167: Cantor And Term Limits

Stunning.  Shocking.  Seismic.  This is what the talking heads in Washington and New York are saying.  OK, so a big-time politician lost his meal ticket.  Boo hoo.  One guy will have to go back to work for a living, but the electorate gets a chance at having a real representative.  Just imagine how much better Congress would be if we had a complete turnover of ALL members every few years. Although I suspect that Cantor will immediately begin looking for another government welfare paycheck, the whole spectacle speaks to me about how fantastic it would be to see an end to the career politician in Washington.  Term limits, that's the only answer.

166: BO's Non-American Father

We all suffer because BO did not have an American father.  As I thought about D-Day last weekend, and watched different observances, I realized that there is no way in hell that BO can sense any connection with huge chunks of American history.  There is simply no male figure in his life who could pass these memories and values on to him.  In my own life, I remember:  at age 6 or 7 looking at pictures of the aircraft carrier my father was on in WW II which had just been hit by a kamikaze; as an adolescent wearing different remnants of my father's navy uniform; as a pre-teen going to Sink The Bismark with my father; as an adult, going to Saving Private Ryan with my father; and in his nineties, my Dad often reflected on the tremendous loss of life that occurred in both of the world wars, and given the then current state of affairs in the world, wondered if that loss had been worthwhile.

BO had none of this.  I would guess that many of his inner circle have a similar dearth of connections because, after all, we usually seek out similar types.

My advice to younger voters:  When you're voting for a president of our country, think about what the person you're voting for has learned from his or her parents.

165: BO, Bergdahl, and Failure

Two words sum up BO and his frat boy inner circle - arrogance and incompetence.  They obviously believe that they are intellectually and morally superior to the general population of the country, and if you disagree with them (here's the arrogance part), then that's just proof that you are stupid, because they never consider the possibility that they are wrong.  However, it's difficult to dispute that BO is any the worse for wear after imposing his executive incompetence on our nation for six years.  It's our country that suffers.  As long as the voters in this country continue to watch the talking heads (of any political persuasion)and accept their pablum as wisdom, personalities like BO will continue to enchant the masses.

The bottom line on Bergdahl:  He is a kid, like all kids, who made some stupid decisions and did some stupid things.  Unfortunately for him and his Army brothers, Bergdahl's stupid acts resulted in tremendous harm for himself and others.  He can and and should and will be forgiven.  The Commander and Chief of the United States is not a kid.  He is supposed to be an adult sworn to uphold the laws and Constitution of the U.S.  He is not supposed to take Bergdahl's stupid acts and calculate how to use those acts for political gain and personal recognition.  But this is what happens when voters elect someone who is different (i.e. black) and "cool," instead of someone who is experienced and competent.

164: The Sterling Flap

So another octogenarian has expressed his true racial insensitivity, or as some would say, prejudice.  Without MSNBC, how would we ever possibly deal with rascals like Mr. Sterling?  The same way we deal with racism and prejudice in the rest of our daily lives.  We all encounter the inevitable and sometimes crude likes, dislikes, racial biases, cultural differences, and prejudices of our fellow humans on a more or less constant basis.  We form relationships based on our acceptance or rejection of what other persons think or believe.  The talking heads on TV would somehow have us believe that NBA players, who are the equivalent on an individual basis multi-million dollar per year businesses, are being irreparably harmed by accepting their millions from an owner who says and does foolish and impolitic things.  Certainly most, if not all, of the Clipper players were aware of Sterling's conduct long before this instant flap surfaced.  I suspect there are many other players with other NBA teams who are aware of just such conduct from other owners.  Maybe we should end all this nonsense and form a National Cultural Law Enforcement Agency and put everyone in jail who says something stupid.  Who would be left to run the prisons?

163: Signs Of A Market Top

This morning I watched an ad for the IBEW on CNBC.  I called a long term IBEW member who runs a large commercial electrical contracting company.  I asked him what possible benefit could accrue to IBEW members from advertising on CNBC.  My friend answered:  "Absolutely none."  It turns out that there is a special assessment against employers who are forced to pay into a fund for activities like these bizarre ads. 

I also have seen more and more advertising for trade associations, especially realtors. 

My non-scientific analysis and conclusion is that when organization start making idiotic expenditures like this, it is generally a sign that the stupid money is coming back into markets of all types.  Advertising markets, stock markets, real estate markets.  The suckers always come in at the end and get fleeced.

162: MOT, MSI - RIP

I told you so.  Look at my blog posts from 2007 on Motorola.  It has taken a little while, but carved up and sold off is what I predicted and that is exactly what has happened.  What an American management case study in tragic incompetence.  My personal experience with MOT started in the 1990s when MOT was at its zenith.  The company had obviously been built on integrity, hard work, great products, and good management.  Somewhere along the way, management must have decided that its excrement didn't stink.  But stink it did and beginning in the late 90s MOT began its long, excruciating decline. 

Probably a good investment strategy right now would be to find out where the key MOT execs from 1990 to 2010 are today, and then short the hell out of those companies.

161: Gotta Love That Putin Guy

I can't imagine any real American who doesn't have a grudging respect for Vlad Putin.  What a wild and crazy guy.  He sizes up the geopolitical landscape, sees a stunningly weak and inept opposite number in BO, and makes his move - successfully.  He does all of this on the heels of hosting the Olympic games, another feather which BO sought, and lost.  It reminds me of the Celebrity Boxing match between Tonya Harding and Paula Jones.  Vlad is wailing on BO, and BO is just running away with his gloves in back of his head.  Real Americans should respect Vlad, and be very ashamed of BO.