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| 2010-08-30 09:24 |
TURNING AROUND THE TROOPS
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This is going to be a heck of a week. On Friday, Ben Bernanke didn't charge around the corner like the cavalry, but instead blew his bugle
loudly. In a way, maybe it's a smart move on his part as the sound of fury suggests the Fed might have more ammunition than it really does; the sound
in and of itself might have lifted the troops. But, that sound came from a canyon far away; the battle in front of the nation has a single leader who
must galvanize everyone to join the fray. The opposite is happening right now.
> Many have given up completely, dropping out of the job
market, and in effect, America.
> Investors, according to The American Association of Individual Investors, are less bullish now than any time
since March 2009.
> Millionaires, according to Spectrem Group, are more pessimistic about investing than any time since June 2009.
It's
time to rally the troops...all the troops...all the American troops.
I say this ahead of this week's jobs report, which will be another
disaster in the real world, although consensus is low enough for a positive surprise. Another ugly jobs report means many more people are getting
upset and angry. This means much in-fighting and self-loathing. This brings me to the report the Obama Administration presented to the United Nations
a week ago. In the report, the President apologized on behalf of all Americans for our human rights violations. Key points in the report
included:
"Although we have made great strides, work remains to meet our goal of ensuring equality before the law for all."
"High
unemployment rates, hate crimes, poverty, poor housing, lack of access to healthcare and discriminatory hiring practices are among the challenges the
report identified as affecting blacks, Latinos, Muslims, South Asians, Native Americans, and gays and lesbians in the United States."
Before I
address the implications of this report, let me say presenting this to the UN Human Rights Council which includes China, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia,
Russia, Mexico, and Cuba is like someone that took $500 extra for tax deductions or asking Bernie Madoff for a redemption. Even European members like
France and Italy have no room to judge America, and don't warrant an apology or explanation. The council itself is a hypocritical joke, and America
refused to join in the past because of unfair criticism of Israel.
There is discrimination in the workplace in America, but considering how
far the country has come; those walls will continue to fall. The bigger issue than those pointed out in the report is lack of education from weak
curriculum, soaring dropout rates, and a sense of entitlement. These things are being protected, and even promoted, to larger swaths of society in a
bid to make more people embrace victimization. We lie to people when we tell them they have no accountability and all their problems were caused by
someone else. We set back the greatest nation in the world when we blame it for the shortcoming of many and the tough, even unfair, breaks for others.
We need to sound the bugle, not ring a bell to fight one another.
What we are seeing, and what has been promoted by terrible economic
numbers, is a philosophy that is closer to the UN charter than our Constitution. In 1941, Franklin Roosevelt delivered his State of the Union address
and his idea of four freedoms.
* Speech & Expression
* Worship & Religion
* Want
* Fear
The first two are familiar and
protected by the first amendment, but freedom from want and fear aren't. While they are nice thoughts, the notion we can all wake up in the morning
and everything is laid out for us goes against nature. The most basic of wants must be attained by the man in the mirror, but when that's not possible
community should step up. Just as the community should step up when a neighborhood kid drops out of school. Just as necessity is the mother of all
inventions, want is the father of wealth and prosperity. It's a good thing to want something, and a better thing to go out and get those things
through determination, hard work, sacrifice, and faith.
Nobody wants to live in fear, so it shouldn't be the cornerstone of policy designed to
further agendas or win elections.
Sentiment and economic data are moving backwards, but the progress in how Americans view each other
shouldn't be dragged along for the ride. I was at a dinner in Manhattan about 15 years ago speaking to a woman from Europe, and she said black people
in America lived better than the average European. I had never thought about it, and it's no reason to desire more, but she had a great point. This is
a heck of a difficult time for everyone and it will not improve by pointing out faults real and imagined. Rather it will improve through renewed
belief in the country. The thing about this country is we really don't need fancy schemes or bogus initiatives to rebound.
I was encouraged by
the action in the market Friday, but at some point those pulling the strings must retreat on the notion of giant government and a welfare state. The
nation should march to the same bugle of hope, based on past success, not misery or blame. (By the way, saying Arizona's immigration law is a
violation of human rights is just not cool. The right to protect borders and enforce federal laws protects the human rights of citizens of the nation
unless we are simply giving up sovereignty and self-determination in order to be part of a larger single world order that takes its marching orders
from the UN.)
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Disclaimer: Securities Operations Forum is providing this research to assist investors in determining when to buy and when to sell. All investment decisions are yours and as a result you could make or lose money. Securities Operations Forum, its employees and/or its affiliates and family members may from time to time take positions in the open market or otherwise with respect to the securities discussed, but not have stock ownership equal to or greater than 1% of the outstanding stock of the covered company nor does any employee of Securities Operations Forum sit on the Board of Directors of any covered company. The statements made herein include information obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but no independent verification has been made and we do not guarantee its accuracy or completeness. The statements made herein contain general information and do not constitute an offer to buy or sell any security. |
