IRIf I were the CEO of a company and was employed six years ago to clean up the problems attributed to my predecessor, how would the Board of Directors react if the company was still having problems and I was blaming my predecessor for them?  Would the directors say, “Oh, yes, the problems were so great that we could not expect you to have fixed them in six years”?  Or would they say, “We hired you to fix things, and you should have had them fixed by now or at least be well on your way to having them resolved”?  

With the companies I am acquainted with, the board and the stockholders would not put up with a CEO who was blaming his predecessor of six years ago for the continued loss of money and the value of the stock still going down.

It bothers me that President Obama and his administration so frequently blame others for problems and the bad news coverage that go along with them.  For example, Read more…

Last week when my wife and I were in the car, I was zigzagging down the road, having difficulty dodging all the potholes left over from winter, not yet repaired.  It was impossible to miss all of them, jarring the car each time we hit one.  My wife commented, “This is like trying to dodge the potholes of life.  You just can’t miss them all no matter how hard you try.”

How right she was!  Life has many potholes, and when you hit them, you are jarred, the wheels of life are knocked out of line, and sometimes your tires blowout and you have to come to a complete stop.  Of course, I am speaking metaphorically.  But you know what I mean by the potholes of life, and unless you are a very unusual person, you have experienced many of them yourself. 

Just how does one cope with the potholes of life?  Read more…

What would you think if the owner of a Ford dealership always purchased General Motors cars for his family to drive?  Or, what would be your reaction if the owner of a McDonald’s franchise always took her family to eat at a Wendy’s?  Although there is no written law that people have to be loyal to the products they are selling, we naturally expect them to be. 

It seems to me that we as taxpayers have a right to expect this same type of loyalty from people who are employed to conduct the business of the federal government.  But according to statistical reports published by USA Today, as of last September 3.9% percent of all federal employees owed back taxes, and the percentage is on the rise. Read more…

As the school year ends for all levels of education, I want to put forward one final quiz especially for our high school and college students to answer.  If you do not know the answer to a question, just move quickly to the next one. 

1. Name the last three recipients of the Noble Prize in Literature.

2. Name the last three persons to be the General Secretary of the United Nations.

3. Name the three wealthiest individuals in the world.

4. Name the last three winners of the Academy Award for Best Actor.

5. Name the last three Heisman Trophy winners.  

Now try these.  Read more…