The Obama/Goldman Sachs Small Business Scam

By Wayne Allyn Root

Was Goldman Sachs Forced to Make a Half Billion Dollar Payoff to the Minority Community as a (legal) Bribe to Obama?

Did you see the announcement late last week that Goldman Sachs is giving a half billion dollars to small businesses? Or are they? Why are they suddenly concerned with small business? They've certainly never cared about small business before. Could this sudden interest by Goldman Sachs be because it pays to do favors for Obama's friends? And for Obama, everything - including business - is about race. You see, Goldman claimed they are concerned with small business. But the reality is they are only concerned with one tiny segment of small business - MINORITY-OWNED SMALL BUSINESSES; more specifically, minority businesses in minority neighborhoods. Even more specifically, those loans to minority businesses in minority neighborhoods will only be disbursed through "community organizations." [more...]

Unemployment Hits 10.2%... Obama Sends Us on Path to Economic Ruin

By Wayne Allyn Root

Obama Wakes Up to Big Surprise - Government Creates No Jobs… Unions Kill JobsThe national unemployment rate hit 10.2% today. What a surprise! Actually it may have come as a great surprise to "the Messiah" a/k/a President Barack Obama, but it came as no surprise to anyone who understands economics. My old college classmate Obama is not among that group.

Small business creates upwards of 75 - 80% of all new jobs. If small business is failing, there are no new jobs. Without a robust small business community, there can be no economic recovery. All the stimulus money in the world going to Obama's big business campaign contributors - unions, government employees, banks, Wall Street - will not end the recession. All the government jobs “saved” and created will do nothing but take money and jobs AWAY from the private sector. All the billions of dollars lavished on unions and union workers will push the country back into recession. All the government union workers honored with raises by Obama will increase the national debt and damage the economic recovery. Only a recovery led by small business can save us. We are staring at an economic Armageddon - not just for us, but for our children and grandchildren.

We have been lied to by Obama, by Pelosi, by Treasury Secretary Geithner, by Fed Chief Bernanke. There is no recovery. The recession isn't over. To the contrary, we are in the start of a long-term depression caused by big government, big spending, onerous taxes and government regulations placed on business, too much deficit and debt. Obama isn't the solution. He is the problem. He knows nothing about business - small or large. He has never owned a business, run a business, funded a business, or created a job in his life. His entire knowledge of economics comes from books. And they are the wrong books - Karl Marx never created a job either. [more...]

Is Obama Our Bernie Madoff?

By Wayne Allyn Root

Can you imagine investing your life savings with Bernie Madoff now - knowing what you know? Don't laugh. Obama is orchestrating one of the great Ponzi schemes in history. Madoff couldn't have done it any better.

Let's look at the similarities. It's obvious Obama believes he has the answers to every problem, refuses to even listen to opposing viewpoints, and is unwilling to admit mistakes or apologize. Sound familiar? Obama is a Bernie Madoff - a man who thinks he is the "Master of the Universe" and the rest of us are just circling around in his orbit, serving at his pleasure.

Like Madoff, he is charming, flattering, has the gift of gab, and could sell ice to Eskimos. Obama has sold the country on the idea that a man who knows nothing about business, has never created a single job and has never run even a lemonade stand, can run the world's biggest economy. Not only has Obama never run so much as a lemonade stand, my guess is he was the kid who called City Hall to complain about a six-year-old running a lemonade stand without a government license. Now we've entrusted him with the entire U.S. economy in the midst of the worst economic crisis since The Great Depression.

Let's get back to the question: "Would you trust your life savings with Bernie Madoff now - knowing what you know?" We know the government fails miserably at everything it does - the post office, Social Security, Amtrak, to name just a few examples. The government is so inept it even failed running a brothel in Nevada and New York State just declared government run OTB (Off Track Betting) bankrupt. Only the government could lose money on prostitution and gambling! [more...]

Unemployed and Out of Luck: Numbers Don’t Lie

By Bill Glynn

Anyone can stand up and say "You Lie!" The truth is the numbers speak for themselves. We have all watched the housing depression and wealth being wiped out. We all knew unemployment would continue to rise and have a dramatic impact on the economy ongoing. The new 200,000+ unemployed just adds to the pain. The second wave is coming. Inflation will take a lead role in agitating the economy. Gas prices are high and approaching $3 a gallon again. While food and other products remain relatively stable the basics are even getting out of reach for many. It’s a vicious cycle. The more people that tighten their belts or are losing weight quickly, the less they can purchase. The 'Cash for Clunkers' is over and Chrysler may not even make it a year. Although politics and international affairs have overshadowed or even distracted the economic news, I feel it is time again to put attention back on America’s internal affairs. [more...]

Unemployment Continues to Skyrocket: More Proof that Big Government is Too Big to Succeed

By Wayne Allyn Root

Obama Loses His Weapon of Mass Distraction: His Olympic Dream Turns to Nightmare...

He Desperately Needed Olympics to Distract the Masses from Deepening Economic Disaster

Experts love to say that certain big companies and banks are "too big to fail." The reality is our federal government is too big to succeed. It's all going down in flames for Obama - "the anointed one." The economy continues to crumble. Unemployment continues to rise (another 200,000+ announced today). The full truthful unemployment picture is now at a unimaginable 17%. Sales of cars - without the "Cash for Clunkers" giveaway - continue to collapse. Banking experts know that a new wave of residential housing foreclosures is on the way. Worse, a complete collapse of commercial real estate is starting, as landlords of office buildings, strip malls, and shopping centers hand the keys to banks. How do I know? It's happening now in Las Vegas - and we all know "what happens in Vegas, doesn't stay in Vegas." Consumer spending is getting worse - small business owner friends of mine report sales are dropping off a cliff - the worst they've seen yet in this 2-year depression. [more...]

Wayne Allyn Root was the 2008 Libertarian Vice Presidential candidate. His new book is entitled, "The Conscience of a Libertarian: Empowering the Citizen Revolution with God, Guns, Gambling & Tax Cuts." For more of Wayne's views, commentaries, or to watch his many national media appearances, please visit his web site at: www.ROOTforAmerica.com.

Bill Glynn Proves Money Does Grow on Trees

Historic Program Values Landscaping as a Substantial Asset on a Property

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 30 -- Bill Glynn, the co-founder of HMI, Inc., in partnership with the Waynick Book Group, announced that consumers can order a certified, customized inspection and landscaping assessment for their property to use in a real estate transaction to defend that asking price and equity in the home. Care instructions and plant descriptions specific to the property will be provided in a four-color report; and non-certified, consumer self-entered books will be available until January.

Starting in January 2010 consumers will have access to customized landscaping valuation tools and services to help home buyers and sellers defend the value of their home equity and asking price by uncovering the hidden value of existing landscaping in properties being bought or sold. Today certified arborists are ready to do onsite inspections and provide replacement costs values to consumers across the country through HMI's Tree Facts services. The services are also available for property casualty reports, tree removal, increases in insurance coverage for landscaping and health inspections. The Tree Facts service can be ordered at www.moneygrowsontrees.com.

Home values are severely depressed in the U.S. Equity in homes is being wiped out at an alarming rate. Every feature of a home including granite countertops, refrigerators, marble flooring, etc. are aggressively sold as premium features to try to defend the asking price and protect the equity in a home. The market doesn't realize and never before could measure the hidden value in the landscaping which is most often more valuable to replace than their entire kitchen and appliances at a minimum.

The partnership will provide both self-entered and onsite property inspections and assessments of the total replacement cost on individual trees and shrubs and the aggregate landscaping value. In January services will be offered under the Money Grows on Trees brand and can be ordered at www.moneygrowsontrees.com.

Waynick Book Group, owner of Cool Springs Press, the market leader in consumers gardening and care books and guides, is refining the offering to offer custom four-color books that deliver care instructions, plant descriptions that are self-entered, and also produce non-certified replacement cost values. Self-entered books will be offered at $19.95 for the basic book, $39.95 for a bound coffee table book; and a certified site evaluation to be used in a real estate transaction or for insurance upgrades and property casualty claims can be ordered today. The Waynick Book Group is using its considerable "lawn and garden" reach and massive repository of specific care instructions and more consumer friendly content for the January 2010 roll out.

The most considerable investment one will make in his or her lifetime is a home. Valuing every asset on a property is crucial to protect that investment. Caring for the investment over time and valuing the assets simply couldn't be done until now. Each year consumers spend billions on landscaping, services and products to beautify their property. In a property transaction, landscaping has always been referred to as "nicely landscaped" or good "curb appeal." Today homeowners and buyers spend over $1,000 to have a home inspected and appraised. Now consumers can obtain tangible values for the external features of the home to supplement the internal features being marketed. The program will provide consumers with custom books specific to the plants and trees only on their property and care instructions for their assets.

I truly believe that Bill Glynn is a visionary and is unquestionably an American asset. With all the chaos in the real estate market who would have ever thought of a program so substantial in today's housing market? Glynn compares landscaping to a diamond ring. When a diamond is purchased at a value of $12,000 and placed into a $1,000 "setting," it becomes a ring and in most cases the ring is appraised at over double the price of the diamond and ring setting individually. When a tree or plant is placed into a "setting," an investor's yard, it immediately triples in value. Much different from a car that depreciates up to 25% once it is driven off the lot, landscaping appreciates in value every year as it grows. The value of the landscaping assets is based on replacement cost and the values are supported throughout the insurance industry for use in property casualty losses, remediation, upgrading insurance and most importantly an inventory of assets in the event that a loss occurs.


About Bill Glynn: Ranked by Information Week as one of the world's top 15 innovators globally, Bill Glynn continues to shake up industries. He has been a venture capitalist and entrepreneur for 20 years and is the author of Left on Red. He has raised and invested over $1 billion. Bill reaches almost 20 million people a month through his appearances on television and radio. He is an insider in the film and music industry. Of particular note is his involvement in helping commercialize iChat (instant messaging and chat), through one of his venture fund portfolio companies, that became ubiquitous across the world, for co-founding HMI, Inc. that provides landscaping valuation services and systems to provide and augment landscaping insurance and remediation, co-developing structured financing alternatives for liquidity in the private equity space, co-building his first venture capital fund in his late twenties, helping to grow Red Storm Entertainment (Tom Clancy) and a host of other successful ventures. Bill advises Fortune 1000 companies and is a supporter of The Royal Institution's World Science Assembly and the East West Institute with an eye toward harmonizing humanity across the major religions on earth and the weaponization of science. For more information, please visit: www.billyg.net

About HMI: The only national provider of comprehensive tree and landscaping services that includes emergency tree removal services, standardized health inspections of green assets, average replacement cost analysis of trees for insurance, accounting and legal purposes, and tree preservation services and customized reports and inventories of landscaping. For more information, please visit HMI's Web site at www.hmiadvantage.com or call 866-937-6468.

Let Newspapers Fail

By Wayne Allyn Root

Bailout of Newspapers Threatens Free Speech and Editorial Independence

Bailouts Constitute “Legal Bribery”

Members of Congress have recently suggested that the federal government should undertake a billion dollar newspaper bailout. President Obama seems interested. Really? Why? Because the other bailouts worked out so well? Congressional investigators recently disclosed their doubts that AIG will ever be able to pay back its government loans. At the same time, economists suggest that at least $20 billion of the government loans to U.S. automakers are lost forever. GM and Chrysler now constitute a $100 billion welfare program, that just happens to sell cars (that no one wants). Meanwhile the economy continues to flounder despite the $800 billion economic stimulus package (a bailout to more fat cat corporations and Obama contributors). This disaster just keeps on growing (because government is involved). [more...]

Government Capitalism

By Bill Glynn

K Street to Look Over the Back of Wall Street

Government capitalism - more like socialism - is still trying to take a larger and larger administrative role in how Wall Street operates. But Wall Street just isn’t going to go along with it. Yes, Wall Street was largely to blame for the economic implosion. And now the government wants to step in and regulate how the firms operate and how they pay people. That isn’t the government’s job. They can create legislation empowering the SEC and the treasury/fed with powers to force regulations and standards upon Wall Street, like the Sarbanes-Oxley act of 2002, but they cannot and will never be able to control the price people are willing to pay for talent. This at the core of capitalism. All eyes are focused again on the high pay of executives on Wall Street. Obama will speak today about this very subject and to a lesser amount about the actual regulatory specifics that need to change. Oh, by the way, this needs to happen globally, too, where the U.S. has no power at all. Regulations and more power being held by the SEC will happen and a lot of that good to reign in pandemic possibilities and rogue practices, but talent is a fluid resource that will go where the money is and, hence, take the business and clients with them. [more...]

The Audacity of Union Worship: Obama Declares WAR on China

By Wayne Allyn Root

Obama is making a tragic decision to start a trade war with China to appease the unions. It seems whatever unions want, unions get from Obama - even if it destroys the U.S. economy. Is this all part of a plan to destroy capitalism and introduce socialism? Obama's leftist love affair with unions has now reached critical mass. I believe it now threatens our economic future. His decision to start a full-blown trade war with China, by imposing heavy trade duties on imported Chinese tires, will start an economic war that U.S. citizens cannot afford, nor hope to win. It will cost jobs, destroy businesses, hurt U.S. Gross Domestic Product), and damage the future of our children and grandchildren. But, worse, it threatens to plunge the entire world into a global economic catastrophe. This tragic decision was all based on Obama's need to impress his union friends and contributors- even at a cost of deepening and lengthening a global depression. [more...]

THE BIG LIE: Obama Says Healthcare Won't Add to Our Budget Deficit

By Wayne Allyn Root

Obama told the big lie again last night - promising that his healthcare plan would not add to the deficit. Do you remember Obama's promise that his stimulus plan would “add three million jobs?” Instead we lost almost three million jobs! Do you remember Obama and liberal politicians arguing that the money we gave GM and Chrysler would not be a waste, and that much of it would be repaid? Well, a new study now predicts $22 billion in auto bailouts is lost forever. How about “Cash for Clunkers?” The government ran out of money in just four days! How do we know that government-run healthcare won't run out of money in a week?

Let's examine the predictions for Medicare. Back in 1970, government “experts” predicted that Medicare would cost $12 billion by 1990. The real cost: $110 billion. Government was only off by almost ten times more. Now Obama says his plan will “only” cost $900 billion and not add to the growing budget deficit. Anyone wanna bet? This Las Vegas oddsmaker-turned Libertarian Vice Presidential nominee is taking that action.

But a breaking story in New York may be the best case for defeating government-run healthcare. OTB just declared bankruptcy. OTB (Off Track Betting) is government-run gambling. Not just any gambling - but rather the most profitable gambling business model on earth. You see OTB doesn't even take a chance. They cannot lose. They simply take a cut off the top to pay out winners, and keep the rest for themselves. Yet OTB is over $200 million in debt, and has over $500 million in unfunded liability for the pensions and healthcare of their 40,000 employees.

What does all this prove? That government is incompetent and cannot be trusted to run anything. That government fails at virtually everything it does - from running brothels in Nevada, to running gambling in New York. That many government employees couldn't survive in a private sector job (at least not one that requires showing a profit). And of course that government wastes money by employing too many people and paying them far too much. I'll bet that OTB could run successfully and profitably with 4,000 employees instead of 40,000. The moral of the story is if you can't make money in the sex or gambling business, you can't run the healthcare system of the USA.

But worst of all, the OTB story proves the foolishness of the idea of providing universal healthcare to 300,000,000 Americans. OTB is broke because they have $500 million in unfunded liabilities just from paying bloated pensions and free healthcare for 40,000 people. If you can't fund free healthcare for 40,000 people in the most profitable business on earth (gambling), can you even imagine the debt from trying to pay for free healthcare for every person in the country? [more...]

Madoff Negligence Sets up SEC for Madoff Investors

By Bill Glynn

I am certain the Billionaire’s Boys club is using every tool - social, political and economic - to wrangle the SEC into a position to help them recover their pilfered monies from the Madoff scam. The recent announcements of negligence and incompetence in uncovering the Madoff ponzi scheme leaves the door wide open for a shareholder class action suit against the SEC for certain.

It already appears to me the powers to be are at work. Having the SEC spit up words like incompetence is a strong indication that behind the scenes pressure has begun to soften the government for another bailout. Powerful people lost huge amounts of money and so did the little guy. The little guy is in good company. I am certain if mom and pop (who also lost millions) stood up, and they have, to cry "foul!" the words would go largely unnoticed. That is one thing. If a billionaire stands up and cries "foul!" that is an entirely different dynamic.

Money and power go hand in hand. Lucky for all the investors the big boys are playing hardball and for certain pressure on the political machine that they have probably paid millions into has their head in a vice to do something. It is not some revelation that the SEC missed all this but it is a revelation to see them set themselves up for a fall. It is really unheard of. I strongly believe this has been brought about at least in part from tremendous pressure worldwide to position a recovery of the monies lost. Heck, you would be shot in the streets these days for a pair of sneakers! In this case the fall guys are being lined up against the wall in front of a firing squad and I bet we will see the SEC in court and forced to cut a deal to pay the investors back. [more...]

Hey, Did Warren Buffet Just Agree With Me?

By Bill Glynn

I’m in Good Company Finally on Debt and Deficit

Okay, I am not a national economic brand like Warren Buffet, but very proud to be “On the Money.” With that, I must say I do have a pretty large voice across the country and I have been ranting about the deficit and debt for two years. Finally, the big boys are going public with their vision of a catastrophe just waiting to happen to the entire U.S. economy that will be much worse than the financial crisis. Yes, I am frustrated and a bit red-in-the-face that I don’t have an Op Ed in the NY Times. But my book IOUSA NOT is coming out in the next few months. I do feel a great deal of pride in the “On the Money” track record I have built. The debt and deficit as I have been shouting about at the top of my lungs are cancer, brain trauma, suicide... It is simply not sustainable and with everything done over the past two years and foreseeable future, we are sunk. During the time of World War II, the nation had a deficit of 4% of GDP. We have triple that this year - 13% or $1.8 trillion. Here is the catch - what do you think the GDP back then was compared to today? These comparison figures are apples and oranges and astronomically different. This will come home to roost and be devastating - MARK MY WORDS! Dare I say again. [more...]

Federal Deficit Numbers are WRONG

By Bill Glynn

$1.8 Trillion in 2009 - $1.3 Trillion 2010

We can add! $11.7 trillion debt + projected $3.1 trillion (2 yr deficit) + a trillion of newly printed currency. Taxes projected to be down another $500 billion this year. Whoops! I forgot the other $1 trillion (sure to be much higher) for healthcare. The fact is this is too rosy a picture. As bad and fiscally irresponsible as this is, I am calling the shot now that this will be much worse. Let’s not forget the interest on the debt. We are fast approaching $750 billion in interest annually alone. This will be at $1 trillion in just a few years. Projecting a 2-year $3.1 trillion deficit, far beyond anything ever seen, won’t be the number. I expect we will be closer to $4 trillion than $3 trillion. Why? Well we all know numbers from our government are always much lower than they tell us, for one. Second, recovery will be slow and painful, so tax revenue will be less and less. And does someone think taxing the $250K+ earners will make up for it? Not in a million years! It will make matters worse. [more...]

Churches & Non-Profits Get Hammered

By Bill Glynn

Christians Are Not Exempt From Financial Woes

Churches and all non-profits are severely wounded by the financial crisis that has really hit home. Dependant on donations, both are struggling to keep the lights on in some cases and significantly reducing programs for those that need it most especially now. This is a time in history where more and more people are looking for help and turning to the church for guidance while the coffers are running dry. Non-profits across the nation are also being tapped out so people can’t turn there either. Add to this the Administration’s proposal to pay for healthcare reform by eliminating the Non-Profit tax exemption for people who earn over $250K. Who the heck do you think gives the money to non-profits? Yes, financial discrimination again; but this is the bread and butter that keeps these institutions alive. People that tithe at churches definitely write off their donations. Those who can afford to tithe are mostly higher income families. So inflow of money is down severely and now you want to eliminate the deduction too? [more...]

An Economic Playbook 2009

By Bill Glynn

Economy May be Bottoming but Main Street will Remain Under Water

Economists are being conservative in a quarter-by-quarter analysis of how and when the U.S. economy and housing market will recover. Based on manufacturing output, exports, and a host of variables, everyone is eyeing GDP growth - especially when compared to last year. I am of the opinion that a lemonade stand would look positive against the last year. Expect that U.S. "big business" will take some time to begin to revive itself - not the expected big bounce, but a slow, painful and gradual increase. The key will be you and me getting back to buying products, goods and services. It has always been the key. Without consumption, no economy can survive. Credit-addicted consumers will remain in rehab and locked out of the spending game for quite a while. The unemployed and under employed will be a huge factor in recovery given that they are hobbled and scared. Those consumers are likely to have curbed their spending or stopped all non-essential purchases already. These consumers will most likely be withdrawn from spending and focus on rebuilding their lives - that is if they can ever get a job or something comparable. Expect this to further impact domestic growth. The credit-addicted can't get more credit and the creditworthy aren't going to spend enough to make up for all that. It is the credit spending that artificially boosted the economy for so long. [more...]

The $5 Trillion Skeleton in Congress's Closet

By Bill Glynn

Contingent Liabilities Add up to Almost $30 Trillion

How's that! Someone telling the truth. Better than my economic bulimia. The figures are out and just the bank bailout program alone will equal more than ONE THIRD of the U.S. economy. And, yes, there is more to come - commercial real estate and jumbo loans - so it's not over yet. But I think some real business people are realizing that Congress has no clue how much money is being spent (whoops! borrowed to be spent), how much it is costing, and, oh, by the way, all those financial commitments to Freddie and Fannie and a host of others. If you add all that to the $111 trillion of unfunded liabilities of the government, we start to see the picture they don't want us to see. "The Full Faith of the U.S. Government" is backing up all these commitments, liabilities, contingent liabilities and the world's investments in our country.

Oh, and add a $2 trillion deficit this year and over $1 trillion for healthcare reform. So, in a nutshell, our sovereignty has been forfeited to foreign nations, we are bankrupt at best, we've got rampant moral and social decay, uneducated and ignorant voters, sub-par education for our children, and a nuclear economy. It is true that I am a radical thinker but it doesn't take any education to see all the cave drawings on our wall. You tell me if I am wrong. [more...]

History in the Making: Deficit Tops $1 Trillion

By Bill Glynn

Expected $2 trillion by year end...

A direct quote from me: “If the U.S. was a company our Board of Directors, management and employees would be fired, the business bankrupt and a lot of people would go to jail” is as true today as six months ago. The U.S. has many milestones that have impacted our nation and the world very positively. Now we are seeing the negative side of our leaders' actions and management. Try to comprehend what a $2 trillion deficit will do to the national debt. Yes, $2 trillion more! This doesn’t include the minting of currency and other debt we are taking on but simply our national profit and loss. Imagine if the U.S. WAS a company! Well, the best way to gain perspective and a proxy for where we are fiscally is to see the U.S. as a business. We are a capitalist nation, after all. [more...]

Stop The Stimulus: The Fox is in the White House and Congress

By Bill Glynn

Democrats are turning up the volume on the stimulus while the GOP has finally put their foot down. Obama is using TV, again, to pander to us. Can you even imagine that there are now talks about another stimulus package of borrowing and spending in D.C.? I don’t know if I am blind, deaf and dumb, but wasn't it borrowing and spending money across every part of economy that got us into this mess in the first place?

The current stimulus package has already shown the typical mismanagement and ineffectiveness of the government to run this kind of operation. Already pilfering the money for pet projects should have every American marching in the streets and should be a real sign of what else is coming. Worse, we are allowing them to do it. Why? Because they don’t care about, listen to, or even acknowledge our ideas and outrage. How does it feel to be impotent and marginalized in America?

It should be more than apparent, only four months into it, that the program is not working as planned and the unemployment and economic downturn continues to worsen. Only 6.8% has been invested in the turnaround, which is appalling from my perspective. If you are going to do it, do it quickly and massively.

As the pandering continues and the promise that the money will be invested (after borrowing, I may say) in the second half of the year and next year is bad policy. The money should have been sheltered from the politicians and placed under the reigns of our best business executives to make sure it all - I mean 100% - went into a massive and radical economic boost. But in D.C., it's just another piggy bank to raid and now they want even more. We can all see the paw prints on the cookie jar and the writing all over that wall.

You see the I.Q. in D.C. - especially the economic I.Q. - is sub-par. Economic savvy by career politicians and academics would be the last thing I would ever retain to run my business or manage money. Economic I.Q. to just borrow and spend is their only solution? And, worse, they want to do it again! What is wrong with our representatives? I just can’t believe this happening. I am really sick to my stomach.

We must stop the borrowing and spending. The world needs a signal that we can get our fiscal crap together and fast. But the very people that have bankrupted our nation are all foxes in the White House and Congress eating away at us - the stupid chickens that let them in to begin with. [more...]

GM Bankruptcy Plan Approved

By Robert Weiss

Late Sunday night, General Motors won permission from a federal bankruptcy judge, Robert Gerber, to sell its assets to a new government-backed company in order to complete a restructuring plan backed by both GM and the Obama administration. All of this in hopes of reviving the ailing auto industry. It should be no surprise that even after a surge of nearly $50 billion to this restructuring plan, the people who will suffer the most are the consumers once again. Because this is a non-traditional bankruptcy structuring, GM’s desirable assets, such as Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and other GMC brands, would be sold to a "new," leaner GM. What becomes of their other profit-less assets and high value liabilities? They will be left behind in bankruptcy for hundreds of creditors to fight over. [more...]

Wal-Mart on Health Care

By Ross Reck

Wal-Mart is way ahead of the pack in terms of its thinking on employee health care. By partnering with its employees’ union to support the proposed government mandate for large businesses to provide health care insurance for their employees, Wal-Mart is demonstrating extraordinary foresight and leadership. When push comes to shove, nearly everyone in America wants better health care coverage for our citizens. Employer provided health care coverage is the only way this can ever happen; taxpayers can’t afford it and neither can the government. American businesses, on the other hand, can afford to pay for it and it will not cost them jobs nor will it drive down wages. In fact, doing so will not only make American businesses more profitable, it will make them more competitive in the global economy. [more...]

The Big Blue States Bellying Up: How about IOUs!

By Bill Glynn

California, New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania

The economies of the most liberal and largest states in our union are in jeopardy of bankruptcy and collapse. Who would ever think that we would see such chaos and fiscal mismanagement across the nation? It is hard to believe that California, one of the world’s largest economies, is on the brink of bankruptcy. Is this the writing on the wall for the federal government, too? You bet! This should be taken with the utmost seriousness on Capitol Hill - or should I say CAPITOL CLIFF - because that is what America is teetering on and close to going over while our government has the peddle to the floor. Does anyone see the borrowing and spending coming to a halt at the state or federal levels? Poll people - and I bet an overwhelming majority - would say Hell No! When state governments across the nation are in dire need of money, in political stalemate after stalemate what is their answer? More borrowing - even California is ready to issue IOUs to keep itself afloat. That means more debt on top of mountains of debt. Our currency and treasuries are not dissimilar - these are IOUs to the world. How long can states and the federal government keep the house of cards afloat? [more...]

The Madoffs of the World: Hit 'em Where it Hurts

By Robert Weiss

At the age of 71, Bernard Madoff will likely live out the rest of his life in prison. Victims of the fraud were given the opportunity to speak about the impact of Madoff’s scheme, which affected thousands of investors, including charities, hedge funds, trusts and individuals. Some of Madoff's investors went from being millionaires or having comfortable retirements to being nearly destitute overnight after the fraud was revealed.

In 2005, Bernard Ebbers, the then-63-year-old former chairman of Worldcom Inc., was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his involvement in his company’s fraud, which was valued at nearly $11 billion. I had the opportunity to represent thousands of WorldCom employees who saw their hard-earned retirement savings vanish before their eyes. As I sit here almost four years to the exact date of Bernard Ebbers’ sentencing date, I have concluded that the threat of incarceration is no deterrence to these corporate giants. Clearly, Madoff - in his prime during Ebbers’ era - did not learn from the mistakes of other swindlers who were sent to prison.

I have said this once and I will say it again: the only way to get to these people is by hitting them where it hurts - their bank account. These people need to be watched over like a fox loitering in a chicken coup. We are their prey. Millions of dollars of year are not enough for the Madoffs of the world - only when their billions are at risk will they find a sense of remorse for all that they have taken from us. The SEC must step up their watch or we will face the same situation in another four years. [more...]

The Buffett Rebuff

By Bill Glynn
Stimulus Success = Consumption

I will say it again: the U.S. is a consumption economy. This is a rock solid fact. Even Berkshire Hathaway is feeling the impact. Buffett said it will get worse before it gets better. I think I have heard this before. Hmm, in fact, I even said it! The stimulus packages - and there's certain to be more of them - are not getting to the street. In fact, even if money does get to the street, it will be stepped on so much that it won't stimulate consumers to consume.

Worse, if you see all these programs, they mostly target low-income families. Another fact is the consumption power of these families is not close to the consumption power of the rich and upper middle class that represent a large percentage of consumption worldwide and definitely in the U.S. I frankly don't see the entitlement consumers shopping at Dillard's, Nordstrom, airlines, fancy new cars, etc.... Even if they did, the money they will get in stimulus may not even pay for one month of their utilities. It wouldn't even pay my electric bill! So, here we go again, bailing out large businesses only to face a marketplace that is devastated and can't or won't consume their products, goods and services. [more...]

What The Numbers Mean to Main Street

World Bank, Unemployment, Trillions in Spending...
By Bill Glynn

Is there an end in sight? Nope! The news keeps getting worse and these projections made by our government and the guessing game around the world should not surprise us. But what do all these facts and figures mean to us?

Unemployment. Reaching over 10% in modern America is an unrealistic number and equivalent to an American nightmare come true. The figures, as vile as they sound, do not represent all the facts. Underemployed and unemployable workers would paint a true picture and, believe me, it is far worse than 10%. State by state is even a worse picture. This means that a large portion of workers in America and therefore families are being wiped out. In order to pay bills, savings, stocks, mutual funds and 401Ks are getting raided every day. Are these numbers reported? No! We just give Americans the broad strokes to keep our education at a minimum. Remember in the long run the only thing that kept Japan out of a complete national meltdown was the fact that they are a savings nation. You hear that? Even if you were, it's not the case now, is it?

Contraction of growth. The World Bank is right on when it reports the world has become an economically smaller place. People see this and say, "hmmm... the world is suffering a bit too." They may even take solace in that fact. But as the world goes, the U.S. goes worse. If the world can’t consume and we can’t consume, then the writing is on the wall. Yes, more layoffs and unemployment. With that comes more businesses cratering because they can’t sell products, goods and services. Airline solution, for example - raise rates and make it even more unaffordable to travel for those who don’t have the money. Go to Arby’s, for example. Last night I spent almost $20 for 3 roast beef sandwiches and some taters. Find Chache’ Lux for me. Strasburg Kids? Real bargains there. Car dealers, construction - you name it. At least Wal-Mart is hanging in there, but we all know why that is true. [more...]

Increased Rates of Welfare

By Robert Weiss

Sunday marked the first day of summer; as we head into July, our economy continues to weaken as welfare rolls across the country soar. 23 of the 30 largest states, which account for more than 88% of the nation's total population, see welfare caseloads above year-ago levels, according to a survey conducted by The Wall Street Journal and the National Conference of State Legislatures. It is no surprise that increases in welfare caseloads coincide with high unemployment rates. The biggest increases are in states with some of the worst jobless rates. Oregon's count was up 27% in May from a year earlier; South Carolina's climbed 23%, and California's 10% between March 2008 and March 2009. Americans are now reaching for help from the federal government when unemployment compensation runs out. [more...]

There is a Way to Pay for a Nationalized Health Care Program that Would Make Everyone Happy

By Ross Reck

Right now, nobody seems to be happy with President Obama's proposed health care program. The doctors don’t like it because it stresses cost containment, which would interfere with their individual prerogative to practice medicine the way they feel it should be practiced and it would also make it that much more difficult for them to get rich while practicing medicine. The pharmaceutical companies don’t like it because it means less profit for them. It’s the same with the hospitals. The taxpayers don’t like it, because it’s going to cost them a bundle. There is, however, a way to fund this expensive program that will make everyone happy - fund it with the profits from government run companies. The federal government already owns controlling interest in GM and Chrysler. Why not funnel all the profits from these two companies into the President’s health care program? [more...]

The Stimulus Has Yet to be Felt

By Robert Weiss

According to the national Lundberg Survey of fuel prices, the price of a gallon of gasoline continues to climb, rising an average of 17 cents over the past two weeks. Analyst Trilby Lundberg says the U.S. price of regular grade gasoline was $2.66 a gallon on Friday when the survey was completed. Usually prices of gas hit a peak for 4th of July weekend where Americans are thought to be on the road to visit family and friends. In this economic downturn, we can barely afford the gas for a commute to work, let alone for a long weekend drive to vacation. Unfortunately the stimulus has yet to be felt by the people who need it the most - the hard working men and women of this country. Corporate banks that were handed billions of dollars of TARP money began announcing their return of the bailout money. Our only guess can be that they have used the funds to handle their economic pitfalls and now refuse to be attached to strings, which will control how they can use future funds. These strings were supposed to be how Americans could finally feel the "trickle down" of federal funds. Millions of American continue to be unemployed and continue to face foreclosures. Where is our help? Where is our bailout? Not surprisingly, the "trickle down theory" continues to fail. There will be no rain - we have yet to even feel a drop. [more...]

Watch Out McDonald's!

The Government May Soon Be Telling You Where You Can Locate Your Next Franchise
By Ross Reck

Not all that long ago, there was a distinct line of separation between the government and the private sector - like the line of separation between church and state. Given the recent fiascos in the banking and auto industries, it's beginning to look like that line has been permanently blurred. Various members of the House and Senate have seen fit to meddle in the operations of GM and Chrysler by playing the role of senior executive for these firms and telling them how to run their businesses. What's more, these government officials are thoroughly enjoying this new role. For example, Senator Tom Udall of New Mexico is lobbying the auto companies to restore the 12 GM dealers and six Chrysler dealers in his state that had their franchises terminated. Representative Barney Frank, a Democrat from Massachusetts, has lobbied GM to keep a parts distribution center, which employs 90 people, open in his district. Representative Frank M. Kratovil, a Maryland Democrat, has introduced a bill that would restore the franchise agreements to dealers who have them terminated. Other members of Congress are debating whether or not they should regulate executive pay in all industries, not just those receiving government financial aid. The list goes on and on, "...don't close the assembly plant in my district; don't build the Volt battery in Korea, build it in my state or don't build pickups and SUVs, make smaller, more fuel efficient cars." [more...]

Obama's Changing the Rules

By Roger Hedgecock

You can feel the tension in the air everywhere in America these early summer days. Savings have eroded, plans for retirement have evaporated, 6.8 million Americans are out of work, and the rest of us are more uncertain about our jobs now than ever before. Business is bad, and many familiar businesses are failing. "Inflation"? "Deflation"? I don't know. What I do know is that prices for things I buy - food, gas, utilities - are going up. One U.S. dollar in 2000 is worth 70 cents in 2009. But its feels worse than that, worse than a "recession." The Obama government is changing the rules. It's promising that the government can borrow (or print) trillions of dollars to solve problems caused by trillions of dollars of past bad debt. It's promising that good times will return if the government takes over the banking system, gives the auto industry to the UAW, appoints a "czar" to determine how much we can be paid in our jobs, stops all drilling for oil and raises taxes to take over health care. [more...]

Obama "Spend What You Have"

Back Peddling is a Direct Result of China Visit
By Bill Glynn

I am certain as you are that the recent change in tone coming from the White House about debt and spending is a direct result of our Treasury Secretary’s trip to China. Invoking 2007 Democratic rhetoric “Spend What You Have,” the administration is doing an about face as the world is threatening to bring our wild spending to a halt. This quick turnaround is on the heels of our leaders having to go pander to China to get permission to issue new debt and print more currency. We haven’t received the official politically correct download yet and won’t get the detailed version anyway, but China and the rest of the world is FED up. We just got spanked!

Like Great Britain that couldn’t sell its bond to fund its debt at an attractive price, the U.S. is heading right down that path. In fact, the major rating agencies are already preparing to downgrade the British creditworthiness if they don’t clean up their act. Do we really believe this won’t happen to us? How much leverage does the world have over the U.S.? Obviously a tremendous amount. [more...]

Pension Funds Hit Hardest

By Robert Weiss

Unemployment and foreclosure rates soar as we head into the summer. As the nation continues to deal with the worst depression since the Great Depression, every area in the country has been hit hard - from the gaming industry to the manufacturing industries of the south, to the auto industries in the Midwest. AP calculates a score from 1 to 100 based on each county's rate of unemployment, foreclosure and bankruptcy, with lower numbers indicating less economic pain. The average stress score dipped to 9.7 in April. Last April, the national average was 5.9.

One of the groups that have been hit the hardest by the economic crash is pension funds across America. From coast to coast, it has been estimated that pension funds have lost nearly $55 trillion nationwide. Yes, trillions. The amount that has been lost by these pension funds continues to hemorrhage and the worst part is that the pension fund members may have no idea what is to become of their retirement savings. The American Dream includes retiring with dignity and without worry. Not only is the nation's Social Security fund rapidly depleting, but these hard-working men and women may wake up one day to find an empty nest egg. The monthly pension they waited for may not be there or may be significantly lower than expected. This type of loss is devastating when amidst rising gas prices, rising food prices, and pay cuts, the average American continues to contribute to his pension with the hopes of seeing the money in the future. [more...]

Why GM is Doomed to Failure

Government Loses Money at All Levels and Departments
By Wayne Allyn Root, 2008 Libertarian Vice Presidential Nominee

So we've just put government in control of General Motors? Well that should solve the problem. The same people that have run the American economy into the ground now think they can run an auto company. Has anyone thought this through? Government loses money at virtually everything it does and touches. Virtually every level of government operates at a loss (deficit). Government can't spell, let alone achieve, profitability at anything. Government is the most disastrous and inept failure at everything it does of any organization in the world. It only survives its colossal mismanagement of everything by raising taxes and therefore confiscating more money from the private sector - filled with people who are competent and do know how to run a business and achieve profitability. In other words, government only survives by confiscating money from smart people in the private sector to pay for its mismanagement, waste, corruption and nonstop failure and losses. [more...]

If You Own GM Stock, You Have Worthless Papers

Obama calls it sacrifice... I call it being wiped out
By Bill Glynn

This is Economic Rape! We are being wiped out! All your GM stock - whether you are a private citizen, an institutional investor, an autoworker or anyone that invested in GM - you have lost all your money. If you think the portfolio of other stocks you own won't be affected even worse than it already is, think again. Yes, the stock market is up - but it goes up and down every day. Yes, the general economy needed an unprecedented government intervention. But at what cost to the American company itself? We are not investing in these companies - we are borrowing money from the world to invest and loan this money. So we shore up the balance sheets of all these companies while our balance sheet is so upside down we are essentially getting a bailout from the rest of the world. Do you think Clinton and Geithner going to China is a coincidence? [more...]

The New GM And The New Chrysler Will Not Survive

By Ross Reck

Chrysler and GM will emerge from bankruptcy with completely new looks. The logic is that the new Chrysler and the new GM will be in a much better position to compete with companies like Toyota. As GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz put it, "We will be smaller, leaner and we're going to be a powerhouse." Unfortunately, that doesn't have a chance of happening because Chrysler and GM have not dealt with the one issue that got them into this position in the first place - their management style, the way they treat their employees who do the work that the company gets paid for. Both Chrysler and GM have a long history of top-down management that uses fear as a motivator - the people at the top are treated like royalty and the people at the bottom are treated like third class citizens; it's part of the DNA of these companies and Ford's too, for that matter. Until these companies address this fundamental issue, they are doomed to eventually be run out of business. [more...]

A Solution for the Auto Industry

By Bill Glynn

This will be short and to the point. Like the 10% solution I have been touting to buy back and retire our national debt, I have another radical idea. Didn't the government say they wanted radical ideas and changes? If I were bailing out the whole auto industry, I would create a new company; let's call it Auto Manufacturing USA. Each automaker would contribute their manufacturing capacity - plant, property, equipment and, by the way, union contracts, into the new company. The new company then would look across all plants, product lines, capabilities and streamline the production of all automobiles for the big 3 or even foreign manufacturing. The optimization of the auto manufacturing sector - the challenge to convert all the plants and cars to being "more green" and the otherwise antiquated operations - could be addressed under one business strategy. The best of breed operations would be kept, others upgraded and all the plants retooled with the ability to produce each other cars. [more...]

Chrysler and GM: A Classic Case of Top Management Failure

By Ross Reck

The headline to an article in a February, 1968 issue of the Wall Street Journal read something like, "Domestic Automobile Sales Down, Foreign Automobile Sales Up; Japan Could Be Big Player Someday." Today, some 41 years later, with Chrysler and GM going into bankruptcy, are we in a position to fully appreciate the profoundness of that headline? The Japanese automakers took on the mighty U.S. automakers on their own turf and in a little over 40 years took control of the American auto industry. What’s more, they made it look easy. This begs the question: Why was it so easy for the Japanese automakers to walk in and take over? The answer is simple. The senior executives running the American auto companies were completely and totally out of touch with the basics of making and selling cars - they lacked hands-on knowledge and experience in dealing with front line employees, customers, suppliers and technologies. This made for pretty easy pickings for the Japanese auto executives who were well schooled in those same basics. Consequently, when the Japanese automakers moved in, the American automakers had nothing to counter with. For the Japanese, it was like fighting a battle where your counterparts had no weapons. And now, as Paul Harvey used to say, "You know the rest of the story." [more...]

GM Held Hostage

Money Talks - Employees and Stock Holders Walk
By Bill Glynn

I cannot believe that the GM bondholders are strangling GM. They have a choice to allow the business to operate and convert at least some of their bonds into stock although no guarantees that will work. This is the dilemma. Wouldn't it make sense that they are teed up to lose big money in a bankruptcy? Since they are bondholders they have a secured interest in the assets of GM. I believe their strategy is that no one is buying cars anyway, so regardless, GM is going bankrupt. Even if GM gets bailed out further, the bondholders at least will be in the driver's seat of a bankruptcy. This way they can make sure they are in the first position to get any money from a restructuring or sale of assets. In other words, they get their money out first up to the total face value of the bonds. Well guess what - mom and pop and mainstream will get virtually wiped out!

If GM declares bankruptcy because they are forced to because of the inflexibility of the bondholders those bondholders will be partially responsible for bringing down another American icon brand. There seems to be no way around bankruptcy and this is also largely because people aren't buying cars and that GM is backed into a corner. Strapped with unions, debt and lack of sales, I do not believe there is any way around it and I do not believe that the auto industry in its current form will be a surviving industry here in America anyway. As appalling as it sounds, these are the tea leaves. This industry is a dinosaur and just cannot compete globally.

The bondholders are strictly focused now on their ability to control GM assets in a bankruptcy. It is really the only thing they can do to protect their capital. It is not about people, shareholders or employees - it is all about the money. Money talks and people walk in this case. When you see several of America's top automakers forced into bankruptcy and are cratering before our eyes, we can't even fathom and measure the massive unemployment skyrocketing and huge loss of more money in the stock market. This is really bad - I mean REALLY bad - and watch for the other markets I have been ranting about because there are many more of these in other sectors to come. [more...]

Why Not Take the Fast Track Out of This Recession?

By Ross Reck

Right now there's not a lot of excitement in America, and rightfully so, because there's not a whole lot to get excited about. The economy is awful, people are still losing their jobs and homes continue to be foreclosed upon. Everyone would like to see this recession end sooner than later, but all indications are that it will end later - much later. This begs the question: is there anything that can be done to speed this process up so that we can begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel? The answer is YES and it's really quite simple; but the executives running American businesses must abandon their century-old practice of top-down management and replace it with company-wide collaboration. The assumption behind top-down management is that the people at the top possess all the necessary knowledge to make decisions that are in the best interest of the business. That assumption is no longer true. It's the employees on the front line - the people who do the work that the company gets paid for - who possess that knowledge. They're the ones who understand how the business works and they know what needs to be done to fix things. So, why not take advantage of this wealth of knowledge? [more...]

Americans Can't or Won't Consume: What it means to Chrysler and Many Others

By Bill Glynn

We are now seeing what I have been ranting about for a year. American consumption is the basis for our economy and a sustained recovery. This isn't going to happen soon enough and the economic affairs of this nation won't be back on track for up to a decade – if we don't corner ourselves into bankruptcy first. If you want an example, watch Chrysler and the rest of the automakers. They can't sell cars, damn it! How many times do we have to sit back and watch this? No one is buying cars and shutting down deal relationships that have 44,000 cars on the lots isn't going to help and certainly will crater a whole segment of the industry. This will for sure happen across almost every industry. Look at retail as well. If you want bell weathers for the economy, look no further. Home sales, credit card usage, investments, retail, auto – name it and it's all hurt badly. Why? We are a consumption economy. Until we get that right and everyone comes to grips with this fact, we will not get the real read on the damage now and to come. [more...]

Revolution: The First Shot of the Tax Revolt Begins in California!

By Wayne Allyn Root, 2008 Libertarian Vice Presidential Nominee

Tax and Spend Propositions Go Down in Flames Despite Out-Spending Opponents 10 to 1.

The People That Pay All the Taxes and Create All the Jobs Are in Revolt.

The model for America: NEVADA where the state constitution bans income taxes.

Whatever revolution starts in California always spreads to the nation. In arguably the most liberal state in America, California taxpayers sent a message to the nation on Tuesday: "We've had enough and we're not going to take it anymore!" California voters shocked the political establishment by rejecting a slew of propositions meant to save California from a massive, unsustainable $15 to $23 billion-dollar budget deficit, by taxing and spending some more. All the tax-and-spend propositions went down to a resounding defeat, despite a $30 million spending campaign. Perhaps these big government proponents should have instead saved the $30 million and applied it to the deficit. The results were remarkable considering that proponents of "tax and spend" out-spent the opposition by 10 to 1. [more...]

The Government's Iron Fist

By Bill Glynn

I have a question. If government can't balance a checkbook and run itself other than into the ground, then why on earth would we believe that they can dictate business practices and take over more and more of the system? These people must really believe in themselves and their business savvy. Well, we all know its career politicians, lawyers, public personalities and, yes, some sharp business people that are in the vast minority in Congress. I can't rant strong enough to get the point across that our government at federal, state and local levels is frankly incompetent and here we are letting them dictate how business is run.

The unprecedented interdiction of the government into our banking system was, sorry to say, absolutely necessary or we would have had a collapse. However, Obama is driving his fist through massive government expansion into the face of capitalism. The door has been cast wide open for Obama to spend trillions of dollars to expand government like we have never seen and dictate to private industry what it can and cannot do. Automakers are one example and credit card companies another of late. Is this the price of doing business with the government? Can these government people help or hurt the industry and companies they are "bailing out?" [more...]

Paying Socialism Forward

By Roger Hedgecock

President Obama has proposed massive increases in federal government spending and trillion dollar deficits as far as the eye can see. But last week, he said such deficit spending was "unsustainable." He's right. Not four months into his term of office, President Obama has:

• doubled the fiscal year deficit by adding $460 billion to the Bush budget he inherited;


• proposed an astounding $1.8 trillion deficit for FY 2010, and


• projected adding $9 trillion over 10 years to the existing accumulated U.S. debt of $8 trillion.

Obama's pledge to "cut the deficit in half" by the fourth year of his term is to be achieved first by tripling the deficit this year, then cutting that amount in half three years later - still leaving a deficit in FY 2012 bigger than any year since 1945. And that's if Congress doesn't spend more than the president asks for - which is what Congress does every year. Finding lenders for this record amount of debt looks problematic. Recent Treasury debt auctions featured discounted prices and higher than expected interest rates, fueling speculation that the AAA-rated U.S. debt may already be losing its luster. [more...]

Workplace Abuse Keeping America in Recession

By Ross Reck, PhD

Zogby International conducted 7,740 online interviews of a panel that is representative or the adult population of the U.S. The survey found that not only were tens of millions of workers not being treated well, but 37% or an estimated 54 million American workers had personally experienced an extreme form of workplace abuse referred to as "bullying."

The study defined bullying as "repeated health-harming mistreatment" that takes one or more of the following forms:

*Verbal abuse: shouting, swearing, name calling and malicious sarcasm
* Offensive behaviors: threatening, intimidating, humiliating and inappropriately cruel conduct
* Work interference: sabotage, which prevents work from being done

The study also found that an additional 12% of the American workforce (or 17.5 million people) had personally witnessed bullying behavior. This means that 49% of the workforce or 71.5 million American workers have been touched by this extreme form or workplace abuse. And, who are these bullies? Seventy-three percent of them were bosses/managers!

This is not only an outrage; it's immoral, cruel and barbaric; and it's keeping us in this recession. When employees feel abused, their motivation is to get even and find another job somewhere else. Researchers Gostick and Elton estimate the cost of employee turnover in America to be $1.7 trillion annually. Then, if you factor in the other things employees are motivated to do when they feel they're being abused such as taking more sick days, missing work more often, stealing from the company, doing as little work as possible and a poorer quality of work, convincing other employees not to work as hard and refusing to share their ideas on how to improve products and services, we're probably looking at a four to five trillion dollar price tag for this abusive behavior. This is huge especially given that the size of the entire American economy is only $14 trillion. Just think of the shot in the arm it would be to our economy if American business could recover a sizeable chunk of this amount.

The question then becomes: can this mess be turned around? The answer is yes, and it can be turned around immediately, but it's up to the senior managers who run American businesses. They could easily reclaim the lion's share of these four to five trillion dollars if they would do the following three things sincerely, consistently and well... [more...]

Proof That Obama's Economic Plans Are Wrong for America

By Wayne Allyn Root, 2008 Libertarian Vice Presidential Nominee

Capitalism works in Las Vegas, Nevada! Las Vegas home sales are up a staggering 86%! Could Las Vegas be the first out of the recession? While President Obama moves our country and economy further away from capitalism, entrepreneurism and personal responsibility, my adopted hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada proves that the opposite direction is the one that works. Despite the worst economic downturn since 1929 (that I correctly labeled as a "depression" in the Spring of 2008), and a national economy showing few signs of life, Las Vegas is springing back to life. As usual, the most capitalist and fiscally conservative economy in the nation (Nevada) will be the first out of the recession.

In a sign that the local Nevada economy is far outpacing the nation, despite today's gloomy report that national retail sales are once again in decline, Las Vegas home sales were up a staggering 86% month-to-month. Yes, I said 86%! In the middle of an economic tsunami, capitalism is alive and well in Las Vegas. This is the 12th consecutive month of improvement in home sales in Las Vegas. Other signs of recovery in Las Vegas: hotel occupancy is up; the visitor count is up; and MGM Mirage just announced its first increase in hotel room prices in months. All of these are positive signs that Las Vegas is springing back to life to lead America's recovery. [more...]

The Medicare Program is Expected to Run Out of Money in Just Eight Years

By Robert Weiss

Released today, the Medicare Trustee report predicted that the Medicare program is expected to run out of money in just eight years. Medicare, now in its fifth decade, provides health insurance to about 45 million - mostly senior citizens. The Social Security trust fund is expected to run out of money in 2037. Social Security and Medicare are financed primarily by taxes evenly divided between workers and employers that amount to 15.3% of wages. The current economic downturn, which has resulted in the elimination of millions of jobs, has further eroded Medicare.

I, Robert H. Weiss, have written many blogs about the under-funding of pensions and pension fraud around the country – when people retire and see their savings go under water, they look to the safety of Medicare and Social Security to help them weather the storm. With the rising costs of private healthcare insurance, and rising numbers of unemployed Americans, we need to take back control of our country. It is not an excuse to blame the "economic crisis" for losses in Social Security and Medicare benefits. Billions of dollars have gone to banks – it is time we take these dollars back. These are American dollars that belong to American people – not corporations. We must stand up for our rights now. [more...]

Before You Create a Portfolio Using a 72t Withdrawal Program...

By Robert Weiss

It's no secret that virtually all 401(k), IRA, pension and retirement plan participants can suffer IRS penalties for early withdrawals. In fact, many investors know little else about the stock market or securities except for the potential tax liabilities. One method of avoiding early withdrawal penalties has been to create a portfolio using a 72t withdrawal program. Unfortunately for many investors, advisers do not accurately describe the program or forecast realistic growth in the account. In order for a penalty to be waived using a 72t withdrawal program, the program must meet the test of being "substantially equal periodic payments" as provided under 72t.

The payments to the customer are developed using sophisticated methodologies but one of the most important decisions a customer or adviser must make is the interest rate at which the payments will be based on. That is because principal is being depleted over the life expectancy of the investor and that amortization of principal represents a return of principal. In most cases, the customer always believed and was motivated by promises of an estate, but the full amortization schedule shows that at the end of his life expectancy, the customer will have nothing. It is common practice to use a very high interest rate thereby creating a larger monthly payment to the customer – therein lies the problem. Once the withdrawal begins, it cannot be changed (until of course age 62 or 5 years). If a change occurs, there is a 10% penalty! The investor can only sit idly by, watching his portfolio deplete more and more each month.

Given the nature of these complex programs, a 72t case requires a highly experienced securities attorney who can understand the sophistication such a case requires. As a securities attorney who has battled nearly every brokerage firm on Wall Street, I have the ability to stand up for your rights! I am tired of brokers taking advantage of their customers' lack of knowledge in securities. I have countless number of clients who seek brokers because they simply do not have the understanding to handle their own portfolios. They tell me, "Who else would I turn to?" After their retirement savings are left in shambles, I am the person to pick up the pieces. It's my job as an attorney and consumer advocate – I will fight for your rights. [more...]