The American Dream……?

The truth be known, I miss George W. Bush and an administration which although they,administered policies in conjunction with a Democrat controlled Congress that contributed heavily to the current economic crisis,  I never doubted there commitment to what I have come to understand, to be the American way of life. When President Bush stood at the podium you knew he believed in it and would do what he thought best to protect it.

In this new era of President Barack Obama, I feel adrift in a sea of such radical proportion that I am wondering if I will ever know America in the way I understood it through the 60’s, when despite the threat of nuclear devastation, a push of a button away,the assassinations of two Kennedy’s and a King and cities burning as a people marched for their civil rights ,that I would have an opportunity to participate in the ever evolving American Dream.

Nor, did I doubt my ability to pursue the dream during the 70’s as America’s experiment in Southeast Asia came to an ugly end and a President, cocooned within his own paranoia was brought down by a botched burglary of an office belonging to a party that would lose an election in a landslide.While disco music resonated  in clubs across the nation, I still believed there was a clear path to pursuing that American Dream despite the cautious rhetoric echoed by a peanut farmer as the decade was brought to an end with a whimper.

The 80’s ushered in an actor who emerged as a symbol for freedom and free enterprise across the globe. Pursuit of the dream was in high gear as Americans watched a wall in Berlin fall and a new world of opportunity evolved for millions who tasted freedom for the fist time. It seemed if one stayed focused and worked hard the dream was in reach.

In the 90’s despite a desert storm and a President embroiled in personal diversions and distractions an era of unprecedented growth and technology dawned that proved again there were no limitations to pursuing the American Dream.

A new millennium dawned and a threat from the desert struck and shook America but Americans remained resilient and growth continued as increased prosperity beckoned. The dream was in reach. Now the dream is threatened from within by policies that will serve to heighten class war under the guise of fairness. Government as perceived by Barack Obama the great equalizer.

I am sure that Barack Obama is committed to the American way of life. However, his perception of what that means and my own perception I suspect are considerably different. Since the election of President Obama, the stock market has fallen an additional 20% as he has spread his message and thrust his policies upon an adoring media and a public who idolizes him. Home values continue to erode wiping out any remaining equity for millions of homeowners and Obama continues on his path of destruction where ideology trumps reality.

The American way of life is changing much as America has changed. Our culture has transformed over the last several decades . The American Dream is being redefined and transformed .We are a nation that during the 2008 Presidential  election, rejected traditional capitalist principles for an Ideologue, because we were angry and failed to listen to what Barack Obama meant when he so eloquently emoted from teleprompters in majestic settings across this land. God Bless America.

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CEO’s Must Stay Focused

At a time when the world we inhabit seems on the precipice of imploding and we are bombarded by a plethora of negative economic news it is important to focus on that which you and your team members can impact within the parameters of  your respective business. At times like this there is always the tendency for the CEO to assemble the team and stress the need to get back to basics.  The reality is in a well run business the organization is always focused on the basics.

Optimizing productivity and contribution through cost containment programs, re engineering, customer rationalization and sku optimization are all relevant and purposeful tactics at a time when consumption and demand for goods and services are declining. However, more often than not, the actions that companies take are late in the economic cycle and though they may provide  cover during a time of market disruption, they are often detrimental to the longer term benefit of the enterprise.

 The role of the CEO throughout this process is to keep the organization focused by staying true to  strategic objectives and providing the capital structure of the enterprise is sound, accelerate sales and marketing initiatives to gain market share and prepare the company for growth as the economic cycle turns up. Too often CEO’s in order to appease Board’s that they are taking action fail to act wholly on what is right for the business as opposed to placating the Board.

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CEO4ADAY EXCEEDS 50,000 VIEWS !!!!!

Ceo4aday.wordpress.com the blog that offers a “perspective from a corner office” and commentary on politics, the economy, business and entrepreneurship is pleased to announce that we have exceeded 50,000 views since the blog was launched in December 2008.

We wish to thank all our readers for your continued support.

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Obama:A Leader For The 20th Century

In what appears to be the increasing Orwellian administration of Barack Obama, the White House has established the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board. In effect the Chairman of the RATB will serve at the request of the President, to be the ultimate hall monitor for the $787 Billion American Recovery and Investment Plan of 2009.

We as a society are walking a narrow line between an intrusive federal government with its reams of rules and regulations and a society that functions in an environment that is entrepreneurial,where shades of grey weave through the black and white of rigid bureaucracy.It is a wonder given the regulatory weight that burdens each of us, that we as a nation have accomplished what we have. The free enterprise system that has provided the framework to support the ideal that is America is burdened.

We are operating under the constraints of a 19th century perception that American business owners and CEO’s of companies are out to perform salacious acts of greed upon an unsuspecting and innocent American public. We govern to the lowest denominator and as such the exceptions that dominate our media for their extreme forms of unsavory behavior become the benchmark in the eyes of the public for corporate behavior

We are a nation of paradox at war with ourselves. We are sacrificing the principles of free enterprise allowing socialism to dominate our political manifest as we have been bruised and battered by economic extremes. America is tired. We have carried the hopes and dreams of not one nation but many nations for two centuries.

We were a social experiment that has wandered far from the precepts of the founding fathers. We have evolved through layer upon layer of social engineering and institutional evolution to arrive at this point in our history where czars are being appointed in Washington to formulate policies and execute strategies that are designed to limit our free enterprise system and restrain the incentives of individuals for the sake of the collective good.

We are tackling the challenges of the 21st century with 20th century solutions that proved inept and led to the collective containment of dreams for hundreds of millions of people. The Obama administration, rather than move us further into the 21st century is responsible for propagating a governance that has us firmly planted in the liberal politic of the last century.

Our alternative to that politic is a weakened Republican party which seems a distant remnant from the party of Reagan and Gingrich. We have a long path ahead of us and must be careful that we do not succumb to the populist rhetoric that allows our leaders to so easily distort reality and continue to promote a path toward fiscal ebullience.

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Barack Obama And New America

Barack Obama, will transform the cutural, social and economic fabric of America through rampant government spending. The result will be the emergence of  New America. Obama’a ascendancy to the American throne as President was the firt step in formally recognizing that the America we have known is no longer and solidifies the leadership platform for New America.

The President, has  spent the first month of his reign talking down the economy and further fueling unrest in the markets by failing to present clarity or provide detail as to the specificity of programs required to allay the credit crisis which is prolonging the recession. The resulting decline inthe markets serve only to prop up Obama as he sweeps in to solve the crisis with federal support.

Never in history has someone promised to spend so much so quickly to alleviate a nation’s economic pain. Obama and his administration are on a course to transfer what remains of the economic legacy of Ronald Reagan and Reagonomics, to Obamanomics in which the few will continue to pay for the many only at higher rates.

Obama through a confluence of socio economic events, has an opportunity to promote and in conjunction with the Democratic leadership, create through social legislation, a hybrid socialist state in which government will continue to expand its reach as it takes aim at the pockets of the top 2% of wage earners in America. A reach that will ultimately spread into the pockets of the middle class.

The Obama Administration is committed to a massive redistribution of wealth, that will serve to disincentivize Americans. The burden of a socialist economy, in which bureaucrats are more concerned about perks that executives receive, than the value executives create, will ultimately result in diminished business performance and an economy that spirals toward oblivion.

Obama and the Democratic leadership are fostering an anti business agenda that will result in the transformation of our society while they delude a public only too willing to cede their individual desire to achieve to a communal benefit in which the new elite in the new America will determine what is acceptable for you to earn. They will determine what is appropriate for you to eat, where  you will live, what you will drive and how you will fuel your vehicle.

Barack Obama is a paternalist. He believes that government is the only solution. We are at a crucial point in history, where our free enterprise system is threatened by the very individuals we are supporting through our taxes to protect it. America has changed and Barack Obama is the result.

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Obama And Jindal:Change Has Come To America

President Barack Obama, in a fifty minute address that was interrupted 65 times by applause led by an enthusiastic wide eyed Nancy Pelosi, served notice to the nation in his first joint address to Congress, that although America confronted an economic crisis, it would emerge from the depths of this crisis stronger than it has ever been. The president has been criticized of late for his message of doom and gloom with respect to the economy and he appears to be finally listening to a nation which has been yearning to hear a more positive message from the White House.

In a robust speech that was presented with his trademark delivery, President Obama spoke at great length about energy, health care and education. Defense, which has been a primary area of focus, for many past Presidents was touched upon only in the context of Iraq and Afghanistan.

The President’s speech was further evidence that he views government as the sole source solutions provider for all issues confronting Americans. Whether it be in resolving the nation’s credit crisis by additional government involvement in the banking system, or creating universal health care, the government will be there. The President, in broad strokes, laid out a sweeping platform of new spending projects while committing to reduce the federal deficit by half.

Obama expects to pay for the additional spending projects by letting the Bush tax cuts expire and increasing the taxes on American business, which is in direct opposition to Republican strategy. Republicans who cohabited with Democrats during the Bush administration and failed to deter the excessive spending during the Bush era have suddenly found their path to differentiation by once again promoting fiscal discipline.

 Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, in the Republican rebuttal to the President’s address , attempted to contrast the Republican platform as the party of individualism and minimal government . Speaking from the Governors mansion in Baton Rouge the  young Governor, a son of Indian immigrants, spoke in what at times appeared to be a disjointed cadence that weakened his delivery and impeded his message. Jindal, a rising star in the Republican party, will no doubt be presented with other opportunities to impress on the national stage.

Two speeches, both by men of color, both by sons of immigrants, both highly accomplished at young ages. One with the majesty and power of the Presidency behind him, representing the party of the majority and the other perhaps, with thoughts of the Presidency before him, representing the minority party. Change has indeed come to America.

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CEO4ADAY EXCEEDS 40,000+ VIEWS !!!

www.Ceo4ady.wordspot.com the blog which offers a “perspective from a corner office” as well as commentary on politics, the economy, business and entrepreneurship is pleased to announce we have exceeded 40,000+ views since our launch in December, 2008.

We thank all our readers for your continued support as we continue to focus on the need to support entrepreneurial solutions during this current period of economic recession. We continue to support the initiative to create and fund the United States Office of Entrepreneurship to stimulate innovation and entrepreneurial endeavors.

We have been writing of late about the American Recovery Act and the failure of the act to support entrepreneurial ventures. We have also commented extensively about the need for President Obama to portray the American economy in a more positive light. His continued descriptions of the economy in crisis and usage of the term catastrophe is only serving to further erode consumer and investor confidence.

We look forward to the President’s address this evening and trust that he will present the American economy in a more hopeful manner.

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Forbearance And Confidence Required

 In just a few short weeks we have seen a new administration sweep into power in Washington and push through a massive stimulus bill. We have seen the reaction to the bill on Wall Street as the markets have responded by falling to a 12 year low. Our collective confidence as a nation, has been critically shaken which has served to amplify the effects of the recession around the globe.

 We have lost trillions of dollars of wealth as our investment portfolios have withered and our home values have evaporated. We are forever transformed by the shocking depths of a recession fueled by the collapse of our credit markets, well publicized individual extremes of fraud and greed, and a world worn weary from the strife and chaos thrust upon it by a terrorist fringe wrapped in the medieval robe of hyper fanaticism.

Our national psyche has been abused by a media assault that not only reports on each crisis we confront but heightens the affects of each crisis in a relentless pursuit of ratings.There seems to be no issue that we cannot make worse through constant reporting and punditry. Our quest and thirst as a nation to understand every fragment of minutiae surrounding every hyped story seems boundless.

Our intellectual deposits, scattered among our individual banks, have been withdrawn by our inability, or at times our reluctance to reflect on and learn from our collective individual experiences. The institutions we have become increasingly dependant upon to provide the infrastructure that support our way of life have become relevant only by scale and have failed to placate our individual economic concerns.

It is time to stem our intellectual economic panic and focus on solutions that support our capitalist system without succumbing to the wanton path of socialism. Our path forward to normalization will continue to be fraught with economic hurdles. It will require initiative and forbearance. We must believe that in our individual pursuits we will collectively regain our footing on a path to stabilization and economic growth and that as America’s economic fortunes improve, the economies of the world will rise with the American tide.

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Pressure Mounts For Obama Address

As the stock market, continues to tumble, the pressure mounts for Barack Obama to address the nation on Tuesday evening with a message of economic hope for a nation that continues to be battered by a global recession. Obama’s utterances to date on the economy have not been well received by investors as he seeds his comments with terms like catastrophic and historical.

 The Dow today closed at a level not seen since May of 1997. Several companies within the 30 stocks that comprise the index are now trading at share prices below $10 per share. General Electric an American industrial icon is now trading at levels not seen since 1995.

There is a growing concern on Wall Street and across the nation that America’s largest banks may be nationalized. The lack of clarity from the Obama administration has created increased angst in the markets further exacerbating a market that lacks confidence in the new President and his team.

Investors need a reason to invest and consumers need a reason to begin purchasing again. The President and his senior economic advisers need to bring clarity to the issues which are hovering over the markets and causing increased uncertainty. We need to hear with conviction that our political leadership is working in concert with our business leaders to execute a plan that will yield positive benefits to our economy and begin to assuage the fears of investors and consumers.

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Obama To Business: Tax Increases

The President’s enthusiasm for the redistribution of wealth, which is heavily supported by the left wing of the Democratic party is a basic tenet of the administration’s policy. In his desire to placate the special interests that supported his election, President Obama continues to fire salvos in the class war that the extreme left wing of his party is fomenting.

The President continues to alienate the financial markets with poor policy. Barack Obama is bereft of any practical business experience and is insulated by a  select group of business admirers and advisers who upon attaining the most elite level of the business hierarchy have embraced liberal orthodoxy at the expense of common sense.

The President has indicated that his goal is to reduce the federal deficit by half at the end of his first term by increasing taxes on Corporations and the  upper brackets of middle class America. The President continues to shine a bright light on his lack of experience by adopting or endorsing policies that are harmful to American business. He appears to fail to understand the relationship between tax increases and economic growth.

Obama swept into the Presidency, on a wave of adoration by a nation that  individually, may recognize the benefits of individual effort and free enterprise, but collectively, has lost its way. We have  suffered through a select group of financial charlatans who ran out of runway as they led the economy through a dizzying flight of fancy and have served to fuel a populist rhetoric that would reign in a corporate America that has lost a nation’s trust.

We are quickly approaching a societal crossroads that may forever transform the political and economic institutions that provide the foundation America is built upon. We must not fall prey to punishing our institutions because of our desire for retribution. We must seek solutions to the current economic crisis that stimulate investment, create jobs and provide a pathway for America to return to the vitality and dynamism that has provided a compass for the world’s economic dreams.

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