clear concise talking points

(TransformingTalk)

There is no question that the left has mastered the approach of defining talking points that they use to attack the right.  there is virtually zero substance to most of what is being communicated, but the message is clear and resonating with unthinking voters with the result of voting "against" the right.   What do we have on the right?   A bumbling speaker Boehner saying something about losing jobs with a higher minimum wage.   We have no clarity.  We have to coordination.  We have no effort of nailing down what message to convey.  It is smattered around to each candidate, with that core of loser consultants in the GOP fearing any change of the wind.  The messages from the rundown of conservative talk radio hosts is not getting crystalized into messages that can turn our country around.  It takes a lot more effort to hammer out how to start connecting with people.  I am sick of being defeated by the main stream media, we have many other ways of getting the message out there.  You can tell what means are effective in getting out the message and having an impact->  These are the leftist defined demons that are attacked relentlessly.  Koch brothers, NRA, Sarah Palen.  Conservatives also do their share of jabbing at anyone who doesn't perfectly align with their views.   We are fractured, and desperately need to get our "message together" so we can move ahead with the common areas that will change our country.  

We need a THOROUGH process of doing the following:

1. Define what needs to change in our country -  

We have a barren economy, no recovery, no jobs, increasing debt, no real idea what Obamacare even looks like because they run from any real view of how it looks then it is implemented, corruption from Eric Holder, Hillary Clinton, President Obama, and others, vets under VA care that are dying because they are not being seen.  We have incredible levels of not being competent at many levels of government.  

2.  Clearly define the negative impact of each identified area that needs to be changed and the benefit of following the new idea

These are important items, because it can't be assumed that people really understand why it is important to follow the constitution, why jobs are so much more impactful in an economy vs. a government handout

3. Prioritize what handful of areas need to really be changed in our country

We must focus our efforts on a clear list that will resonate across our country, bringing the hope and help of conservative ideas to replace the false empty hopes of liberalism

4. Define the EXACT talking point that will be 2-5 words in length

5. Define the EXACT script of how to explain and push forth the talking point, clearly explaining the reason why the issue is important, the impact of following other ideas, and the benefits of following the right path.  

6. Effectively disperse the information with the mandate that everyone interested in getting the message out, will take all efforts to get it out.  The mainstream media will be a stranded old truck sitting in the ditch compared to engaged army that is clearly getting out the talking points that will transform our country.  

 

WeNameIt

I am starting a new business of helping people name their small business or service.  God has given me a creative bent on communicating ideas in a fun way.  Contact me and I can help you. 

2013 State of the Union 29 promises and Sensible Answers

(1) "So tonight, I’m announcing the launch of three more of these manufacturing hubs, where businesses will partner with the Departments of Defense and Energy to turn regions left behind by globalization into global centers of high-tech jobs. And I ask this Congress to help create a network of fifteen of these hubs and guarantee that the next revolution in manufacturing is Made in America."  A – government doesn’t create markets, nor does it find the lowest cost solution to where goods should be made

(2) "I urge this Congress to pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change, like the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman worked on together a few years ago.  But if Congress won’t act soon to protect future generations, I will. I will direct my Cabinet to come up with executive actions we can take, now and in the future, to reduce pollution, prepare our communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy."  A- we have 16 years of stable temperatures with increasing concentrations of CO2 and there are no viable solutions to reducing CO2 80% by 2050 as desired

(3) "So tonight, I propose we use some of our oil and gas revenues to fund an Energy Security Trust that will drive new research and technology to shift our cars and trucks off oil for good."  A – Battery storage is not an equivalent source of energy. Nat gas and propane are viable, but there is no clear advantage of these fuels when considering their concerns of Carbon.

(4) "The states with the best ideas to create jobs and lower energy bills by constructing more efficient buildings will receive federal support to help make it happen."  A – Logistical nightmare – these ideas are endless, and again the government cannot create a viable market for goods, services, or ideas.

(5) "Tonight, I propose a “Fix-It-First” program to put people to work as soon as possible on our most urgent repairs, like the nearly 70,000 structurally deficient bridges across the country."  A – previous stimulus plans made the same promises – check the Joe Biden website and see how it is going

(6) "And to make sure taxpayers don’t shoulder the whole burden, I’m also proposing a Partnership to Rebuild America that attracts private capital to upgrade what our businesses need most: modern ports to move our goods; modern pipelines to withstand a storm; modern schools worthy of our children."  A – partnership with private capital is a messy distortion to the market.  Who gets in the project?  If a better port is needed, then make the case and build it if needed.

(7) "Right now, there’s a bill in this Congress that would give every responsible homeowner in America the chance to save $3,000 a year by refinancing at today’s rates. Democrats and Republicans have supported it before.  What are we waiting for? Take a vote, and send me that bill."  A – pumping up the housing bubble will continue distortion of the market.

(8) "Tonight, I propose working with states to make high-quality preschool available to every child in America.  Every dollar we invest in high-quality early education can save more than seven dollars later on--by boosting graduation rates, reducing teen pregnancy, even reducing violent crime."  A – more money for education, this becomes an endless need.

(9) "Tonight, I’m announcing a new challenge to redesign America’s high schools so they better equip graduates for the demands of a high-tech economy. We’ll reward schools that develop new partnerships with colleges and employers, and create classes that focus on science, technology, engineering, and math--the skills today’s employers are looking for to fill jobs right now and in the future."  A – fed redesign of schools will be an expensive mess.  Certainly not free.

(10) "Tonight, I ask Congress to change the Higher Education Act, so that affordability and value are included in determining which colleges receive certain types of federal aid."  A – there has been no effort to reduce higher education costs.  I don’t see how this can possibly be a workable solution, and appears to be a nice sounding idea that will have no appreciable impact in education costs.

(11) "And tomorrow, my Administration will release a new “College Scorecard” that parents and students can use to compare schools based on a simple criteria: where you can get the most bang for your educational buck."  A – another idea of government promising they can help people because they are too stupid to know how to pick a college.

(12) "Send me a comprehensive immigration reform bill in the next few months, and I will sign it right away."  A – there are some big issues on securing the border, transition to citizenship etc, and to say send a bill is a simplistic approach that has a lack of leadership and a simplistic ring to it.

(13) "Today, the Senate passed the Violence Against Women Act that Joe Biden originally wrote almost 20 years ago. I urge the House to do the same." A – there are double jeopardy issues on being able to retry criminals and this is another example of a nice sounding bill that has tyrannical realities that are only known when details are known.

(14) "And I ask this Congress to declare that women should earn a living equal to their efforts, and finally pass the Paycheck Fairness Act this year."  A – this is already the law of the land, and the act is likely to increase gnarly lawsuits

(15) "Tonight, let’s declare that in the wealthiest nation on Earth, no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty, and raise the federal minimum wage to $9.00 an hour."  A – minimum wages trigger many labor contracts, and also trim the number of entry level jobs because employers can’t just up their revenues at a pass of a pen like the government can with this type of law.

(16) "Let’s offer incentives to companies that hire Americans who’ve got what it takes to fill that job opening, but have been out of work so long that no one will give them a chance."  A – fuzzy idea that sounds good, but the government has no capacity to take this on without a rat’s nest of paperwork and costs.

(17) "Let’s put people back to work rebuilding vacant homes in run-down neighborhoods."  A- nice idea, but you can’t just make it happen without huge costs and headaches. 

(18) "And this year, my Administration will begin to partner with 20 of the hardest-hit towns in America to get these communities back on their feet. We’ll work with local leaders to target resources at public safety, education, and housing."  A – again, not free, and there must be jobs to support making this work, not the government.

(19) "We’ll give new tax credits to businesses that hire and invest."  A – the real incentive to invest is a lower capital gains tax, and liberals are unwilling to allow this to happen.  Hiring happens when there is more certainty of costs, and Health Care and Dodd Frank have yanked the rug out from businesses.  The proof is in the trillions of dollars of cash in company balance sheets.  Don’t say you want to help, when your policies have proven the opposite.

(20) And we’ll work to strengthen families by removing the financial deterrents to marriage for low-income couples, and doing more to encourage fatherhood – because what makes you a man isn’t the ability to conceive a child; it’s having the courage to raise one.  A – government can’t strengthen the family.  Nobody makes marriage decisions based on a government program.  The amount of unwed babies averaging 40% for all, and over 70% for African-Americans are a stunning statistic

(21) "We are negotiating an agreement with the Afghan government that focuses on two missions: training and equipping Afghan forces so that the country does not again slip into chaos, and counter-terrorism efforts that allow us to pursue the remnants of al Qaeda and their affiliates."  A – whatever…  another magic wand with no clue how it could happen

(22) "That’s why, earlier today, I signed a new executive order that will strengthen our cyber defenses by increasing information sharing, and developing standards to protect our national security, our jobs, and our privacy."  A – this approach is inferior and should not be passed without more input – the problem of government having the main say on how the internet is secured is pretty scary. 

(23) "Now, Congress must act as well, by passing legislation to give our government a greater capacity to secure our networks and deter attacks."  A – same as 22

(24) To boost American exports, support American jobs, and level the playing field in the growing markets of Asia, we intend to complete negotiations on a Trans-Pacific Partnership. A – pass the magic wand

(25) "And tonight, I am announcing that we will launch talks on a comprehensive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union – because trade that is free and fair across the Atlantic supports millions of good-paying American jobs."  A – another feat of magic

(26) "So the United States will join with our allies to eradicate such extreme poverty in the next two decades: by connecting more people to the global economy and empowering women; by giving our young and brightest minds new opportunities to serve and helping communities to feed, power, and educate themselves; by saving the world’s children from preventable deaths; and by realizing the promise of an AIDS-free generation."  A – economic vitality is needed, and we are losing our ability to show anyone how to have a vibrant economy.

(27) "We will ensure equal treatment for all service members, and equal benefits for their families--gay and straight."  A – equal treatment?  Benefits?  Complete flip-flop on this issue of supporting gay marriage.   Pure pandering to seek wider support and show more “tolerance”

(28) "That’s why, tonight, I’m announcing a non-partisan commission to improve the voting experience in America.  And I’m asking two long-time experts in the field, who’ve recently served as the top attorneys for my campaign and for Governor Romney’s campaign, to lead it."  A – we need to really address voter fraud in this country and fully prosecute from the 2012 election.  Ohio voter irregularities were reported to Eric Holder before the election, and it was completely ignored.  Two attorneys couldn’t fix this issue if you locked them into a room with two years of provisions. 

(29)"Senators of both parties are working together on tough new laws to prevent anyone from buying guns for resale to criminals. Police chiefs are asking our help to get weapons of war and massive ammunition magazines off our streets, because they are tired of being outgunned. Each of these proposals deserves a vote in Congress. If you want to vote no, that’s your choice.  But these proposals deserve a vote.  … Gabby Giffords deserves a vote."  A – we don’t need to have a vote for ideas that have nothing to do with making children and people more safe.   This administration has a clear desire to get weapons out of the hands of the public, and we are more in need of protection than at any time in our lifetime.  

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.