It is Never Too Late
Published by Bob Foster· Comment
Sometimes we don’t realize our true potential until we get a bit older. I have always appreciated the wisdom and capabilities of the older generation—we can all learn much if we just listen. So, today I am combining the recent success of an older person with the success of one of my favorite entrepreneurs, Mark Johnson.
Here’s what I mean:
If that is not inspiration enough, check out Mark Johnson’s interview on the Bill Moyers Journal show.
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The New U.S. Economic Paradigm
In spite of frequent boasting by various economists that Information Technology is replacing manufacturing in the U.S., the numbers seem to tell a different story. For instance, I saw this interesting information on the NBC Nightly News a few days ago:
- In 1995—Assets of the 6 largest banks equaled 17% of GDP.
- In 2010—Assets of the 6 largest banks equaled 63% of GDP.
With more and more high-tech and I-tech being created and produced overseas, it appears that “banking” has taken over as the U.S.’s no. 1 industry—and we all know how that ’s working out.
It also appears that the impending banking “reform” bill now in Congress will do little to help the situation. All the responsibility for regulating the banking system is being left with the Fed, without specifying limits or guidelines. Wasn’t it the Fed that allowed the last banking disaster to develop?
Ah, for the good old days when America actually made things of value, and a bank’s primary job was to loan money to the companies that made those things.
New Customer Service Standard
Published by Bob Foster· Comment
Does anyone out there remember when stores used to stock their shelves and racks at night when there were few, if any, customers? Those days, customers could push their carts up and down the aisles all day long, unimpeded by the many stocking dollies piled high with goods waiting to be put on shelves.
Not today! Now we customers seem to be in the way of employees trying to stock shelves…and it’s obvious they would rather we were not around while they were working. Of course these are only the employees—management must want customers or they wouldn’t have a job long. I just wonder why they work so hard to make it difficult to shop at their place of business. Is that what they call customer service?
It doesn’t seem to matter whether the store is large or small; making it difficult to shop must be the new norm of customer service. Night shift work must no longer be acceptable I guess. Driving by these places at night, it is obvious that no one is busy stocking shelves for tomorrow’s customers.
Oh well, we’re only the customer.
I wonder what Stew Leonard would say about this issue?
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Consumer Spending Rises
Published by Bob Foster· 3 Comments
I see where consumer spending rose more than forecasted last month. Apparently those who still have jobs, or income, believe the recession is over and it’s time to spend again. It is likely that much of this enthusiasm is based on the results of the stock market—which shows a near total recovery.
The stock market certainly could have been a good indicator 50 years ago—when 95% of public stock was owned by individual stockholders. Sadly, today about 75% of the stock in public companies is held by large institutional investors. These are the people who play the stock market like “high-rollers” play in Vegas…they don’t invest according to what is; they invest according to what they “feel” might happen.
On the other hand, maybe they know something we lay people don’t…but I doubt that is of much comfort to the 30 million unemployed and underemployed in the U.S.
Maybe I’ll believe the recession is over when they start putting the bulk of the unemployed back to work—at jobs other than flipping burgers or taking the Census.
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The Chickens are Coming Home to Roost
Published by Bob Foster· 2 Comments
You don’t really understand what Washington is doing until it hits you smack in the face—like this: A few days ago, we went to the Pharmacy to refill a prescription and discovered the price had increased 210% over the past 90 days. The explanation by the pharmacist for the big price increase was that the Big Pharma companies are all in the process of raising their prices with lightning speed.
Then I ran across an article put out by the Associated Press on March 29th, titled, “Big Pharma Wins Big With Health Care Reform Bill.” This article was picked up by several of the larger blogs, but here are a few excerpts from the AP article:
“Pharma came out of this better than anyone else,” said Ramsey Baghdadi, a Washington health policy analyst who projects a $30 billion, 10-year net gain for the industry. “I don’t see how they could have done much better.”
“Chalk one up for the pharmaceutical lobby. The U.S. drug industry fended off price curbs and other hefty restrictions in President Barack Obama’s health care law even as it prepares for plenty of new business when an estimated 32 million uninsured Americans gain health coverage.”
“Costly brand-name biotech drugs won 12 years of protection against cheaper generic competitors, a boon for products that comprise 15 percent of pharmaceutical sales.”
“Lobbyists beat back proposals to allow importation of low-cost medicines and to have Medicare negotiate drug prices with companies.”
“Pharmaceutical interests spent $188 million lobbying last year, more than all but a handful of industry sectors…They employed an army of 1,105 lobbyists.”
To read the entire article, check here
This is just a small sample of the mighty healthcare reform law…so, Small Business—”gird up your loins,” because the insurance man cometh, and he is bringing the “high sheriff” of Washington law with him.
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Shakespeare and Politics
Published by Bob Foster· Comment
Ken Adelman, VP of Movers and Shakespeares, recently posted an article on Huffington Post using quotations from Shakespeare to emphasize his points. They were quite apropos, so I thought I would include a few of them here.
Regarding the unreadable size of the healthcare reform bill, with amendments, Ken had this to say: “Both the legislation and its process reflect Macbeth’s quip: ‘Confusion hath made his masterpiece.’” Apparently this is truer than we imagined, since I just read that the insurance companies have already found a loophole where they won’t have to insure children with pre-existing conditions until 2014, instead of September 2010.
Ken (and the Bard) goes on to say, “…the bill itself became a collection of ‘paper bullets of the mind,’ as Benedict says in Much Ado About Nothing.”
The media filled the airwaves with political chatter while the bill was in Congress, and even after passage, such that many of us became inured to what was being said. These words seem to express what we were feeling: “Zounds! We were never so bethumped with words” (King John).
The many incendiary TV and talk radio shows have left me, and many other independents, feeling: “You cram these words into mine ears, against the stomach of my senses” (The Tempest).
Thanks to Ken Adelman, of Movers and Shakespeares, for these pithy quotations.
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