Well, like I have said before and I'll say it again. It certainly doesn't take an expert to know that this is the wrong time of the year to expect the consumer to be confident about anything. Well then why do the economic experts find it surprising? Simple, they make the big bucks, their friends make big bucks and since they wine and dine at the big bucks establishments, they only see what is in front of them.
As you can see by my previous blogs, I have known and predicted it for a long time. How can so called economic experts even assert such a thing? Easy, they have all lived the good life for so long that they lost touch with what is real. To them the consumer is themselves and their friends who make those big bucks. But for those of us who have driven the economy for so long and are now unemployed, we know the truth. We will not let some moron heckle us into spending that which we no longer have.
No longer will we all be coddled into believing that everything is all right in our world when in fact, it has gone to hell. These so called economic experts that make their friends believe, can go on and do so. But I have now taken pride in my fellow man and my confidence has risen above expectations I had years ago. That's right, I am sorry, but for years I did not believe that many could even measure up to the bottom of my bootstraps. I watched as friends who earned less than I did, go out and buy a house and new cars on credit while I paid cash for everything and bought used items and fixed them up like new, while spending a fraction of what they had spent.
Today my debt is barely over a thousand bucks while my friends learned the hard way. They lost everything they had or they now work menial jobs 18 hours a day 7 days a week in order to just keep their homes. They drive clunkers that they cannot afford to fix or they hitchhike to work. That is not and never has been the life for me. I may not live in a nice big home but what I have is mine, free and clear!
Now I'm not saying ALL my friends have it hard. There are quite a few who were smart enough to save from the times they worked while still in school. They were frugal with what they bought over the years. They did not have to keep up with the Jones of this world. And in today’s tough economic times, they are able to ride out the storm that the rich and those less frugal have created.
I know it is not the nicest thing of me to say, but for those that think their money can bring us back from the brink we are on ie, economic experts, corporate heads etc, I hope and pray they lose it all. That's right! I said it and mean it with all my heart. They will be the ones that will lose the most. As for the rest of us who have said, NO MORE, we will ride out the wave that has sunk the rest of you, or will sink you eventually. Those very institutions that our government bailed out may well sink also, because they believe or try to make the rest of us believe that all is right once again and they go on as they had before.
I have seen the nonchalant attitude of companies and that is what drives them down. I would challenge any company to hire me to get rid of their wastefulness in how they do business. I would defy them to keep me employed as such when their friend who worked in their company was fired by me because they don’t know their *ss from a hole in the ground. I would sooner keep 50 people making 75k per year, employed in the company, because they have the intelligence and knowledge of their job, than 15 idiots making 125k per year who would rather get rid of those 50 people in order to save their own jobs.
Cost savings come in many different forms. Just because a group of people making some good money that can be saved if you got rid of them, does not mean that you saved the company money. I hired people who had very little education beyond high school, over people with a degree under their belts, and my bosses were quite impressed with their abilities. Why did I hire them? Well they answered my interview questions correctly and logically, where those with a degree just seemed to expect the job because of their education. As I have said before, anyone can follow a book through school but not everyone has common sense for what they were trained to do, plus the ones with a degree gave me some pretty stupid, illogical answers to my questions.
Not that I would ever be hired as a CEO of a company, but if I was, I would come down off my perch regularly to talk to those that make the products of the company. I would ask each of them, who they felt was weak in command above them and why. I would then challenge the person or persons who lead, to explain why they do the things that make employees think they are weak. I would give that person only one chance to change or to get out. I would not care if it was my best friend, because to me, the only reason I would be at the top, is for the common sense of those at the bottom.
I was once put in charge of some people who ran a very large piece of equipment on the manufacturing floor. The machine processed camouflage material that was used by our military. No one else wanted to be in charge of this machine and my boss made it very clear to me that I was the only one for the job because of that reason. I was called the “Head Lead Man” of the machine although there was one “Lead Man” for each shift and we ran 3 shifts. To the dismay of my superiors, my shift ran the most material with the least amount of defects and problems. They changed my shifts to see if things would change. They did not. They switched my workers and gave me the ones from the other shifts, expecting things to change. They still did not! They called me in the office and asked me how I could do it with all those changes and still run 5000 yards of material more than each of the other 2 shifts. I simply told them that I treated those under me as my equal. I would not ask them to do something that I, myself would not do. I gave them respect. But I demanded them to perform as well. There were certain jobs that each of us had to do and I did not offload what I was responsible for.
Even when my immediate supervisor decided to take on the role of first shift “Lead Man” for a week, the best he could do was still 3000 yards less than we had ran. When they talked to each of the machine workers, they told my supervisors just what I had told them. They all respected me and put their all into what we were doing because I treated them fairly and with respect.
So I again will say to any company, if you want me, you can hire me, but if you want to keep me and your manufacturing units running at tip top, grow a set of balls and give me the ability to get rid of the dead weight and reward those who deserve it. I certainly will not think I am king, but neither will those who currently think they are.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Stocks on the slide again!
Today was an eye opening day. Not so much for me, but for many economic experts who had saw a rosy picture. Hopefully some of our leaders had a little eye opening as well. Maybe they will not be so comfortable with what they have done in the past that has brought us to this point. Let there be no doubt that things will get worse, it is inevitable. Nearly every average person in this world knows what the next year or so will be, but it seems that our leaders are clueless,…or, they are doing what governments have always done. That is putting out misinformation. Painting a rosy picture that does not depict the landscape before us.
I have spent the week dealing with problems that have cropped up in my home quite unexpected. Of course they will need to be fixed. However, had I been a little more vigilant and checked on everything regularly, I might not have had the problem. The same goes for our politicians. The signs were there but unlike me they choose to ignore them or to believe that what was in plain site was not really a problem.
I believe it to be for another reason altogether. GREED! For a small business man doing much the same things, he would at worse lose what he had as well as putting a few people out of work. But for people who run a country and for those running a huge corporation the results are those of which we see currently. What is most disturbing is that many of these same people will say that they cannot be blamed for the current crises. Whether or not they could collectively be blamed for our current crises will be for history to determine.
What has been done is mostly to ignore what needs to be done. Our politicians have chosen to throw money on a fire instead of water. There are those in business that are still saying more government money should be tossed in their fire pit. As a non-expert in the economic field I think I have hit the nail on the head with a few of my blogs. I have even seen ads placed on my blog only to be removed a day or two later. Of course I am saying things that no company or politician would want people to know or believe.
I should be telling everybody “I told you so”! Instead I find myself saddened by the fact that we truly have idiots in charge of not only our country but also many major corporations headquartered here in the states. It is no wonder the rest of the world hates us. Those people truly believe that is how we all are, that we do not care about anything but the money in our pockets. To an extent, they are correct. It is the average American who has voted for these people. It is the average American who has ALWAYS said that “Why should I make waves, it will only make my life harder”! Well where are we now. I saw a comment on an economic story that stated “It is those of us with money who make the economy run and we should not have to pay more taxes. Make those on unemployment take any job so they can pay their fair share”!
Seems to me we have paid our fair share. Just read some of my previous blogs and you can see what the average American has paid, is more than his fair share. How can a consumer driven economy survive with no jobs? I have been doing some research on how much money each which political party gets to campaign for their position. Most of this money comes from the very companies that have kept wages low and/or have already laid off much of their American workforce.
I have been delayed in making a few videos, but I will soon be posting at youtube. We need to stand together and speak up for our rights. We need to dump some dead weight in Washington and get legislation passed that protects the workers and consumers of this country. I truly believe that the average American is downright pissed off enough to start making a change. No more tax loopholes for corporations and financial institution. No company etc should be so big as to bring down the economy. Trust me when I say that if they do fail, we may see some short tough times, but that one company provided services, products etc that are still needed and there will be a dozen smaller companies, fully prepared to fill the void without needing to take our tax dollars to fix things.
I have spent the week dealing with problems that have cropped up in my home quite unexpected. Of course they will need to be fixed. However, had I been a little more vigilant and checked on everything regularly, I might not have had the problem. The same goes for our politicians. The signs were there but unlike me they choose to ignore them or to believe that what was in plain site was not really a problem.
I believe it to be for another reason altogether. GREED! For a small business man doing much the same things, he would at worse lose what he had as well as putting a few people out of work. But for people who run a country and for those running a huge corporation the results are those of which we see currently. What is most disturbing is that many of these same people will say that they cannot be blamed for the current crises. Whether or not they could collectively be blamed for our current crises will be for history to determine.
What has been done is mostly to ignore what needs to be done. Our politicians have chosen to throw money on a fire instead of water. There are those in business that are still saying more government money should be tossed in their fire pit. As a non-expert in the economic field I think I have hit the nail on the head with a few of my blogs. I have even seen ads placed on my blog only to be removed a day or two later. Of course I am saying things that no company or politician would want people to know or believe.
I should be telling everybody “I told you so”! Instead I find myself saddened by the fact that we truly have idiots in charge of not only our country but also many major corporations headquartered here in the states. It is no wonder the rest of the world hates us. Those people truly believe that is how we all are, that we do not care about anything but the money in our pockets. To an extent, they are correct. It is the average American who has voted for these people. It is the average American who has ALWAYS said that “Why should I make waves, it will only make my life harder”! Well where are we now. I saw a comment on an economic story that stated “It is those of us with money who make the economy run and we should not have to pay more taxes. Make those on unemployment take any job so they can pay their fair share”!
Seems to me we have paid our fair share. Just read some of my previous blogs and you can see what the average American has paid, is more than his fair share. How can a consumer driven economy survive with no jobs? I have been doing some research on how much money each which political party gets to campaign for their position. Most of this money comes from the very companies that have kept wages low and/or have already laid off much of their American workforce.
I have been delayed in making a few videos, but I will soon be posting at youtube. We need to stand together and speak up for our rights. We need to dump some dead weight in Washington and get legislation passed that protects the workers and consumers of this country. I truly believe that the average American is downright pissed off enough to start making a change. No more tax loopholes for corporations and financial institution. No company etc should be so big as to bring down the economy. Trust me when I say that if they do fail, we may see some short tough times, but that one company provided services, products etc that are still needed and there will be a dozen smaller companies, fully prepared to fill the void without needing to take our tax dollars to fix things.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Time to get rid of the current politicians!
Now I have to say that I am truly P*SSED off at the rich. They are crying, wah, wah, wah,! Too freakin bad. Warren Buffet is now calling for more stimulus money. The rich are touting that it is them that keep this economy running with their investments etc. BS, BS, BS, All of it. This country is failing simply from all the lost jobs that have been sent to China. The Good Ole Boys Club of Washington know this. The working man has kept this country running for as long as I can remember. If the rich are truly the ones who have kept this country running, then why isn’t it working? As for Warren Buffet? Why don’t you toss your money where your mouth is! You F-ing rich people make me sick with your crying. You want more government money tossed out there but whose money is it to begin with? That money is from every citizen in this country, but you have all wasted it. We owe the money no matter what. A debt that will be owed by our children and their children.
The rich stop paying into social security after they make the first $106,000.00 in the year. The rest of us keep paying for something we may never have. Stop wasting our money. NO MORE MONEY going to any bank or big business just so they can toss out more bonuses for idiots who don’t even deserve enough money to wipe their *sses. Let GM and the others fail. Let the engineers and other workers from those companies start the Smith & Jones Motor Company. That type of company would prosper and it will be a truly American company. It will be capitalism at its finest because that is how capitalism works. If a company cannot keep itself running with its own savvy then another will start up and take its place, plain and simple, a fact of capitalism.
Money is just being tossed into a bottomless hole with no plan to correct why the hole was there to begin with. If a company is so big that it will bring down the economy if it fails, then it should have been split up long ago. The divisions of GM should have been separate companies as should the divisions of all the other auto makers. In that way, if Oldsmobile failed it would not affect Chevy, or Pontiac etc, etc. Job losses would be at a minimum and life would go on. The same goes for banks! Perhaps there should only be state banks. Each state in this country would have the big banks and then you could have your community banks that could be run privately. Interest rates would stay steady, the states would have some money from them for their own budgets and of course big brother would get a piece of that pie as well.
Now I am calling on the American people to take charge of our country! Vote out every one of the people currently in office and vote people into office who really care about this country and how it is run. For those that want change, you don’t need to have millions to campaign since we have Youtube. A person can state their issues their and the people can view these statements throughout the year and vote on those videos. In the months before an election you would have, let’s say, the top ten of those people for a particular office be put on the ballet. Then the people would vote for who would serve their interests the best. It would change the face of politics forever and it would satisfy the people. No more politicians whose only interests are the huge multinational companies that they have interests in!
We are only going to keep falling. The rich cannot sustain this country or any other country by themselves which is obvious by the hole we are in now.
WAKE UP AMERICA!
The rich stop paying into social security after they make the first $106,000.00 in the year. The rest of us keep paying for something we may never have. Stop wasting our money. NO MORE MONEY going to any bank or big business just so they can toss out more bonuses for idiots who don’t even deserve enough money to wipe their *sses. Let GM and the others fail. Let the engineers and other workers from those companies start the Smith & Jones Motor Company. That type of company would prosper and it will be a truly American company. It will be capitalism at its finest because that is how capitalism works. If a company cannot keep itself running with its own savvy then another will start up and take its place, plain and simple, a fact of capitalism.
Money is just being tossed into a bottomless hole with no plan to correct why the hole was there to begin with. If a company is so big that it will bring down the economy if it fails, then it should have been split up long ago. The divisions of GM should have been separate companies as should the divisions of all the other auto makers. In that way, if Oldsmobile failed it would not affect Chevy, or Pontiac etc, etc. Job losses would be at a minimum and life would go on. The same goes for banks! Perhaps there should only be state banks. Each state in this country would have the big banks and then you could have your community banks that could be run privately. Interest rates would stay steady, the states would have some money from them for their own budgets and of course big brother would get a piece of that pie as well.
Now I am calling on the American people to take charge of our country! Vote out every one of the people currently in office and vote people into office who really care about this country and how it is run. For those that want change, you don’t need to have millions to campaign since we have Youtube. A person can state their issues their and the people can view these statements throughout the year and vote on those videos. In the months before an election you would have, let’s say, the top ten of those people for a particular office be put on the ballet. Then the people would vote for who would serve their interests the best. It would change the face of politics forever and it would satisfy the people. No more politicians whose only interests are the huge multinational companies that they have interests in!
We are only going to keep falling. The rich cannot sustain this country or any other country by themselves which is obvious by the hole we are in now.
WAKE UP AMERICA!
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Time for Shareholders to Unite!!
Having a taste of how the votes go at the shareholders meetings, I believe that there is a way to protect ALL the smaller shareholders. The last company I worked for gave me insight to the corruption at the top that denies the smaller shareholder, their fair share. This company had a pension plan that was based in company stock. Every year when the shareholders would vote their minds at these meetings, those of us with the pension plan would receive a little package in the mail along with a "proxy card". We would be asked to sign it and return this card to the company. For those who do not know, this card, when signed, would essentially give the CEO the power of our shares from the pension plan. Kinda BS if you ask me.
I believe that some of the smaller shareholders of large companies should get yourselves a website and set it up for all the shareholders to access. One of the features should be a form that will allow each of these shareholders to fill out and give someone in the group the ability to be the proxy for all the small people who own stock. I am sure that you will find that you can do many things including getting rid of your current board of directors and replacing them with people who have concern for not only the company but for the shareholders as well. In this way you could also CUT the bonuses that are so liberally given to CEOs as well as other "underperforming" people. You would soon see a much larger dividend coming back to you as well as a prosperous company.
For me it does not matter at the moment because I only own stock in my 401k which does not give me voting rights! But for those who can vote but do not, this way of pooling your votes would send a strong message. I saw a very similar message sent to the owner of a company I worked for. Since the company was privately traded, the owner thought he still owned the company and could still do what he felt he wanted to do. Well, those who invested in this private company finally got fed up with his God attitude. They pooled their votes together and essentially tossed the founder of this company out on his butt.
I am sure he raised all kinds of hell because what I heard was that he was forbidden from involvement in any part of his own company. Decisions have been made by those that tossed him out. Unfortunately it may have been too late. The company continues to downsize here in the states and without adding to their China and Mexico facilities. In this instance they simply allowed the owner to make bad decisions for far too long and the company may never recover.
This is just a little advice from someone who has seen the bad in companies and believes that the extra monies should go to the stockholders in divendends and not underperforming CEOs and Board of directors. Don't wait until you no longer see dividends since that will be the end and the only ones who won't lose, will be those at the top.
I believe that some of the smaller shareholders of large companies should get yourselves a website and set it up for all the shareholders to access. One of the features should be a form that will allow each of these shareholders to fill out and give someone in the group the ability to be the proxy for all the small people who own stock. I am sure that you will find that you can do many things including getting rid of your current board of directors and replacing them with people who have concern for not only the company but for the shareholders as well. In this way you could also CUT the bonuses that are so liberally given to CEOs as well as other "underperforming" people. You would soon see a much larger dividend coming back to you as well as a prosperous company.
For me it does not matter at the moment because I only own stock in my 401k which does not give me voting rights! But for those who can vote but do not, this way of pooling your votes would send a strong message. I saw a very similar message sent to the owner of a company I worked for. Since the company was privately traded, the owner thought he still owned the company and could still do what he felt he wanted to do. Well, those who invested in this private company finally got fed up with his God attitude. They pooled their votes together and essentially tossed the founder of this company out on his butt.
I am sure he raised all kinds of hell because what I heard was that he was forbidden from involvement in any part of his own company. Decisions have been made by those that tossed him out. Unfortunately it may have been too late. The company continues to downsize here in the states and without adding to their China and Mexico facilities. In this instance they simply allowed the owner to make bad decisions for far too long and the company may never recover.
This is just a little advice from someone who has seen the bad in companies and believes that the extra monies should go to the stockholders in divendends and not underperforming CEOs and Board of directors. Don't wait until you no longer see dividends since that will be the end and the only ones who won't lose, will be those at the top.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Economic Recovery is not here, YET.
I am writing as I watch the evening news with Charlie Gibson. This is after I spent the last couple hours reading the news from various economists and the average person who has felt this recession the most, and of course, my own experiences from this economic mess. I have now gone beyond my worst. For me, this is the longest I have been without a job since I have been 12 years old. I am 48 1/2. All those years of working have taught me one thing. Listen to your gut feelings.
I am hearing everyone say that we are now in a recovery and we will see it better by the end of the year. Apparently none of these people are looking at EVERYTHING. While it is true that spending has gone up in the last month, which is mostly due to the “Cash for Clunkers Program”. The experts are saying it is also up from the purchase of electronics, namely appliances. Correct me if I am wrong but did they not start the same “cash for” program with appliances also?
And even though I am unemployed, I go to the stores and purchase the food we need as well as other necessities. What I see in the checkout line is not exactly good news. Why? Well for one these people are picking through their wallets for a credit card that has enough left on it for this particular purchase. If they were using cash or even a debit card, then I would feel a little better. Just because something is being purchased, does not mean things are good. How long will they be able to use those cards before they must pay it back? How many payments will be made on those new cars? Will their jobs still be there in January?
I will give you all 36 years of experience and perhaps a bit more wisdom than is being shown by those that are telling you we are recovering. Many companies typically cut back at this time of year because winter is a bit slower. Many companies are at the end of their fiscal year and need to do inventory and other housecleaning in order to plan for the next year. This planning includes what kind of money they will be allotting for major expenditures which would also include hiring for the coming year. Now with that said, all of this means that there will be more layoffs. Even in good times, this is the time of year that companies will trim their workforce.
Keeping all of this in mind, and don’t forget the use of credit for current purchases, do you think that there will be increased spending? I don’t think so. Even with the “Great Deal” sales going on at stores during the year, most people are still buying it on time. I am sorry, but even if you offered me a 250k home for 50k, I would have to painfully turn it down, simply because I would not take the chance at a dream, only to lose it because I could not pay for it.
Black Friday may only be here the day after Thanksgiving symbolically, but it may still be a day of red for many. I am telling you this for one reason, and that is so you may save yourself, your family, and what little you may have. Last year I had a Christmas tree with no presents underneath it. This year I will not spend 30 bucks on a tree. That money will be used to feed my family. I will instead use our decorations on the couple of live pine trees in front of my house. Christmas Eve I will stand out there gazing at those trees and wonder where all the common sense in this world went to. I already know the answer to that. It was swallowed up by the greed of this world. People were blinded by what they thought was the American Dream. A dream, that turned into a nightmare, for too many of these people.
I will have hope that when many will lose all they have because they are listening to these “experts” now, that they will not lose their sanity as well. If you will be one of those to blindly follow the blind, know that you will be in my heart. Perhaps next year at this time we will truly feel a recovery and I hope many jobs will have come back. But it may not even happen then if everyone continues to “spend” their credit and follow those with more than enough money to burn. Trust me, you will not lose out on anything by playing it safe. Some of the banks and companies that rely on you to keep spending may fail, but there will be someone behind them to bring a little more common sense to the industry. Our government will not and cannot keep pitching money into bottomless pits. So bottom line is, let these companies and banks fail because they do not deserve your money and do not have the common sense to protect future business by protecting YOU, now. Their future in ensured but your future is not. Protect yourself NOW, and do not follow the hype!
But don’t sit on your butt either, push your Senators and Congressmen and women to work on change NOW, or be gone at the next election. Vote for someone who will change what has become to be known as “The Good Ole Boy Club”. No politician should have so much of a connection with any company or bank that would prevent them voting for the interests of the people. Stop these politicians from spending weeks on something that will never create change. They are there for us not themselves, PERIOD!!!
I am hearing everyone say that we are now in a recovery and we will see it better by the end of the year. Apparently none of these people are looking at EVERYTHING. While it is true that spending has gone up in the last month, which is mostly due to the “Cash for Clunkers Program”. The experts are saying it is also up from the purchase of electronics, namely appliances. Correct me if I am wrong but did they not start the same “cash for” program with appliances also?
And even though I am unemployed, I go to the stores and purchase the food we need as well as other necessities. What I see in the checkout line is not exactly good news. Why? Well for one these people are picking through their wallets for a credit card that has enough left on it for this particular purchase. If they were using cash or even a debit card, then I would feel a little better. Just because something is being purchased, does not mean things are good. How long will they be able to use those cards before they must pay it back? How many payments will be made on those new cars? Will their jobs still be there in January?
I will give you all 36 years of experience and perhaps a bit more wisdom than is being shown by those that are telling you we are recovering. Many companies typically cut back at this time of year because winter is a bit slower. Many companies are at the end of their fiscal year and need to do inventory and other housecleaning in order to plan for the next year. This planning includes what kind of money they will be allotting for major expenditures which would also include hiring for the coming year. Now with that said, all of this means that there will be more layoffs. Even in good times, this is the time of year that companies will trim their workforce.
Keeping all of this in mind, and don’t forget the use of credit for current purchases, do you think that there will be increased spending? I don’t think so. Even with the “Great Deal” sales going on at stores during the year, most people are still buying it on time. I am sorry, but even if you offered me a 250k home for 50k, I would have to painfully turn it down, simply because I would not take the chance at a dream, only to lose it because I could not pay for it.
Black Friday may only be here the day after Thanksgiving symbolically, but it may still be a day of red for many. I am telling you this for one reason, and that is so you may save yourself, your family, and what little you may have. Last year I had a Christmas tree with no presents underneath it. This year I will not spend 30 bucks on a tree. That money will be used to feed my family. I will instead use our decorations on the couple of live pine trees in front of my house. Christmas Eve I will stand out there gazing at those trees and wonder where all the common sense in this world went to. I already know the answer to that. It was swallowed up by the greed of this world. People were blinded by what they thought was the American Dream. A dream, that turned into a nightmare, for too many of these people.
I will have hope that when many will lose all they have because they are listening to these “experts” now, that they will not lose their sanity as well. If you will be one of those to blindly follow the blind, know that you will be in my heart. Perhaps next year at this time we will truly feel a recovery and I hope many jobs will have come back. But it may not even happen then if everyone continues to “spend” their credit and follow those with more than enough money to burn. Trust me, you will not lose out on anything by playing it safe. Some of the banks and companies that rely on you to keep spending may fail, but there will be someone behind them to bring a little more common sense to the industry. Our government will not and cannot keep pitching money into bottomless pits. So bottom line is, let these companies and banks fail because they do not deserve your money and do not have the common sense to protect future business by protecting YOU, now. Their future in ensured but your future is not. Protect yourself NOW, and do not follow the hype!
But don’t sit on your butt either, push your Senators and Congressmen and women to work on change NOW, or be gone at the next election. Vote for someone who will change what has become to be known as “The Good Ole Boy Club”. No politician should have so much of a connection with any company or bank that would prevent them voting for the interests of the people. Stop these politicians from spending weeks on something that will never create change. They are there for us not themselves, PERIOD!!!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Stop Multimillion Dollar Compensations!
It would seem that our economic situation has brought me to a point of enlightenment as to why corporations pay their officers bonuses to the tune of millions of dollars. After perusing the massive amount of information at the IRS.gov site, I have found numerous reasons. However for myself to understand all of it, would most likely take me months to read and then to simplify in my writings. What little bit I have read most likely makes it just as hard for an IRS auditor to do his job properly. The IRS has numerous publications on what the auditor will need to look for and depending on the size of the corporation, impossible to do an audit on their own.
Instead there should be “some” simplification of tax laws which would allow the auditor to better deal with their audit.
1. The multimillion dollar bonuses received by the top executives should not be used as a deduction by corporations as this not only reduces the stock dividends, it also reduces the corporations tax liability since corporate income tax is at a higher rate than employee income tax. Most multimillion dollar bonuses are only paid to those who own major stock or have some other major interest in the corporation and by paying smaller stock dividends they put even more money in their pockets. The losers here are the smaller stockholders as well as the government which in turn is the taxpayers.
2. This is something I knew years ago but had forgotten. Everybody pays social security tax. But once your income exceeds a set amount you no longer pay that tax. Currently this amount is approximately $106,000.00. Most hardworking Americans do not make $106,000.00 annually and will most likely be the main beneficiaries of this program. Since this program was started to help out those who had aged and could not afford to help themselves, why not continue to collect this tax beyond the $106,000.00 earned. After all, those who currently earn more than this amount should most certainly be able to provide for their own retirement. If an argument would be presented that those making more than $106,000.00 per year would not benefit, there too could be the argument that those making less than that amount, may never benefit at all. I may never see social security when I will need it most. Certainly those who will come behind me will never see it at all, but we will still have to pay this tax!
Tax loopholes are there because they were created and not because someone forgot to word something correctly, or because something was not thought of when these complex laws were enacted. For our supposedly educated lawmakers to claim that they did not realize there were loopholes would simply mean they are lying, or uneducated idiots. A simplified tax law could be as simple as;
If you make $0-$10,000 your tax would be X% and if you make $10,001-$20,000 your tax would be X% and so on and so on. If you are a corporation based in the US and make X dollars-X dollars you would pay X% on profits before bonuses. Simple and effective and absolutely no way anyone could find a loophole. Of course to protect the investors you could also enact a law that the investors would be paid their dividends before bonuses also. If all that would cause a little problem about what profits really are, then you could define profits as any money that is leftover after they paid out for overhead, factory upgrades, non executive income and reasonable executive compensation, not bonuses. Of course then you would need to define “reasonable executive compensation” which should not require that much sense. I do realize it is not that simple, but then it doesn’t need to be so complex either!
In all, my suggestions could not be any more ridiculous than the current system in place that ensures the poor stay poor and the rich just get richer.
Instead there should be “some” simplification of tax laws which would allow the auditor to better deal with their audit.
1. The multimillion dollar bonuses received by the top executives should not be used as a deduction by corporations as this not only reduces the stock dividends, it also reduces the corporations tax liability since corporate income tax is at a higher rate than employee income tax. Most multimillion dollar bonuses are only paid to those who own major stock or have some other major interest in the corporation and by paying smaller stock dividends they put even more money in their pockets. The losers here are the smaller stockholders as well as the government which in turn is the taxpayers.
2. This is something I knew years ago but had forgotten. Everybody pays social security tax. But once your income exceeds a set amount you no longer pay that tax. Currently this amount is approximately $106,000.00. Most hardworking Americans do not make $106,000.00 annually and will most likely be the main beneficiaries of this program. Since this program was started to help out those who had aged and could not afford to help themselves, why not continue to collect this tax beyond the $106,000.00 earned. After all, those who currently earn more than this amount should most certainly be able to provide for their own retirement. If an argument would be presented that those making more than $106,000.00 per year would not benefit, there too could be the argument that those making less than that amount, may never benefit at all. I may never see social security when I will need it most. Certainly those who will come behind me will never see it at all, but we will still have to pay this tax!
Tax loopholes are there because they were created and not because someone forgot to word something correctly, or because something was not thought of when these complex laws were enacted. For our supposedly educated lawmakers to claim that they did not realize there were loopholes would simply mean they are lying, or uneducated idiots. A simplified tax law could be as simple as;
If you make $0-$10,000 your tax would be X% and if you make $10,001-$20,000 your tax would be X% and so on and so on. If you are a corporation based in the US and make X dollars-X dollars you would pay X% on profits before bonuses. Simple and effective and absolutely no way anyone could find a loophole. Of course to protect the investors you could also enact a law that the investors would be paid their dividends before bonuses also. If all that would cause a little problem about what profits really are, then you could define profits as any money that is leftover after they paid out for overhead, factory upgrades, non executive income and reasonable executive compensation, not bonuses. Of course then you would need to define “reasonable executive compensation” which should not require that much sense. I do realize it is not that simple, but then it doesn’t need to be so complex either!
In all, my suggestions could not be any more ridiculous than the current system in place that ensures the poor stay poor and the rich just get richer.
Friday, September 11, 2009
in Memory of 9/11
It has been 8 years. Today as every year at this time, on this day, we shed our tears for those lost on that tragic day. For many those tears do not stop and never will. These people wake up every day and are reminded of why they no longer have their husbands or wives next to them or their child to call them and tell them how much they appreciate all that their parents had done for them. They will forever be reminded of their loss until the day they go to join them eternally.
As many have, I remember that day well, when my wife called to tell me about that first plane. I went through the building to let everyone know what had happened. Those of us that had computers went to the live feeds and watched in horror as the next plane hit the second tower, while those on the manufacturing floor were listening to their radios. Worked had stopped that day at around 9:00 in the morning. We felt our hearts drop for not only those whose lives were lost, but for the loss of security we had all enjoyed for so many generations.
On this day I will not go into the political side of why it happened, or who failed, or who was the cause. Today is for remembering the senseless loss of human life and to remember that no one is truly safe, no matter where they are living and working. It is the responsibility of everyone to never forget that day. Many have forgotten similar scenes that were flashed across the television screens during the Saturday morning cartoons, back in the sixties and early seventies. Vietnam was the horror we grew up with back then. I remember playing at a friend’s house with walkie-talkies and actually hearing, faintly, the radio signals that reached us from half a world away. We could hear the call for airstrikes and the sound of battle and we were shocked at how these radio waves reached these little kids toys that brought us into a very grownup world. A world that we would all say, we would change.
But we have forgotten those promises we made to each other back then.
Let us never forget any of these tragedies, or the lives lost. Let us remember that no matter how angry we may get at someone else’s words or how they chose to live, that it is not worth taking a life over. EVER! We still must protect the innocent, and unfortunately bad things will happen. I do not condone war and never will! I will always believe that if a country wants to push their own beliefs beyond the borders of their own country and to affect the lives of people who want nothing to do with that thinking, then there should be no question of what will need to be done, no matter what country it is!
Remembering is something we all forget to do at times. Remembering the importance of life is everyone’s responsibility EVERY DAY, not only today, but everyday of our lives.
So remember not only the loss of all those lives, but the reasons it has happened and the changes we ALL must make in this world to ensure that it never happens again, anywhere.
May they all rest in peace, and REMEMBER!
As many have, I remember that day well, when my wife called to tell me about that first plane. I went through the building to let everyone know what had happened. Those of us that had computers went to the live feeds and watched in horror as the next plane hit the second tower, while those on the manufacturing floor were listening to their radios. Worked had stopped that day at around 9:00 in the morning. We felt our hearts drop for not only those whose lives were lost, but for the loss of security we had all enjoyed for so many generations.
On this day I will not go into the political side of why it happened, or who failed, or who was the cause. Today is for remembering the senseless loss of human life and to remember that no one is truly safe, no matter where they are living and working. It is the responsibility of everyone to never forget that day. Many have forgotten similar scenes that were flashed across the television screens during the Saturday morning cartoons, back in the sixties and early seventies. Vietnam was the horror we grew up with back then. I remember playing at a friend’s house with walkie-talkies and actually hearing, faintly, the radio signals that reached us from half a world away. We could hear the call for airstrikes and the sound of battle and we were shocked at how these radio waves reached these little kids toys that brought us into a very grownup world. A world that we would all say, we would change.
But we have forgotten those promises we made to each other back then.
Let us never forget any of these tragedies, or the lives lost. Let us remember that no matter how angry we may get at someone else’s words or how they chose to live, that it is not worth taking a life over. EVER! We still must protect the innocent, and unfortunately bad things will happen. I do not condone war and never will! I will always believe that if a country wants to push their own beliefs beyond the borders of their own country and to affect the lives of people who want nothing to do with that thinking, then there should be no question of what will need to be done, no matter what country it is!
Remembering is something we all forget to do at times. Remembering the importance of life is everyone’s responsibility EVERY DAY, not only today, but everyday of our lives.
So remember not only the loss of all those lives, but the reasons it has happened and the changes we ALL must make in this world to ensure that it never happens again, anywhere.
May they all rest in peace, and REMEMBER!
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
A new view of companies investing overseas!
Ah-hah, I say. After hearing so much about what this country should do to help bring jobs back to America, I decide to do some research in starting a company in China. Very eye opening it was. Although it would take a book to explain how China allows foreign firms to invest there, I will try to simplify it a little bit here after I first go over what Pro- corporation firms and individuals are proposing.
These people want to reduce the corporate tax rate to 27% from the current 35% without getting rid of current tax breaks and incentives or loopholes for the companies that have moved much of their production to China and elsewhere.
I would like to know exactly what these corporations pay since some of these same people allude to the fact that these corporations DON’T really pay as much as 35% of the corporate income tax. Could this be that because of the multimillion dollar bonuses, it greatly reduces the corporate income? I would bet it does!! Since these individuals must pay taxes on their bonuses I would be willing to bet that those bonuses are listed under what they pay out in employee income and of course would be removed from what these corporations claim as profit. In other words I see the only reasons for moving overseas is the cost of wages here in the states as well as being able to hide actual profits there, from here (in the states).
Okay, now let’s talk about doing business in China (since that is where most of our jobs went).
Many corporations that have moved operations to China have gotten many tax breaks and incentives for moving there but overall will see those incentives and breaks disappear in the coming years. Back in 1979 the corporate income tax was 35% and for all but the largest of companies, they were forced to keep ALL profits in China. Hmmmmm, interesting isn’t it?
But recently China reduced it to 25% effective January 2008 and have tried to make things a little more fair for China’s domestic companies to compete. Does not sound bad at first, however! The next sentence was copied from chinaorbit.com which has some eye opening information on doing business there.
“FIEs (Foreign Invested Enterprises) have been able to take advantage of an extensive range of incentives based on the industry sector of their business, or their geographical location, provided they have agreed to a statement of commitment to operate in China.”
A statement of commitment would mean that if they pulled their operations out of China before an agreed time period, they would lose everything they have invested there, EVERYTHING! It currently looks as though whatever agreements were made for any time period previous to January 2008, would have restarted at this time. These agreements are anywhere from 3 to 7 years depending on the industry and the following is from the same China site;
“Some of the new tax incentives are detailed below:
• Sectors where there is investment in agriculture, forestry, fisheries and infrastructure
• Sectors where investment is in venture and environmental protection
• Start-up high technology industries will be given preferential treatment if they are supported by the State and located in so-called Special Economic Zones (SEZs) or the Pudong district of Shanghai.
• ‘Super’ reductions given to firms producing original research and development, and new technologies.
• Direct tax reduction has been replaced with a preferential system for labour and welfare services, and others which make efficient use of resources.”
Take note of the sentences in bold. The “SUPER” reductions are part of the reasons we are also losing our engineering jobs here in the states. Our own engineers are helping this along by going to China and doing Engineering work there. Any new technologies our engineers develop there, are actually the property of the Chinese Government. How about that!!! But don’t say that I am wrong and that this technology belongs to the United States. It only belongs to the United States, if it is developed here. This I know to be FACT!
So now I would like to redirect my argument for bringing those jobs back here to the states. I think that we should allow those companies to wallow in whatever they have decided to create elsewhere. Take away those tax breaks and incentives and close the tax loopholes for them including knocking out the bonuses as being included in the company’s expenses AND taxing bonuses at a higher rate that exceed $100,000. For one you will see multimillion dollar bonuses simply disappear. And you may see the $1.00 a year CEO pay go on up to a more realistic value so that it covers what was lost in bonuses.
After all that, the United States will have more than enough money to invest in new companies here, after all they have dumped OUR money into the cesspools they call, banking, GM, and others that I just learned, much of those dollars will never come back to the people that paid their taxes for it. Our country’s engineers should pool their talents together and create new and better companies, right here. It will bring us back to the respect we once had in the business world. And for the other countries that saw the same departure of jobs, you should do the same thing.
Sure it will change the face of the world as we know it today. The big names of business will be swallowed up by the countries they have turned to and new names will emerge to take their place.
I do not believe that it will send those countries into ruin because of it, on the contrary, I believe that there would be more equalization between everyone and certainly it would be so much harder multinational corporations to rise up and reclaim their multimillion dollar bonuses they so generously give to people who could never make it on their own!
These people want to reduce the corporate tax rate to 27% from the current 35% without getting rid of current tax breaks and incentives or loopholes for the companies that have moved much of their production to China and elsewhere.
I would like to know exactly what these corporations pay since some of these same people allude to the fact that these corporations DON’T really pay as much as 35% of the corporate income tax. Could this be that because of the multimillion dollar bonuses, it greatly reduces the corporate income? I would bet it does!! Since these individuals must pay taxes on their bonuses I would be willing to bet that those bonuses are listed under what they pay out in employee income and of course would be removed from what these corporations claim as profit. In other words I see the only reasons for moving overseas is the cost of wages here in the states as well as being able to hide actual profits there, from here (in the states).
Okay, now let’s talk about doing business in China (since that is where most of our jobs went).
Many corporations that have moved operations to China have gotten many tax breaks and incentives for moving there but overall will see those incentives and breaks disappear in the coming years. Back in 1979 the corporate income tax was 35% and for all but the largest of companies, they were forced to keep ALL profits in China. Hmmmmm, interesting isn’t it?
But recently China reduced it to 25% effective January 2008 and have tried to make things a little more fair for China’s domestic companies to compete. Does not sound bad at first, however! The next sentence was copied from chinaorbit.com which has some eye opening information on doing business there.
“FIEs (Foreign Invested Enterprises) have been able to take advantage of an extensive range of incentives based on the industry sector of their business, or their geographical location, provided they have agreed to a statement of commitment to operate in China.”
A statement of commitment would mean that if they pulled their operations out of China before an agreed time period, they would lose everything they have invested there, EVERYTHING! It currently looks as though whatever agreements were made for any time period previous to January 2008, would have restarted at this time. These agreements are anywhere from 3 to 7 years depending on the industry and the following is from the same China site;
“Some of the new tax incentives are detailed below:
• Sectors where there is investment in agriculture, forestry, fisheries and infrastructure
• Sectors where investment is in venture and environmental protection
• Start-up high technology industries will be given preferential treatment if they are supported by the State and located in so-called Special Economic Zones (SEZs) or the Pudong district of Shanghai.
• ‘Super’ reductions given to firms producing original research and development, and new technologies.
• Direct tax reduction has been replaced with a preferential system for labour and welfare services, and others which make efficient use of resources.”
Take note of the sentences in bold. The “SUPER” reductions are part of the reasons we are also losing our engineering jobs here in the states. Our own engineers are helping this along by going to China and doing Engineering work there. Any new technologies our engineers develop there, are actually the property of the Chinese Government. How about that!!! But don’t say that I am wrong and that this technology belongs to the United States. It only belongs to the United States, if it is developed here. This I know to be FACT!
So now I would like to redirect my argument for bringing those jobs back here to the states. I think that we should allow those companies to wallow in whatever they have decided to create elsewhere. Take away those tax breaks and incentives and close the tax loopholes for them including knocking out the bonuses as being included in the company’s expenses AND taxing bonuses at a higher rate that exceed $100,000. For one you will see multimillion dollar bonuses simply disappear. And you may see the $1.00 a year CEO pay go on up to a more realistic value so that it covers what was lost in bonuses.
After all that, the United States will have more than enough money to invest in new companies here, after all they have dumped OUR money into the cesspools they call, banking, GM, and others that I just learned, much of those dollars will never come back to the people that paid their taxes for it. Our country’s engineers should pool their talents together and create new and better companies, right here. It will bring us back to the respect we once had in the business world. And for the other countries that saw the same departure of jobs, you should do the same thing.
Sure it will change the face of the world as we know it today. The big names of business will be swallowed up by the countries they have turned to and new names will emerge to take their place.
I do not believe that it will send those countries into ruin because of it, on the contrary, I believe that there would be more equalization between everyone and certainly it would be so much harder multinational corporations to rise up and reclaim their multimillion dollar bonuses they so generously give to people who could never make it on their own!
Monday, September 7, 2009
I hit The Lottery for Millions!
Or at least that is what many of us wish for. After all, If I did win the lottery I would be more inclined to concern myself with, well, MYSELF! In my blogs I try to bring a little attention to what I thought concerned many of us who are out of jobs. Maybe I didn't post my blogs correctly or used the right labels so that it would come up in a search.
Maybe you would find it interesting, as I did, that when I went to an old computer that had nothing on it to identify myself and did a search, I found almost nothing about me. Well almost nothing. In fact I found a couple of things I posted when I was in engineering, and those were from almost 9 years ago. I find it hard to understand that an obscure post from years ago would still be floating around but nothing about my current blog or youtube accounts.
Now if I were of a highly suspicious mind I would point out that my blogs and Youtube posts are angrily pointed at the news media, politicians, "So called" experts in stocks the economy etc, and of course large corporations! May I be a conspiracy theorist for a moment? I have posted what many people say are correct.
By many I mean close to 1000 people who ALL have the same consensus about what I am writing about, or I would not have bothered writing at all. So to go with a conspiracy theory I would feel better about the world around me as far as real people go. But perhaps the "real" people do only want to worry about healthcare for now, until they need to pay for it that is.
But putting a conspiracy theory into another realm, perhaps I have been on the wrong blog. Maybe I should now set my mind and unemployed body to joining every possible blog there is as well as joining every social site and posting newsletters to every bulletin board at every store I visit!! Then surely at least a few thousand would see it.
So, if you are the only person who reads this and knows how I can reach more people with my posts, let me know. Tell me how I can better improve my readership or just tell me I suck or that I'm just whisteling in the wind, but let me know what I'm doing right or wrong!
I have been concerned for my fellow citizens and how the American dream has turned into a horrific nightmare that has been propagated by GREED, plain and simple.
Let me know!
Maybe you would find it interesting, as I did, that when I went to an old computer that had nothing on it to identify myself and did a search, I found almost nothing about me. Well almost nothing. In fact I found a couple of things I posted when I was in engineering, and those were from almost 9 years ago. I find it hard to understand that an obscure post from years ago would still be floating around but nothing about my current blog or youtube accounts.
Now if I were of a highly suspicious mind I would point out that my blogs and Youtube posts are angrily pointed at the news media, politicians, "So called" experts in stocks the economy etc, and of course large corporations! May I be a conspiracy theorist for a moment? I have posted what many people say are correct.
By many I mean close to 1000 people who ALL have the same consensus about what I am writing about, or I would not have bothered writing at all. So to go with a conspiracy theory I would feel better about the world around me as far as real people go. But perhaps the "real" people do only want to worry about healthcare for now, until they need to pay for it that is.
But putting a conspiracy theory into another realm, perhaps I have been on the wrong blog. Maybe I should now set my mind and unemployed body to joining every possible blog there is as well as joining every social site and posting newsletters to every bulletin board at every store I visit!! Then surely at least a few thousand would see it.
So, if you are the only person who reads this and knows how I can reach more people with my posts, let me know. Tell me how I can better improve my readership or just tell me I suck or that I'm just whisteling in the wind, but let me know what I'm doing right or wrong!
I have been concerned for my fellow citizens and how the American dream has turned into a horrific nightmare that has been propagated by GREED, plain and simple.
Let me know!
Healthcare or Jobs!
I am finding the issue of healthcare more boring than ever before. I have discussed this issue with many different people and gotten only a few different answers. The burning question that our revered politicians fail to answer is "How will it be paid for?".
The biggest problem for YEARS has been our jobs heading out of this country and with those jobs go the taxes that many people pay during their employment. Healthcare reform seems to be hinged on what can be done for those that have no jobs or those working for companies that offer no health insurance. In the long run, who will pay for it? The answer is simple, if you work, you will be paying for it! The government already skims from social security and anywhere else they can get large amounts of money that can be "borrowed" from. Well we all have already given money to social security that many of us will never see.
Is there another rabbit in the hat that we are unaware of? Perhaps the push on healthcare is to try to blind us from the fact that the politicians do not want to remove the tax incentives multinational corporations have received for creating companies abroad. After all many if not all politicians are financially connected in some way, to many of these companies.
It seems the louder I yell about jobs, the louder politicians bring up the issue of healthcare. I recently received an email inviting me as well as others, to watch a video about healthcare reform. We were also asked to respond with a video of our own about our need for healthcare reform. YES IT IS NEEDED BUT SO ARE JOBS!!
At this point my response goes something like this... Give me all the data on multinational corporations that are headquartered in the United States. I want to know;
1. What is the percentage of manufacturing facilities in the United States vs. foreign countries?
2. How much money (or tax breaks) is the United Sates giving to those companies that have more than 50% of manufacturing outside the U.S.?
3. How much of those foreign made products come back to the U.S. for sale that escape normal tax and tariffs that are imposed on foreign based manufacturers?
4. How much do these companies put into healthcare in the U.S.?
5. How much profits are these companies making BEFORE the bonuses are paid? After all bonuses cannot be paid unless the company is profitable and it is from these profits that the bonuses will be paid!
6. How much money will come from these companies for healthcare reform vs. the government (us in other words)?
Somehow I do not believe that I would get 75% of the above questions answered, if any at all!
Of course I would also expect that no response would be made of this blog which will be posted here, on my Facebook page, and sent in the form of a letter to the Whitehouse. People want healthcare and for most, as long as they can get it for free, they will be happy even if it does come from our taxes.
Work on healthcare reform but do it alongside "job reform" as well.
The biggest problem for YEARS has been our jobs heading out of this country and with those jobs go the taxes that many people pay during their employment. Healthcare reform seems to be hinged on what can be done for those that have no jobs or those working for companies that offer no health insurance. In the long run, who will pay for it? The answer is simple, if you work, you will be paying for it! The government already skims from social security and anywhere else they can get large amounts of money that can be "borrowed" from. Well we all have already given money to social security that many of us will never see.
Is there another rabbit in the hat that we are unaware of? Perhaps the push on healthcare is to try to blind us from the fact that the politicians do not want to remove the tax incentives multinational corporations have received for creating companies abroad. After all many if not all politicians are financially connected in some way, to many of these companies.
It seems the louder I yell about jobs, the louder politicians bring up the issue of healthcare. I recently received an email inviting me as well as others, to watch a video about healthcare reform. We were also asked to respond with a video of our own about our need for healthcare reform. YES IT IS NEEDED BUT SO ARE JOBS!!
At this point my response goes something like this... Give me all the data on multinational corporations that are headquartered in the United States. I want to know;
1. What is the percentage of manufacturing facilities in the United States vs. foreign countries?
2. How much money (or tax breaks) is the United Sates giving to those companies that have more than 50% of manufacturing outside the U.S.?
3. How much of those foreign made products come back to the U.S. for sale that escape normal tax and tariffs that are imposed on foreign based manufacturers?
4. How much do these companies put into healthcare in the U.S.?
5. How much profits are these companies making BEFORE the bonuses are paid? After all bonuses cannot be paid unless the company is profitable and it is from these profits that the bonuses will be paid!
6. How much money will come from these companies for healthcare reform vs. the government (us in other words)?
Somehow I do not believe that I would get 75% of the above questions answered, if any at all!
Of course I would also expect that no response would be made of this blog which will be posted here, on my Facebook page, and sent in the form of a letter to the Whitehouse. People want healthcare and for most, as long as they can get it for free, they will be happy even if it does come from our taxes.
Work on healthcare reform but do it alongside "job reform" as well.
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