I built it in SPITE of you!!!

            There are a lot of people, much smarter and savvier than I am, writing political stories, pithy missives, headlines on blogs etc., but I haven’t read a businessman’s approach to this topic in a way that SPEAKS to the business people in America.  Yes, there is anger, and there is outright hatred for the sentiment…but that doesn’t win elections, arguments or the hearts and minds of people like me that are so completely done with American Politics in the current form.  So I thought I would do it.  So put your feet up, get a bag to throw up in, and hang on…this might make you sick.

            To create a business, let alone a successful one, involves a lot of people.  Not all of these people, however, are interested in making your company succeed.  In fact, it is the “job” of many of these people to make it as hard as possible for you.  Assuming we are not talking about a business that has insider deals with a congressman, or the owner isn’t a huge donor to the president…this is what a business owner goes through.

            Loan.  In order to start any business, you must have a brilliant idea that is either new, or improves upon what is already at the marketplace.  This is a given, as we already have businesses in the world…what is special about yours?  Then you have to have money to make this happen.  Capital…or the money it takes to start the business, comes from a bank loan (usually).  A loan, in its simplest form, is risk.  You put up collateral, and you take your shot.  There is nobody in the world who is going to just give you money for nothing.  So you want to start up a company…have an idea, a plan, experience or expertise, and then you have to risk something.  That…believe it or not, was the easy part.

            Build.   Now you need to build your company.  You need raw material in the form of a building, which takes a contractor, consultant, budgeting and all of this revolves around the image you have for your company.  Are you a distributor of product, a manufacturer?  Both?  This all has costs associated.  Thank god you got that loan.  Assuming nothing went over budget (hahahahaha, some of you know how funny that is)…you have an empty building ready to go.  Now just turn on gas, water, electric, phones, internet, heat/a.c., etc.  Couldn’t be simpler.

            Open.  To open, you need inventory, logistics (trucks, drivers, boxes, etc), computers, sales staff, warehouse staff, accounts receivable, accounts payable,  customers.  This is where the rubber meets the road.  Did you hire the cheapest salesmen?  Are they go-getters if they make $8/hr?  Do you have to motivate them daily?  Commission?  Labor is expensive if you want more than uneducated illiterate seat fillers…not to mention health insurance, worker’s comp, 401K, Social Security, unemployment…yeah, now we’re talking BIG MONEY.  All just to get the place going, you haven’t cleared dollar #1 yet.

            Operations.  Maintenance of facility, vehicles, computers/internet site, inventory rotation and damages, Quality control, collecting on slow paying customers.  Are you kidding me, what happened to America being the land of opportunity…my loan is almost all used up.  Now I am going to show you why companies fail, and frequently.  We are going to add the “others” who are here to take credit for your success…even though you haven’t “made it” yet.

            Government Regulations.  Now that you are up and running, and raking in the money with your “can’t miss” business idea…we need to go over things like: Employee regulations regarding overtime, sexual harassment, posting of labor regulations etc.  Building permits, city state and federal permits, Trucking permits, safety inspections, insurances, water/EPA requirements, Storage regulations and permits, Hazard and Critical Control Point regulations, Banking regulations, Collection of debt regulations, FDA regulations, Dept. of Homeland Security and terrorism forms/regulations, USDA/USDC regulations, Customs Dept forms/regulations on importing, Immigration rules/regulations, IRS rules/regs, Weights and Measures regulations…WTF.  How much does this cost to maintain? 

            Profit.  IF you have anything left, now you can pay your greedy corporate raider self.  You greedy S.O.B., I can’t believe you make what you make.  Capitalism sure is easy, isn’t it.  Sheesh.  Hey Elisabeth Warren, thanks for “You can keep a big hunk of what’s left.”…I appreciate ALL YOU DID TO HELP.

That is one route to success.  It isn’t easy, but it is still actually doable.  Let’s examine a little bit deeper into what helped YOU get to where you are. 

            “You didn’t build that, you used roads, bridges…blah blah”…ok, I did use roads and bridges, but the taxes and fees and everything else I have gone through has paid WAY MORE THAN MY SHARE.  I mean, come on…there are millions of people using roads and bridges in this country who pay NO TAXES.  NONE, not corporate, not income…hell, they use all of this I provide and they don’t kick in one cent.  How is that fair?  Tell me, after my thousands of hours and tax dollars, am I not entitled to use the roads I helped pay for…more so than the freeloader?  And what about those who built the roads…was that slave labor?  NO, they were paid for their work…and since it was a gov’t job, they probably got WAY more than it actually would have cost…so there really is nobody in debt for this, we paid…work was done…now you want to talk about who is using the roads to provide goods and services, vs who is just using it without providing anything.  Yeah, I thought you wouldn’t. 

            If the collective built infrastructure, and we all chipped in…except for tax cheats and those who fall below what the government deems rich enough to pay taxes, then why are we trying to separate the businesses from the collective?  Why aren’t we kissing their asses for being more productive, and paying more into the kitty?  What we should be doing is lamenting those who avoid taxes.  Geitner?  You owe taxes…how dare you screw the collective society.  Charlie Rangell…how dare you?  John Kerry…you park your yacht in a state that doesn’t tax you, but you live and legislate in a place that does tax yachts.  That is beyond gross…it’s a good thing you are such a big businessman…wait, you aren’t, you married the daughter of Heinz.   You should be ashamed of yourself.  Talk about hypocrites.

            So, I didn’t do this on my own?  Well, without me and those like me, what roads would you be driving to pick up your welfare checks…or if they are mailed to you, who do you think supports the USPS, as well as the food stamps and welfare?  Not the tax cheats in congress, not the poor, and not the average family of 4 making $42k/year…because statistically after the earned income tax credit and marriage/children credit, they don’t contribute much to the government.  How about next time you want to take credit for a business that has succeeded, you take a nice long look at what it takes to make it in this country, and then ask YOURSELF why YOU haven’t made the effort to add to this country…it was a democrat that once said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”…I think you ought to start thinking along the lines of, “What can I do to support my local business, instead of what can they do to support me.”  And the next time you think about the Stimulus packages that were supposed to repair roads and bridges, look at all the bankrupt solar companies and offshore GE, GM and other crony capitalist crooks who got that money and are telling you that we need more money. 

            Speaking of cronyism, who asked the government to bail out these companies who were supposedly in business like all of us?  Why did their failing model deserve our money?  Who made that decision for US, and why are they still in office?  Success is not the start of a company, like I said, that is the easy part.  Success is how you deal with failure, and we seem to throw money at failure, instead of letting it hurt, in order to teach a lesson and fix a problem.  I am not asking for help, I am asking for those who cheat, those who fail, and those who are not running their business properly to be left to the same fate that I would have if I did the same.  Nobody is handing me money just for trying.  I don’t want a handout, but every once in a while, just say thanks to the people who make America different than North Korea and other famous nations with roads, bridges and no success.  America didn’t make people great, great people make America.  Don’t forget it.

-REV

Crony Capitalism vs Outsourcing...

Which is worse, getting tax money with no strings attached so that I can myopically bound through fields of innefficiency and lackluster quality; or shipping jobs overseas where labor doesn't end up costing $20-$25/hour after benefits, taxes and social security?  It depends on if we are talking about "worse" for the country, a politician, the taxpayers, or the consumers.  Let's take one example and see how it goes:
   Amonix, in North Las Vegas, was given $21million to start up a manufacturing plant in N LV.  This government program, deemed an overwhelming success, gives grants and loan guarantees to companies to build plants and produce products in the USA.  The plant is closed now, about a year after opening...having laid off 700 employees and owing many companies LOTS of money.  This plant didn't close because of the EPA or IRS...it closed the old fashioned way; poor quality, lack of training and a bad business model was given oodles of money without the pesky little detail of competition and capital investment managers looking at the details of production.  Without this little oversight oversight...companies tend to fail, as the golden rule of capitalism (profit) was not the goal of the government, but employment and publicity was.   To drive this point home...let's ask Harry Reid what he thinks about the company.  Harry says that Nevada's Sunshine is on par with Saudi Arabia's Oil reserves.  And we all know that the government threw money at every Bedouin who wanted to drill for oil...oh wait, they contracted the leading oil drilling, prospecting and safety companies throughout the world to lead on this endeavor...and it's worked out pretty well for them. 
   To be fair to Harry, this program has bipartisan support, which is more of a slam on Republicans, who are supposed to understand the need for independant private businesses not being interfered with by gov't meddling because it isn't healthy for competition when the gov't picks winners in a field.  Many, though, blame the failure on one man, Brian Richardson.  You see, he died in a plane accident and the company was rudderless after that.  Another reason this should never have been financed publicly...can you see Microsoft investing in a startup that had no business plan that could be followed if the CEO died?  Would Apple loan money to a guy who had nobody in his company that could run things in his stead?  I doubt it, but at least it wouldn't be MY MONEY, it would be their risk.  Anyways, who cares if Brian Richardson died, he didn't build anything, the government did that, right Barrack?  So, yes...government is responsible for this failure. 
     Shelley Berkley was a huge proponent of tax money going to her pet projects, and she defends the stimulus waste by attacking people who have been warning us that this crony capitalism is not going to work.  After all, just because someone can see a train wreck coming, doesn't mean he is driving the train.  This leads to the charges of "outsourcing".  What does it mean?  How does it work, and is it easy to decide to do this?  It depends, again, if we are looking at this from the perspective of a union, a politician, a businessman or an investor.
    If I am a union boss, "outsourcing" is the most vile evil disgusting practice since genital mutilation and infanticide.  If I am a union boss, the only way a company can get away from my predatory tentacles is for them to move their production off shore.  Afterall, if they are not allowed to move, they have to pay for my vacations, higher wages, fewer hours, better benefits, limited disciplinary actions for fraud, theft, drug use, truancy etc.  If I am a union boss, outsourcing manufactured products is the number one thing I should fear, and fighting it is the most important thing I can do to keep what I have.
   If I am a politician, I have to decide if I want to get support from Unions or businesses.  If I have to rely on union money, I have to fight their fight...regardless of whether I agree with it, or if it is in the best interest of the American people.  My goal is to vilify businesses who don't bend to the whim and will of the unionized labor movement.  If they leave the country, or relocate to states that are not as union organized/controlled, I must lambast them as evil and against the middle class.  If they go bankrupt, I must commend them for staying in the fight for the middle class...regardless of whether or not all their employees just got laid off...the business owner did the right thing.  Maybe to help this good business owner out, I will try to get some tax money, or federal grants to give him to help bail him out and keep his business (which failed) going with taxpayer money.  It's all good press material too.
   If I am a businessman, I have to look at whether it makes financial sense to stay put and keep doing what I am doing.  If I am not making money, my company will fail, then I am at the will of the government to bail me out.  If I move, I have to deal with the bad press, but I can stay in business...or, I can get rid of all manufacturing costs by shipping the jobs to China or India, then focus just on selling my product in the USA instead of manufacturing...the Fed laws and regulations are easier for businesses to follow if they are just retailers instead of manufacturers.  So if it is too hard to employee people here, i can still stay in business if I outsource.
    If I am an investor, I have to weight a lot of other factors.  If a company gets gov't money, can I get my money out first if there is a filing for bankruptcy?  If a company is involved in heavy labor contracts and this is keeping the company from being profitable...do I want to invest before it goes belly up and voids union contracts through bankruptcy litigation?  What are my returns on investment with a company that is being run by the gov't?  What are my expansion options if their is only union labor able to be used, vs the plans for expansion if I outsource?  Can I make more profit if I invest in a plant in Shanghai vs Unionized States of America? 
    There is one certainty about the American Entrepreneur.  We will survive.  The politicians in charge can make a rule, enforce that rule, and punish people for breaking that rule...but as long as there is another way, we will find it.  You can make it impossible to succeed here, we will go elsewhere.  You can limit the amount of dollars able to be taken out of the USA, we will get foreign financing.  You can tax profits brought back to the USA, we will create offshore accounts, businesses and have partners in other countries.  You can give it your best shot...but remember that for every person you have writing a law, I have 4 lawyers and brilliant businessmen finding a way around it.  The best and brightest Americans ARE NOT IN THE GOVERNMENT.  We will win.  We are the People. 
-Rev

Where the discussion of "taxes" starts...

This country has one topic that it is 91%+ on the same side of.  It is the ONLY issue that we have this much consensus on...and it is this: We think Congress is stupid, inefficient, dishonest and too partisan to do the modest task it was assigned by the Constitution.  It must be on a level of retardation that can only be described as "Hydrocephalus" due to their incredibly large heads.  It amazes me that people can see how awful Congress is, yet the same clowns get hired to preside over the next birthday party...but all we get from this is the same huge pile of elephant and donkey crap.  What causes 91 out of 100 of us to be so displeased with our elected leaders?  Let's see:
-Many are convicted of crimes ranging from tax evasion to sexual assault, bad checks, and drug/alcohol abuse...but their connections keep them from the same consequences as we regular folk.
-The party line keeps these elected representatives from actually getting anything done.  If Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Boehner, Hoyer or any "leader" in either house of Congress doesn't want something to happen...guess what...it ain't gonna get done.  Just look at the Senate's refusal to pass a budget the last 4 years.  Raise your hands if you think that Congress should be put into a room with locked doors, and bread and water until we see white smoke from the chimney meaning we have a budget.
-Let's talk about government shutdown.  Democrats will say that if the gov't shuts down, you won't get Social Security checks, Medicare, mail, clean water and clean air will not exist.  The Republicans say that our military will run out of bullets, our borders will become unguarded and terrorists will be let go from jail.  What is the real story?  Maybe this will shine some light on the story?
             $30 million would not go to Pakistan to aid mango farmers.
             $765,828 would not go to DC International House of Pancakes to build a store and train people.
             $100-$150 MILLION every year would not go to retirement and disability benefits to dead people.
              $175 MILLION would not go to the Veterans administration for maintaining unused buildings (this doesn't count the money thrown away to make these buildings "green")
               $1.8 Million would not go to Las Vegas for the LV Museum of Neon Signs
               $800,000 would not go to Genital Washing program in South Africa
Really?  This is the stuff that isn't cut at the beginning of the discussion?  We have to have open borders, no postal service, unarmed marines and dirty water BEFORE we cut ball sanitation for South African men?  Maybe this is why 91% of people think Congress is full of crap.  You wanna discuss raising taxes, fine.  Let's discuss raising taxes.  What stupid project do we want to raise taxes in order to fund?  Is there a feral monkey species that needs sexual enhancement treatment that desperately needs our business owners paying more in taxes to fund?  Well...what the hell, as long as we can still invade Iran and make sure our illegal aliens don't feel intimidated when they vote. 

But whatever YOU DO...DON'T THINK THAT THIS IS YOUR PARTY'S FAULT!  It is those "other" guys in congress that 91% of people disagree with.  sheesh.