BloggeRhythms

Researching material several months before the 2016 presidential election, an undercurrent was sensed that Trump had a very good chance of winning. Various non-mainstream websites, along with two or three polls showed him doing quite well particularly in “fly-over country,” the middle-America basically ignored by the mainstream-media. Trump supporters most often provided insight, noting his platform appealed to basic wishes of typical voters.

Mention of Trump’s possibilities typically resulted in disbelief from others, some choosing to reel off all the reasons a Trump win was impossible. After all he was running against  Bill Clinton’s wife they said, a virtual shoo-in. Others tried humoring, to soften the effects of the upcoming loss, whereas their belief was Trump had no chance.

This is mentioned today, because a couple of articles contain the same kind of indicators observed before the previous dramatic presidential election upset.

Eric Mack writes @newsmax.com, about Attorney General Bill Barr’s appearance on  "The Glenn Beck Podcast," saying: "I think whatever you think of Trump the fact is the whole Russiagate thing was a grave injustice. It appears to be a dirty political trick too. Used first to hobble him, then potentially to drive him from office."

“The Durham investigation reveals the Clinton campaign and related operatives worked to spin a political "narrative" against Trump, according to Barr, who told Beck: "I believe it is seditious, yes."

"Whether that can be proved in court as a crime is one issue, but I think people are now coming to see what actually happened," he continued.
"It was a gross injustice and it hurt the United States in many ways, including what we're seeing in Ukraine these days. It distorted our foreign policy."
"I felt that the president was not getting his due as president. He was entitled, having won the election, to implement his administration, and they worked, they had him on the ropes."

Barr then resigned when he says he “could not stand behind Trump's continued effort to hold Democrats to account for election fraud Jan. 6, which he compared to "intimidation" like Democrats and abortion activists are pushing with the protests outside the homes of Supreme Court justices.”
"One branch of government shouldn't be using a mob to intimidate another branch of government," Barr said.

Despite Barr’s personal misgivings, however, at the time of Trump’s questioning the election results, there was considerable refusal to accept them across the nation whereas voter fraud was suspected.

Fox News host Tucker Carlson put it this way, “doubling down on his pro-Trump narratives, outright accusing the left of rigging the election and peddling Trump’s voting-machine conspiracy theory in his latest election rant.

“Democrats used the coronavirus to change the system of voting. They vastly increased the number of mail-in ballots because they knew their candidates would benefit from less secure voting, and they were right,” he continued.

They used the courts to neutralize the Republican party’s single most effective get-out-the-vote operation, which for generations had been the National Rifle Association. Not enough has been written about this, but anyone on the ground saw it. Thanks to legal harassment from the left, the NRA played a vastly reduced role in the election, and that made a huge difference in swing states like Pennsylvania and others.”

“But above all, Democrats harnessed the power of big tech to win this election. Virtually all news in the English speaking world travels through a single company: Google. A huge percentage of our political debates take place on Facebook and Twitter. If you use technology to censor the ideas that people are allowed to express online, ultimately you control how the population votes, and that’s exactly what they did. They rigged the election in front of all of us, and nobody did anything about it.”

Similarly, although not “rigging,” a similar result is attained through crossover voting where permitted in primary’s. “An Associated Press analysis of early voting records from data firm L2 found that more than 37,000 people who voted in Georgia’s Democratic primary two years ago cast ballots in last week’s Republican primary, an unusually high number of so-called crossover voters. Even taking into account the limited sample of early votes, the data reveal that crossover voters were consequential in defeating Trump’s hand-picked candidates for secretary of state and, to a lesser extent, governor.

“Crossover voting, also known as strategic voting, is not exclusive to Georgia this primary season as voters across the political spectrum work to stop Trump-backed extremists from winning control of state and federal governments. The phenomenon is playing out in multiple primary contests, sometimes organically and sometimes in response to a coordinated effort by Trump’s opponents.

“On the forefront of the crossover movement, Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., has called for an “uneasy alliance” between Democrats, independents and Republicans to take down pro-Trump candidates in GOP primaries whenever and wherever possible. Some states have open primaries like Georgia that allow people to vote in either primary, while other states have more restrictive rules.

 “In an interview, Kinzinger said he was pleasantly surprised by the Democrats’ response in some races. He said he never expected the movement to be an “earth-shattering game-changer” right away.
“Kinzinger’s political organization, Country First, targeted thousands of former Georgia Democrats with mailers and text messages urging them to support Republican candidates for “sake of democracy.”

Beyond the importance of the following text itself, another anti-Trump factor is the clear bias illustrated in the writing’s tone: “Trump warned conservatives about crossover voting while campaigning Saturday in Wyoming, another state where the former president’s opponents are calling for Democrats to intervene — this time to help save Rep. Liz Cheney from a Trump-backed primary challenger. Cheney, like Raffensperger and Kemp, refused to embrace Trump’s lies about the 2020 election. She also voted for his second impeachment after the Jan. 6 insurrection.”

Here, instead of simply reporting about the primary itself, the Associated Press adds their clearly biased ideology in adding the words “Trump’s lies about the 2020 election,” unnecessary to the reporting. Also adding the difficulty of extrapolating what is factual reporting and what is political preference. 

Nevertheless, the data speaks for itself. Because regardless of how Bill Barr believes Trump should have handled his suspicions regarding voter fraud at the time of the election, they were likely correct. Tucker Carlson certainly provided strongly supporting evidence. While at the same time, crossover voting in primary’s produces artificially inflated results for Trump’s adversaries. All in all, developing the same kind of sense arising just prior to Trump’s win the first time, when almost none other than this writer put the array of disparate pieces of victory together.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios 

BloggeRhythms

Rethinking Friday’s posting raised thoughts that continually referring to the Biden administration as “stupid” was perhaps out-of-line, overly insulting or unnecessarily applied. Then, in compiling information for today, the word coming to mind most often about presidential decisions made is “stupid.”

Memories too were sparked of Robert Gates, defense secretary for the Obama administration saying of Biden: “I think he has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades.”

For today, another recollection regards the term “marketing myopia” coined by the late Harvard Business School marketing professor, Theodore Levitt who wrote in a 1960 article: “Marketing myopia strikes in when the short-term marketing goals are given more importance than the long-term goals. Some examples are: More focus on selling rather than building relationships with the customers. Predicting growth without conducting proper research. Mass production without knowing the demand.”

What Levitt was saying was that if, for example, had horse and buggy manufacturers understood and accepted the automobile as the wave of the future, instead of disparaging the competition they would have built the cars themselves and become titans of the future.

In the same vein, it doesn’t take much research to determine that due to the myopic approach taken by the administration, compounded by the limited intellectual capabilities of Progressives in Congress, handling of fossil fuel transition was incredibly inept to the point that “stupid” applies once again.  

Primarily because at present, viable alternatives for fossil fuels don’t even exist. Neither in price nor availability. Nonetheless, in irrational hatred and as a show of newly given power, fossil fuel was slated for elimination in any way possible. Prohibitive pricing became the first step taken.

Had any thought or analysis been applied whatsoever, it would have been realized that in 2020 only 6% of new car sales were electric out of over 3.4 million cars sold in total. Meaning that somehow or other, 3,196,000 gas-powered auto buyers would have had to have been accommodated some other way. Yet, that “other way” didn’t even exist at the time.

While sales of new light-duty plug-in electric vehicles, including all-electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), nearly doubled from 308,000, the total wasn’t even a drop in the bucket against the total volume of vehicles sold. 

And then there’s the issue of price. “The average transaction price for an electric vehicle (EV) is $56,437, according to Kelley Blue Book — roughly $10,000 higher than the overall industry average of $46,329 that includes gas and EVs.” Which means that pricewise an EV is equivalent to an entry-level luxury car.

Some other issues discovered in researching the subject include: “Keeping the inside of the vehicle warm in winter is usually the biggest drain on EV range, especially when ambient temperatures plunge below 15° F. Lithium-ion batteries used in EVs also do not perform as well in cold temperatures, which can lead to further range reductions.”

Electric cars also tend to cost more to insure than comparable gasoline or diesel fueled. Because large batteries are expensive to replace if the car is damaged.

What happens if an electric car runs out of charge?

If you're driving an electric car and it runs out of power, the short and simple answer is: the car will stop—and you'll need to call roadside assistance to get towed to the nearest charging station. Distance-wise, “the median range of new EV models sold in the United States decreased for the 2021 model year, according to the EPA. For the 2021 model year, the median range for EVs was 234 miles, compared to 259 miles for the 2020 model year.”

Mechanically, according to J.D. Power, Tesla vehicles had an average of 176 mechanical faults per 100, compared to 121 for the industry. Tesla ranked 30th out of 33 brands featured in a J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Survey released January 13, 2022.

Then, when repair is required, Tesla vehicles are quite expensive to fix. According to RepairPal, "the average yearly Tesla maintenance cost is about $832. The average among all car brands was a much lower $652 per year. Also having the third-worst reliability score among all automakers as of April 16, 2022."

Higher price tags and more complex equipment means it also may cost more to repair or replace electric vehicles if they’re in an accident. It can also mean higher rates for comprehensive and collision insurance coverage.

Despite higher costs of purchase, repair and replacement, for those desiring electric vehicles there still remains availability because not enough are manufactured. So, what about a used one?

On April 15, 2022, Aarian Marshall reported @www.wired.com: EV’s are “supposed to lose their value over time. This is why used cars are, generally, less expensive than new ones. But right now, everything is topsy-turvy. A toxic mix of pandemic-era supply shortages and inflation have spiked prices of used cars and trucks, which were up 35 percent in March compared to the same time last year, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. It’s not unusual for certain used luxury cars, like Porsches and Corvettes, to go for more than their original sticker prices, says Luke Walch, the owner of Green Eyed Motors, a dealership outside Boulder, Colorado, that specializes in electric and hybrid vehicles. Now, “it’s trickled down into the commoner’s car,” he says.”

Thus, affordability appears once again, this time because those unable to buy a new EV find that used vehicles cost even more than that, leaving them nowhere at all to turn for purchase.

What’s most remarkable about all this is that the preceding information regarding impossibilities of accommodating presidential and Progressive demands for the switching away from fossil fuel took a couple of hours to accumulate, readily available across the web. But either the information was ignored or never researched by them at all, in the balance costing everyday drivers of fossil-fuel powered vehicles billions of dollars and themselves hundreds of thousands of votes.

In summation, it seems Obama said it best regarding Biden as recorded in Business Insider by Thomas Colson on August 16, 2020: “Barack Obama has privately voiced doubts about the ability of Joe Biden, his former vice president, to beat President Donald Trump in the 2020 election, according to a new Politico report.

“The report says Obama told an unnamed Democrat during the 2020 primary campaign, in which he declined to endorse any candidate: "Don't underestimate Joe's ability to f--- things up."

That’s it for today folks

Adios

BloggeRhythms

Some very valuable habits regarding competition are attained from a sales career. Such as specific reviews or analysis of why individual sales are won or lost. Study of selling situations eventually develops into a virtual diary or “encyclopedia” regarding one’s profession. It also becomes a handbook of sorts, concerning competitors themselves. Knowing what to expect from others, their habits and traits, extremely helpful when encountering them in the field, provides a significant advantage.

In this writer’s case, a personal diary containing industry information of all types along with competitor profiles and technical notes eventually became a book, Selling Equipment Leasing, published by the AMACOM Books Division of the American Management Association in 1994 and still sold on Amazon today.

In its own way, blogging too permits development of a similar knowledge base regarding many of the subjects discussed, particularly politics. And it is in that area the realization arose that over time, encyclopedic troves of information have been gathered here regarding political competitors capabilities, strengths, weaknesses and habitual tendencies. Within that scope, two particular traits stand out among Progressives: Arrogance and stupidity.

Arrogance is consistently shown by Biden who most often talks down to the press, appearing unable to comprehend why his utterings are not immediately accepted as gospel by this irritating, unruly group. But it is across the entire party where true stupidity is evidenced.

Upon taking office in 2021, Progressives had license to institute policy as they chose. Their objective being reversal of any and all governance deemed “Conservative,” or related in any way to Trump. However, their rise to power being so sudden and unexpected, aside from platform and electioneering no administrative framework truly existed.

The intelligent procedure for them, then, would have been to gradually wind down existent policy, replacing what was there incrementally upon proof of performance. Instead, however, not only were legislative rugs pulled out from under so abruptly, the absence of viable replacements worsened the effects.

There was no need, other than political grandstanding, for Biden to cancel the Keystone XL pipeline on day one in office. Whereas no viable replacement for fossil fuels exists, parallel development of alternative energy would have been the proper managerial approach. Keystone cancellation, though, was done in such a grandiose way, political ammunition was provided to foes as a gift. Biden’s self-congratulation then, was spectacularly “stupid.”

It's one thing to open the southern border, exposing the nation to untold costs and threats. But it’s quite another to fabricate invasive events taking place, particularly when live news coverage exposes the actual happenings. But rather than making the slightest effort to even appear interested in protection, obvious attempts are made to distort the facts. Thus, a quite appropriate term for the reality is “stupid.”

While inflation continues to increase living costs for all, resultant of an attack on use of fossil fuel, the administration blames whatever possible happening for rising prices. Here, Progressives could have easily applied the facts, that alternative energy sources being developed would replace what exists when viable. But instead, the approach is taken to make gasoline unaffordable, building animosity completely across the voting public. There is no other classification for that decision better than “stupid.”

And what about defunding the police with no form of replacement whatsoever? Citizenries of major cities, most of them Progressive strongholds, are now fearful of walking their own streets, while those able are moving to safer places. So this one's a double-whammy, as one’s staying where they are become subject to voting for others, while those relocating are building the bases of law enforcement candidates elsewhere. Whereas this situation is well known, continual defunding movements by Progressives is truly beyond “stupid.”

Poll results shown @apnews.com reflect on Biden as representative of Progressive performance, as follows: “President Joe Biden’s approval rating dipped to the lowest point of his presidency in May, a new poll shows, with deepening pessimism emerging among members of his own Democratic Party.

“Only 39% of U.S. adults approve of Biden’s performance as president, according to the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Research, dipping from already negative ratings a month earlier.”

While these new lows reflect known dissatisfaction with Biden and his party’s poor performance, his reaction to the results is positively astounding. He firmly maintains that policy will remain in place and that it is the public's inability to grasp his successes that is at fault, not the policies themselves. And by taking a stance that for political purposes, flies in the face of proven reality, Progressives remove all chance of reelection. Not just shooting themselves in the foot, but just about blowing it off completely.

Now, that’s really pretty stupid.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios 

BloggeRhythms

Yesterday, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O'Rourke angrily confronted Texas Governor Greg Abbott at the governor's news conference about the Uvalde High School shooting, yelling, "This is on you."

According to Texas Tribune reporter, Patrick Svitek, "the Republican officials onstage quickly denounced O'Rourke. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz told him, "Sit down and don't play this stunt." Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick told O'Rourke he was "out of line and an embarrassment." And Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin gave the most colorful response.

“I can’t believe that you’re a sick son of a bitch that would come to a deal like this to make a political issue,” McLaughlin said.

Considering O’Rourke’s abhorrent behavior, total absence of compassion and brazen self-centeredness spurred thoughts about how differently hard leftists perceive virtually all aspects of life.

Progressive political philosophy coupled with promotion of “climate-change” to the easily swayed intellectually limited has proven to be an economic disaster. Business & Economy News reported on May 13: “US stock markets lost more than $7 trillion this year.”

“Big Number: Nearly 20%. That's how much the S&P 500 has fallen so far this year, putting the benchmark index on the edge of bear market territory. The Dow is down nearly 15% in 2022, while the Nasdaq has dropped 29%”

Aside from irrational costs of hard left economic policy, the nation is totally vulnerable to infiltration by countless unidentified entrants across the southern border, evidenced by those who are found out. Victoria Lopez reports @www.valleycentral.com/news: “On Monday, McAllen Border Patrol Station agents discovered a Mara-Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang member while processing records. The woman had also been previously convicted for assault with a deadly weapon in Washington.

“While processing the migrants the next day, agents discovered a previously convicted sex offender who was incarcerated by Hidalgo County for sexual assault.”

If those are the ones that did get caught, how many others have entered unnoticed?

Absurd administration is further evidenced by Progressive efforts to eliminate fossil-fuel usage without a viable replacement. That shortsightedness, or purposeful endeavor has proven incredibly costly. Deb Kiner writes @pennlive.com: “People traveling by vehicles for the Memorial Day 2022 holiday weekend will feel the pain at the pump in their wallet.

“Americans will be paying about $1.50 a more per gallon of gas to travel this weekend - the highest they have ever paid. The national average gas price today is $4.59 a gallon, according to AAA. The average price in Pennsylvania is $4.77 a gallon - the highest ever.”

Fuel, however, isn’t the only financial burden borne by every-day average Americans resultant of distorted political theorem. Basic living costs have gone through the roof as well. Brooke DiPalma ·Reporter, Booking Producer @https://finance.yahoo.com writes: “You'll likely be spending a lot more for this year's Memorial Day barbecue. Fan favorites like hot dogs, potato chips, and beer are just some of the items that have jumped in price as a result of inflation.

“The Bureau of Labor Statistics' April Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 8.3% compared to the same month last year, with the cost of food rising 9.4% and the at-home food category rising 10.8%.

“Firing up the grill is likely to hurt consumers' wallets the most. The prices of bacon jumped 17.70%, the most year over year; followed by chicken legs (bone-in), up 16.40%; ground beef, up 16.40%; uncooked beef steaks, up 11.80%; and hot dogs (all meat or all beef), up 6.20%. Frankfurters experienced the largest change in price dollar-wise. In 2021, a pound of hot dogs in April cost $3.81; today it comes in at $5.22.

“The only foods to cost slightly less or the same: strawberries, wine and tomatoes.”

Economics, however, is surely not the only aspect of Progressive philosophy that makes no sense whatsoever as a practical reality. It is light years beyond comprehension that any individual could possibly believe crime could be controlled whatsoever if you remove police authority.

To that effect, Dan O’Donnell reported on September 29, 2021 @www.maciverinstitute.com: “For more than a year, liberal leaders and their media allies have been pushing the narrative that the dramatic rise in homicides last year was due almost entirely to the pandemic.  Because so many people who were trapped in toxic relationships were suddenly trapped in their homes with their abusers, it was a tragic inevitability that the murder rate would go up.

“It was beyond anyone’s control, and certainly wasn’t the fault of liberal policymakers who screamed “Defund the Police!” for six straight months.

“Unsurprisingly, the FBI’s newly released 2020 Uniform Crime Report has thoroughly destroyed this lie and proven that the Defund the Police push was perhaps the most disastrous effort that local governments have ever undertaken.

“Aggravated assaults in America rose by an estimated 12.4 percent, while the murder rate increased by a staggering 29.4 percent—the single largest year-over-year increase on record.

“Interestingly, violent crimes did not peak in March, April, and May (the months in which most of America was actually locked down), but rather in the summer—after the death of George Floyd and subsequent nationwide move against policing in many major liberal cities.”

While the preceding illustrates several aspects where political philosophy can be extremely costly, it also raises the question as to why those of different beliefs should pay the price for others. It also brings back thoughts of Rush, who went so far as to consider possibilities of a formal split.

Back on December 10, 2021 an article by Jeffrey Rodack appeared on Newsmax quoting El Rushbo as follows: “Rush Limbaugh, noting conservatives have very little in common with people in certain states, is raising the issue of secession.

Limbaugh made his comments on his radio show on Wednesday.

“I actually think that we’re trending toward secession,” he said. “I see more and more people asking what in the world do we have in common with the people who live in, say, New York? What is there that makes us believe that there is enough of us there to even have a chance at winning New York, especially if you’re talking about votes.

“A lot of bloggers have written extensively about how distant and separated and how much more separated our culture is becoming politically and that it can’t go on this way. There cannot be a peaceful coexistence of two completely different theories of life, theories of government, theories of how we manage our affairs. We can’t be in this dire a conflict without something giving somewhere along the way.

“I know that there’s a sizable and growing sentiment for people who believe that that is where we’re headed whether we want to or not. Whether we want to go there or not. I, myself, haven’t made up my mind. I still haven’t given up the idea that we are the majority and that all we have to do is find a way to unite and win.”

That posting was concluded this way: “Thus, it seems predictions are occurring more frequently regarding rising probability of a cultural rift in the nation which should be paid close attention by leftist leadership. Whereas if they take a step back and face reality, even they can grasp the fact that without the intellectual, financial and commercial support of Republicans, they have no means of real-life survival as individuals.”

And now, a year and a half has transpired since Rush pondered possibilities of secession, during which times things have only gotten worse. And although, like Rush, it may be intellectually frustrating to see people impose irrational legislation, it’s far more likely the cost in dollars that’s going to cause some sort of revolution.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios

BloggeRhythms

If any doubt remains, yesterday’s news reporting certainly confirmed there is no longer any “main-stream-media.” All that remains is a blatantly obvious public relations operation, presenting occurrences in the best possible light for the left.  

An example comes from Alex Seitz-Wald @nbcnews.com/politics, whose glee practically jumps off the page as he supposedly reports on Trump backed candidates losses in Georgia primaries; “In his biggest electoral defeat since he lost the presidency in 2020, Donald Trump “went down in flames Tuesday” in his crusade to punish Georgia Republicans who defied his attempts to overturn the 2020 election, as NBC News projects the former president’s candidates were crushed in GOP primaries.

“Gov. Brian Kemp is on track to rout Trump-backed challenger David Perdue by a stunning 50 percentage points, while Attorney General Chris Carr ran ahead of his Trump-endorsed opponent by a similar margin.

“Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger — who earned a special place on Trump's list of targets for secretly recording a phone call in which Trump asked him to “find” him more votes — beat expectations by winning his primary outright without being forced into a runoff, according to NBC News.”

Verbiage such as “Donald Trump went down in flames Tuesday,” "the former president’s candidates were crushed in GOP primaries," and “on track to rout Trump-backed challenger David Perdue by a stunning 50 percentage points,” isn’t “reporting,” it’s cheer-leading.

But, what’s most interesting is that these intellectual dwarfs don’t seem to grasp that if Trump is defeated in presidential primary’s, his replacement could be far worse for them than he is. The most likely next in line would be Florida’s Ron De Santis, practically a carbon copy of Trump policy-wise, but far more likeable personally. Or it could be Senator Tim Scott, another extremely intelligent Trump-like legislator proven to be nationally popular. And then there’s Mike Pence, coming out of Trump’s White House as second-in-command and similar thinking. What about Harvard educated Texan, Ted Cruz, Trump supporter top to bottom? And let’s not forget Ohioan Jim Jordan, a Congressman who might as well be Trump when it comes to policy-making.

Depth-wise then, the Republican party is stocked full with a solid bench, firmly rooted in policy-making already seen to be the best for the nation since World War II. While on the other side, Progressive theory is currently proving itself worse than worthless. Because in pursuit of political ideals, the nation has been set back immeasurably. There is not one issue which Progressives can point to and say that their philosophy has been of the slightest value.

Fictional “climate-change” has led to unaffordable gasoline for no tangible reason. Political theory has similarly raised living costs for all citizens by more than 8%. At the same time, countless unknown, unidentifiable individuals, as well as known terrorists, pour over the southern border in steadily increasing numbers. Those living in major city’s find their streets unpoliced, resultantly unsafe. Covid probabilities remain the same while quarantined public school students find themselves two years behind educationally.

In effect, then, while Progressive philosophy has solidly proven itself detrimental in practice, leadership is practically absent. The worse the nation performs, the less is seen of those at the party’s top. Joe Biden doesn’t preside; his direction coming from whoever it is that programs his earphones. When he does speak extraneously, White House representatives correct his errors for however many days it takes to clarify his statements.

Kamal Harris giggles her way through most appearances, none ever containing substance while none in Congress have any capabilities closely resembling presidential requirements.

Bringing us back to the main-stream-media and their promotional efforts on behalf of the far left Progressive element. It’s one thing for the press to make every attempt to put happenings in their best light for the voting public. But it’s quite another to bend over so far backward in support, that their heads wind up in their backsides.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios

BloggeRhythms

Yesterday, sales, marketing, and field operations responsibility for the largest, most successful organization in the history of our industry segment was used to add substance and credibility to the writing.

Objectives were viewed as “working backwards” from needs to solutions. There to satisfy wants or needs; our customers were not there to satisfy us.

Our financing, most often used by equipment sellers as an alternative to cash purchase or bank loans, also required additional forms and paperwork. While certainly permitting additional sales, applications were also a cumbersome, sometimes confusing, time-consuming procedure, potentially jeopardizing business closure. For that, our size and experience permitted a solution; simplified, one-page easily comprehended paperwork. Quick-to-complete verbiage, unique in our marketplace.

A highly visible public corporation ourselves, we were purchased by a telecommunications giant, unable to successfully build an entity of their own. First thing next morning after acquisition, two young staff attorneys from the new parent told us their industry research showed virtually all of our competition employed far more complex, lender protective forms and documents. In their opinion, then, we should do a better job of protecting our contractual interests and comply with obviously more sophisticated industry standards.

I suggested they work in one of our national locations for a few years and then come back when they understood why our competitors buried equipment sellers in cumbersome forms and fine-printed legalize. The reason being, they weren’t knowledgeable, large or strong enough to protect their own interests in any other way. As for us, simplified paperwork had proven a huge, successful, industry advantage for years.

Throughout our organization, parental representatives double-checked steps and procedures. Seeking operational compliance simultaneously adding cumbersome time and delay throughout. The administerial advantage soon gone, mirroring everyone else, our purchaser lost interest selling to another entity altogether.

By comparison, Trump took a very similar, businessman’s approach to “management” at the national level. Reducing or eliminating cumbersome, repetitive or perhaps unnecessary “red tape” wherever possible. To the extent that “for every one new regulation issued, at least two prior regulations had to be identified for elimination, and that the cost of planned regulations be prudently managed and controlled through a budgeting process. “ Biden quickly shelved that objective following election.

According to final figures compiled by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, provided to U.S. News, the “Trump administration had built 458 miles of what it dubbed a “border wall system.” Pew Research reports, “Between April 2020 and the end of the Trump administration, more than 80% of monthly migrant encounters at the southwestern border resulted in expulsion rather than apprehension. In July that year, 47% of migrant encounters resulted in expulsion, down from 83% in January, when Biden took office. And then, expulsions continued to decrease.

On his first day in office, Biden cancelled the Keystone XL pipeline, spurring a rise in inflation not seen in forty years. According to data from AAA, “the average cost of a gallon of regular fuel is now $4.404, the highest nominal price ever.” With gasoline prices the stimulus, the April consumer price index, measuring changes in the cost of food, housing, utilities, and other goods, rose by 8.3% over the past 12 months 

Back on May 11, in an exclusive interview on Fox Business Network’s Varney & Company, “Donald Trump told host Stuart Varney that climate change is “a hoax.” The former president said “in my opinion, you have a thing called weather, and you go up, and you go down, If you look into the 1920s, they were talking about a global freezing, okay? In other words, the globe was going to freeze.”

“And then they go global warming,” Trump continued. “Then they couldn’t use that because the temperatures were actually quite cool. And many different things. So now they just talk about climate change. The climate’s always been changing.”

Comparisons of all sorts compile to illustrate ways in which the Biden administration has taken the inherited results of perhaps the most successful administration since World War II and reversed or eliminated the progress. The reason being, in Biden’s  spectrum, political theory overrides practicalities required to thrive. However, while poor or failed results matter not when there is another mission to accomplish, administrative responsibility of the massive United States has proven to be the wrong place to experiment.

So, much like a telecommunications giant that purchased the most successful financial services organization of its type because corporate planners perceived it to be a good idea at the time, only to find it overwhelmingly unmanageable, Progressives have found their ideology a resounding practical failure.

To rid themselves of their mistake, the telecommunications giant sold off their financial subsidiary elsewhere. In the case of Progressives in office, the voting public will do the riddance for them.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios 

BloggeRhythms

I always had to stop and laugh when Rush would say, “I'm your host, Rush Limbaugh, with half my brain tied behind my back - just to make it fair,” because I knew exactly what he meant. He truly was blessed with superior intellect, applied it every waking minute and appreciated how that mental dexterity helped form the foundation for his extraordinary career.

What Rush realized early on was that the vast majority of individuals either don’t possess or don’t apply significant intellect as often required. Those not possessing capabilities are of course limited by nature while those not applying inherent acuity choose to intellectually restrict themselves.

While certainly not in Rush’s category by any means, I rose to the highest level of my own chosen career, eventually authoring Selling Equipment Leasing a text endorsed by industry leadership to be of significant value.

The text itself is a primer predicated upon forty years or so of substantial individual sales production, eventually leading to management of a national staff of 125 sales-people operating from 26 offices across the nation and producing half a billion dollars in annual sales. Far and away the best and most successful operation of its type that ever existed.

And when all is said and done, what was the most important “secret” to sales success throughout? Obtaining a complete and thorough understanding of how your product or service works and being absolutely certain that your employer can and will deliver exactly what you sell.

For knowledgeable salespeople, superior sales production itself is nothing more than transmitting information about available products or services to as many “prospects” as possible. And then, following up to make sure customers receive what they bought and are satisfied with their purchase. Problems only arise when buyers don’t get exactly what they purchased or delivery is somehow or other different than what was expected.

And there in a couple of sentences rests the dilemma of today’s Democrat party. They have nothing of true value to sell to any voter beyond a relatively small group of needy individuals along with a population of outcasts and ne'er-do-wells. Then, beyond product lack for the majority, what is eventually delivered is not only nothing like what was “sold”, it doesn’t perform in any way, shape or form as to what was promised.

Product problems arise to the frequency and extent of requiring the “Sales Manager” Biden to spend almost all of his time explaining why his solutions were incorrect,  inadequate or flat-out wrong. And then, when faced with customer disappointment instead of making any kind of attempt to fix whatever problem arose, every effort is made to explain that the failure is or was someone’s else’s fault.

As gasoline costs constituents twice what it did before he took office, rising prices are blamed on war in Ukraine,  greedy gas station owners and other “profiteers,” along with unused land leases and licenses going to waste. Plain and simply however, Biden’s first official act was to cancel the Keystone pipeline along with a host of similar projects.

While Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, testifies before Congress that the southern border is “secure,” the current level of illegal border crossings is estimated to be 12,000 per day.

With inflation estimated at an average of 8% or more, then White House press secretary Jen Psaki tried to defend a White House tweet boasting how President Biden's economic policies would be saving Americans $0.16 cents on traditional items for a Fourth of July barbecue.

From issue to issue, case to case rather than to make sure “customers” are somehow satisfied, excuses for non-performance are concocted with blame pointed somewhere else. The problem is, voters don’t really care about who’s responsible for rising costs of gasoline, they simply want to be able to afford to fill their tanks and buy food and pay rent at the same time as they did before.

Presidential rants about assault-weapon controls aren’t of much value to those living in unpoliced city’s or where judges release unpunished criminals right back into society’s they came from.

As illegals flood the nation, citizens don’t need to hear justification of how every requirement to immigration has been met, they simply want the border closed.

And that brings us back to the Democrat dilemma. They apparently don’t possess the mental acumen or desire required to successfully run a nation the size and scope of the USA. Something Rush realized early on, which is why he tied half his brain behind his back to make things comprehensible for the likes of them. And why someone like myself concentrates on delivering something that works as promised for customers, because those are the ones that truly need to be satisfied.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios

BloggeRhythms

Yesterday’s major news reports reflected two significant aspects of the current political climate. Of 27 candidates back by Trump, 23 have prevailed at present. At the same time, according to CNBC, “The Dow Jones Industrial Average headed for its biggest loss since 2020 on Wednesday after another major retailer warned of rising cost pressures, confirming investors’ worst fears over rising inflation and rekindling the brutal 2022 sell-off.”

“The Dow shed 1,255 points, or 3.8%, or the average’s biggest decline since October 2020. The S&P 500 traded 4.3% lower, the biggest drop since June 2020. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 4.9%, the largest fall in the tech-heavy index since May 5. The selling was broad and intense on Wall Street with just 13 members of the S&P 500 in the green.

“Markets returned to heavy selling after two back-to-back quarterly reports from Target and Walmart stoked investor fears of rising inflation. It’s the fifth Dow decline of more than 800 points this year, which all occurred as the stock sell-off intensified within the last one month, according to FactSet data.”

As the article continues, the key point for consideration is that the financial damage is self-inflicted. Kim Forrest, founder of Bokeh Capital said, “It’s clear that transportation costs matter and they’re impacting [some of] the largest companies,” said “So I think investors are scratching our heads going, ‘so, who’s next?’ And they’re giving visibility into what’s happening with the consumer.”

At this point, it’s important to remember that when Biden took office, although suffering the effects of the Covid pandemic, the nation’s economy was about to rebound from the restrictions of a severely limited marketplace bound by quarantined consumers. And despite opportunities for the benefits of a return to normalcy and beyond, what did Biden do? Cancel the Keystone pipeline, curtail oil development in the Dakotas and begin a dedicated effort to reverse any aspect of economic success attributable to Trump.

So, as a result, where are we today? “Other retailers took a hit on the back of Target’s quarterly earnings miss — with the SPDR S&P Retail ETF falling more than 8%. Amazon’s stock price dropped 6.6%, and Best Buy’s stock price fell more than 11%. Dollar General’s fell more than 11%, and Dollar Tree’s declined more than 15%. Shares of Macy’s dropped 12%, while shares of Kohl’s fell more than 10%.

“Lowe’s fell more than 6% after missing sales expectations in its first quarter report as shoppers bought fewer supplies for outdoor projects.”

Jack Ablin, founding partner of Cresset Capital, summarized today’s situation by saying: “Any company that relies on households and discretionary purchases will likely suffer this quarter because a lot of discretionary income has been funneled to food and energy prices.”  

So, it seems that in the Republican party at least, there’s an awareness of who was responsible for the nation’s economic success, prior to Biden’s intentional reversal of the progress. And that among those Republicans, attribution is being given to Trump through support of those candidates for office he chooses to endorse.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios

BloggeRhythms

Yesterday’s theme touched on the critical importance of customer satisfaction for businesses to achieve success. When all boiled down, there’s no magic or mystery involved in the accomplishment. It ordinarily results from plain and simple hard work done by professionals in a particular field. That’s why in the finance business, prior similar experience is crucial to credit decision-making. Prior experience provides the expertise required for successful business operation.

In a typical lending situation of any type, a primary concern of lender’s is the background and performance history of the applicant. For established businesses, a number of prior years financial statements or tax returns will ordinarily be required. That information provides the basis to best estimate future performance. Was there profit or loss? Are sales and income trends up or down? Is there a firm financial footing or net worth to offset any unexpected loss? None of these questions are meant to pry, but simply to help in assessing any lender’s risk.

In the case of new businesses or “start-ups,” whereas business performance records do not exist, similar information would be required of the individuals involved. Is there similar business experience held by the owner or amongst the management? Where and how was that experience obtained; through education, in a similar enterprise, yet to be formulated? Here again, there is nothing extraordinary about the inquiry, but simply the gathering of enough information to determine the level of risk involved on the lender’s part.

In effect, there is really nothing overly complex in basic credit-decision making. Knowledgeable lenders apply every day common sense in gathering and analyzing applicant’s past performance information to best assess the probability of loan or financing repayment in the future.

Moving that one step over, in effect citizens were taking the same kind of risks as do lenders when they voted in 2020. When campaigning, Democrat politicians promised all sorts of performance and results in the future with no tangible means of proof. Therefore, all that could be obtained for success probability determination was any kind of information establishing performance in a similar situation.

At present, the 2022  U.S. budget proposes $131.8billion in discretionary budget authority and $1.5 trillion in mandatory funding. Who amongst the four most visible Progressives had experience managing those kinds of dollars? What were the results? Obviously, no such experience existed and thus, no performance evidence was available.

While not having direct control of any type, Biden did have experience gained during his time as VP in the Obama administration whose philosophies can be seen in the implementation of Obamacare where: “After the enactment of Obamacare, one fast-food employer testified to Congress that the employer mandate would force businesses like his to “increase the number of part time employees; decrease the number of full time employees and attempt to automate positions (such as replacing cashier positions with ordering kiosks).” An analysis by the Hoover Institution found that there were 2.6 million workers at risk of having their hours cut because of the 30-hour work week rule. According to the study, 63 percent of those most at risk of lost hours are female and almost 60 percent are between the ages of 19 and 34. The study also found that those most vulnerable to the 30-hour rule are less educated – 89 percent lack a college degree. The median income of workers at risk is $14,333 per year for individuals and $29,126 for families.”

While much of the Obama economic policy has since been forgotten, it certainly exists, as does the turnaround engineered by Trump who prior to the pandemic presided over the strongest economy since WWII.

Thus, continuing with a prudent lender’s approach and lacking hard financial evidence to analyze, the next step would be to assess the performance of similar endeavors to get a sense of future probabilities. How have others performed in similar circumstances? It’s likely the closest one could come to the vision of the four most influential Progressives would be the Carter administration. So, how did that one do?

Lacking further evidence here, foreign entities will have to suffice. In that case, how has the economic history been for the Russian population? Cubans? Venezuelans? Chinese citizens? North Koreans? North Vietnamese? That question answers itself.

So then, the next thing to look at would be the basic premise of Socialism itself where:  All legal production and distribution decisions are made by the government, with individuals dependent on the state for food, employment, healthcare, and everything else. Which makes skills, talents and capabilities of leadership the most critical aspect of the entire enterprise.

Taking the $131.8billion in discretionary budget authority and $1.5 trillion in mandatory funding into serious consideration, would any prudent lender truly turnover managerial authority to Biden and the four Progressive cohorts?

Nonetheless, while the skills and experience of a sophisticated lender would never permit extension of the smallest percentage of the nation’s budget to a group so lacking in successful financial performance, that’s what the nation’s voters did. And today, results are in evidence. Unaffordable gas and oil, inflation exceeding 8%, threats of ever increasing rules and strangling regulations along with expansion of government everywhere with absolutely none of it truly surprising at all to any voter doing their homework in the first place.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios

BloggeRhythms

The far left has put itself into a box reminiscent of a business engagement many years ago. At that time, my employer provided lease financing arrangements that capital equipment suppliers could offer to their customers as an alternative to cash purchase or bank borrowing.

A major leasing benefit was “flexibility,” in that terms and conditions of agreements could be matched or tailored to the equipment itself. Two or three- year lease terms, for example, were available for quickly obsolescent items such as electronic or computing equipment, while ten or twelve-year terms were applicable to printing presses or machine tools. At lease expiration, options existed for purchase, equipment return or lease term extension.

When working with a new equipment supplier, considerable time was spent learning about typical customer financing preferences regarding lease types and habits, to help match contract design to end-user preferences.

On one such occasion, many months were spent working with national sales management, operations executives and field sales personnel of a major phototypesetting equipment supplier in the design of a program. Because of their size, capabilities and years in business, significant latitude existed in customer accommodation in financing preferences. Applying that latitude resulted in design of a financing program meeting every feasible customer wish imaginable.

When the program was finally ready for introduction, a meeting was held in the supplier’s headquarters conference room, ten or twelve of the suppliers personnel seated around the table for a contract execution “ceremony.” All of those present were quite pleased with the program itself and the results of the work, time and effort they’d invested.

As the proceedings went on, the program now ready for introduction, I turned to the gentleman seated next to me and said something like, “Ray, I think we put together a winner here.” Shaking my extended hand, he replied, “I think so too, Mike. But if the dogs don’t eat the food…”

What he was telling me was, that the test of the program hadn’t really taken place yet. It didn’t really matter how much work, time and effort we’d all extended in the design itself. All that actually counted was whether their sales personnel, customers and real-world circumstances produced success from our endeavors. When closing a sale, their salespeople weren’t going to ensure or insist that any particular financing offer was applied, their job was to sell equipment any way possible. And for us to be successful, the program itself had to work on its own.

Which is where the hard-left radicals now find themselves.

After years of applying every means possible, presenting every “pitch” in existence and now actually winning the White House along with Congressional control, the hard-left has finally taken control. As a result, former theories have now been put into action, such as the shut-down of the Keystone and Dakota pipelines, unbridled entry of illegal aliens, defunding of police, threats of significant tax increases, expansion of government, rules and regulations. And in every single case, actual results have been horrendously bad.

So, because of electoral wins, the “dogs are now eating the food” all over the nation and finding it undigestible. Leading to predictions of the largest loss of Congressional seats in the nation’s history this coming November. Primarily, because when put into effect it’s been found that far-left premises simply do not work to anyone’s benefit except those holding office.

By comparison, our financing program turned into a huge national success, whereas our goal was to meet needs of the largest group possible, which is what we went out and did. While leftist politicians fail miserably whenever in power, because their true objective never extends beyond optimal self-satisfaction of those holding office.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios. 

BloggeRhythms

Just a quick note today, to record some thoughts on Ukraine. Having no hard information whatsoever, the feeling grows here that Vladmir Putin has accepted, as does significant numbers of others, that invading Ukraine was a mistake. While the Ukrainians themselves are far more formidable than believed, Putin’s own troops are far weaker than thought, as well. Therefore, the conflict could potentially endure for years in the future, draining Russian assets and relationships further.

Now anticipating far less spoils of war, particularly territorially, the intelligent thing to do would be to write the invasion off and pull out. But Putin, pompous, egotist that he is, either cannot or will not personally accept the logic. So, what to do about it?

In the last few days, articles and broadcasts have begun mentioning “rumors” about Putin’s health. Katie Davis writes @/www.the-sun.com, “[Ukrainian] Major General Kyrylo Budanov, 36, believes the tyrant's calamitous war in Ukraine will hit a "breaking point" in summer and be over before the end of the year.” The official told Sky News that Putin will be ousted from office within this time as his invasion continues to stall in the face of stiff Ukrainian resistance - with rumours continuing to swirl about the Russian president's health.”

General Budanov said: "The breaking point will be in the second part of August.

"Most of the active combat actions will have finished by the end of this year.

"As a result, we will renew Ukrainian power in all our territories that we have lost including Donbas and the Crimea."

“Putin had been hoping for a swift victory in Ukraine - but the faltering invasion has seen thousands of Russian soldiers killed and huge amounts of hardware destroyed by hero defenders.

“General Budanov believes the war will be over within months and will see Putin - who he says is seriously ill with cancer - removed from power.

He told the outlet: "It will eventually lead to the change of leadership of the Russian Federation.

"This process has already been launched and they are moving into that way."

Therefore, whether the general’s timetables work out to the specifics or not, his conclusions seem highly probable to be accurate. And one way or another, Putin’s health will be the basis for a face-saving exit strategy from his mistaken invasion of Ukraine.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios 

BloggeRhythms

Biden’s continuing stubborn performance in the face of failure, brings back memories of a basic business tenet learned many, many years ago. Listening to my heartfelt presentation favoring a financing applicant whose credit condition was marginal or below, our president at Leasco Capital Equipment Corporation, Mike Morrell, said: “Mike, one of the worst mistakes one can make in finance is to believe their own BS.”

Today, where data distribution is virtually instantaneous from a wide variety of sources, the POTUS continues to present information that is completely erroneous. Whatever the issue, inflation, illegal immigration, street crime, prices of oil and gasoline, fentanyl deaths or Covid mismanagement, the blame is placed somewhere else while facts and evidence indicate otherwise. Most remarkable is that although these problems most certainly can be fixed, not only does the POTUS refuse to do it, he continues to “sell” falsities and excuses for purely political purposes.

Just yesterday, the POTUS claimed that gasoline costs so much at the pump because of oil company executives gouging prices, taking advantage of current worldwide conditions. Yet, his very first act in office was to cancel the Keystone pipeline, shut off access to oil in the Dakotas and begin limitation on Federal land leases. Simply releasing oil restrictions would begin reversing inflation almost immediately.

Similarly, rather than support stringent border restrictions that greatly reduced illegal immigration under his predecessor, Trump, Biden chooses instead to send his border czar, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, to fabricate when appearing before Congress. As reported by Andrew R. Arthur @cis.org on May 9, 2022 “Mayorkas offered his own take on the congressional mandate that he gain “operational control” of the Southwest border — and it doesn’t match Congress’s take. Rather, in a shift from every prior administration, the current one has no intention — or policy — to deter illegal migrants."

“Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), likely channeling the frustration of many in his conference, ended his first round of questioning stating, “The time has come for you to resign.” In that vein, Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) referred to the situation at the border as an “extraordinary failure” and told Mayorkas in frustration: “You’ve got to secure the border.”

“In response to questions from Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) about DHS’s mandate to detain all illegal migrants apprehended at the border, Mayorkas simply told Lankford without elucidation, “We have misused detention for many years” — logically including when he was the DHS Deputy Secretary.

“Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) continued this theme, explaining that he had spoken to Border Patrol agents who “don’t believe you are doing anything to make the border secure and I don’t think that you are doing anything to make the border secure.”

Doubling down, Scott asserted that those agents:

[D]on’t believe that you are doing anything, they believe that this is the first administration that has sat there and done nothing to secure the border. The actions you have taken since you took this job — you promised me you would enforce the law. I don’t think there is any question that you’re not enforcing the law, and I think that you have utterly failed in your duty to the American public, and I don’t think there is any question what you’ve done. I am just shocked when you see this, you talk to families who have lost their kid to these drugs and it’s just skyrocketed since you’ve been in office.

“I don’t get why you can sit here and you can go on television, you can come here and claim this border is secure and you’re enforcing the laws.”

 "Scott then turned to the border numbers:

"Tell me how it’s secure when you have two million illegal border crossings last year and more than half of those individuals were allowed to stay? Think about the numbers for a second; a little over 300 million people in America, so about one in every three hundred people in this country today came here illegally since Joe Biden took office.”

In conclusion, “HSGAC ranking member, Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), revealed that Border Patrol had told him that it would “lose all operational control” of the Southwest border once CDC orders directing the expulsion of illegal migrants, issued under Title 42 of the U.S. Code in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, end (currently scheduled to occur on May 23).”

Reporter Arthur goes on: “Mayorkas asserted that the opioid overdose death rate has been increasing “for too many years”, and then interestingly contended: “Individuals are not allowed to stay in the United States unless their claims for relief are adjudicated favorably by an immigration judge. They are in immigration enforcement proceedings.”

“I say “interestingly” because the secretary is ostensibly oblivious to the fact that the administration has been pushing a plan to give his asylum officers at USCIS — not immigration judges — jurisdiction over protection claims made by illegal migrants apprehended at the Southwest border for more than a year.

“DHS and DOJ, in fact, published a proposal to do just that back in August.”

On another subject, South Dakota Senator John Thune writes: “American communities are less safe today than they were a year ago. Crime rates have surged since “defund the police” became a rallying cry. It’s no coincidence that cities that have slashed their police budgets have seen huge increases in violence. As of the end of May, Portland, Oregon, was on track to exceed 1,000 shootings for this year. In the first 14 weeks of 2021, New York City shootings were up 81 percent. In Oakland, California, carjackings are up almost 88 percent. Unfortunately, these are just a few examples. 

“The crime surge is real, and it is frightening. Statistics and percentages can seem abstract, but there are people behind every one of those crimes. People whose lives have been cut short or ravaged by violence. People whose sense of safety has been destroyed.

“This won’t be a surprise to most South Dakotans, who overwhelmingly support our law enforcement officers, but defunding the police is a terrible idea. Some of the cities that cut their own police funding are even recognizing the mistake they’ve made and seeking to restore funding they cut. Unfortunately, the problem won’t necessarily be fixed that easily. Because the “defund the police” movement has not just resulted in smaller police budgets, it has also resulted in lower police morale, leading to a wave of police retirements and resignations.”

So, issue by issue, result by result, statistical performance establishes evidence that objectives of the hard-core left simply do not work for the good of the overwhelming majority of Americans. And if Biden continues to choose attempting to overcome proven performance with rhetoric demeaning Trump’s “MAGA” crowd as “the most extreme political organization” in “recent American history,” 74,222,958 voters will more than likely be pleased to be in that group of radicals. Particularly if filling their car costs half as much as it does now while food and rent become affordable again.

That’s it for today folks.

Adios