PardonMyFrench

Bruce Springsteen Working on a Dream Is Wretched

I've been a Springsteen fan since 1983 when I picked up Nebraska and then I got Born to Run; the rest was history.  I became hooked and just in time for the Born in the USA tour.  I've seen Bruce 40 times including at the Stone Pony.  My eight year old son Jacob has seen him 4 times.  Unfortunately, we won't be seeing Bruce on the first leg of tour because this CD is probably the worst collection of songs that Bruce has ever released.  We'll wait for the second wave which should be his typical Greatest Hits tour.

Most USA fans consider Human Touch Bruce's worst release and then probably Ghost of Tom Joad (not a rock CD) or Devils and Dust.  Me?  Human Touch by far even though I never bought GOTJ (my friend Frank B bought it for me as a joke) and I don't own Seeger Sessions (couldn't see celebrating Pete Seeger).  Anyway, Working on a Dream makes Human Touch look like a Springsteen masterpiece.

• Bruce's voice on WD sounds truly tired.  Most readers will think he never sounded good, but as a fan, Bruce's has hit a new low on this CD.  On Human Touch his voice is very strong and near peak performance.
• The whistling on Working on a Dream is an all time low for corniness.  It used to be Man's Job.
• Queen of the Supermarket is absolutely a ridiculous song.  My 8 year old son can't even sing it.  The song reminds me of Car Wash from Tracks but Car Wash is infinitely better because Bruce had the good sense to only release it with a collection of songs that never made official releases.  Seriously can you see yourself singing these lyrics?

I'm in love with the queen of the supermarket
As the evening sky turns blue
A dream awaits in aisle number two
With my shopping cart I move through the heart

• Back to Working on a Dream as the title song.  Compare it to Human Touch.  Which one is a better opener and title song?
• As storytelling goes even Outlaw Pete is horrible.  The CD with the exception of The Wrestler blends together.  There doesn't seem to be a lot of diversity in the music or the sound.  Again Human Touch has a much more diverse sound and lyrics.
• Is Surprise, Surprise the most repetitive song since I'm Going Down?  However, unlike I'm Going Down, Surprise, Surprise has next to ZERO unique verses in it and it is about surprise, your birthday. UGH
• Yes The Wrestler is a good Springsteen song.  Good as in good/not great, but it wouldn't make the final cut on Nebraska, Devils & Dust, or Ghost of Tom Joad.  However, for this release it sounds good, the lyrics are up to Bruce's standards, and the music has a decent beat.

It really pains me to write this, but Working on a Dream is not even a half-hearted attempt by Bruce to put out decent stuff.  It seems that he was in a rush to put this out in time for Obama's inauguration to capture whatever momentum he thinks he would get from it (my opinion is none).  Bruce shows that he is even more disconnected from his fanbase than he ever has been. Surprisingly the media gives it a decent rating, but you can't trust these people anymore.

His fans grew up with his rock sound and then learned to love his stripped down music like Nebraska where it really was about the lyrics and the story telling.  However, songs like Working on a Dream, Surprise, Queen and the rest of this wretched release (exception The Wrestler) shows that Bruce really has no clue about what his fans want or who we are anymore.  Maybe he never cared which is cool, but to expect the fans to keep taking crap like this year over year is very sad.  Working on a Dream should have been set aside for the next release of Tracks.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

 

What Ails The GOP Is Not The Internet - It Is The Message

I've been a Republican since I can remember.  My earliest memory is going to a NJ GOP meeting when I was a kid and having my dad introduce me to Tom Kean.  Ronald Reagan was President when I was between 13 and 21 years old.  My roommate in college Jim woke me up one morning to go dress as a convict to heckle Mike Dukakis when he came to Rutgers to campaign.  I've read thousands of pages on Ronald Reagan and of course worked recently on Senator McCain's campaign for the past three years.  I've also been running online advertising campaigns since the late 1990s.  That's why I say what ails the GOP is not the lack of internet marketing, it is a lack of consistent messaging.

There's a very interesting article in today's Wall Street Journal called Playing Catch-up the GOP is All Atwitter About The Internet.  And while I applaud people using the internet to market, that's not our main problem.  That's what appears to be our main problem.  The article talks about how the current candidates for chairman of the RNC brag about their Facebook friends or Twitter followers but that's not really what's important.  There are three very interesting quotes from my friend and former McCain eCampaign director Mike Palmer which backs this up.

• "If there's someone out there who votes for the candidate who Twitters more, then we need to take away his voter-registration card"
• Sen. John McCain's campaign incorporated the same new tech features as its Democratic rivals, he argues. But more people used the Democratic ticket's social-networking tools because its supporters tended to be younger (BTW - I warned as much 2 years ago).
  
• Our soccer moms might pay their bills online, but they probably won't spend six hours a day on Facebook," (BTW - read this article about McCain's Social Networking Tools)
  

Voting Republican in past meant voting for smaller Government (lost under President Bush), lower taxes (still there), a strong national defense (9/11 kind of killed that in the eyes of some people), optimism that our best days are ahead for us (President Bush could never articulate this and some in the media believed he spread fear), and more personal freedom (once again a large population of Americans believed this was lost with illegal wire-tapping, Patriot Act).  Heck even the economy which our policies were supposed to help, exploded under President Bush's watch.

After working with both the McCain campaign as well as the RNC what ails Republicans is not that we don't know how to use the internet. It is messaging.  We lost the 2006 midterms and continued to lose seats in the Senate because the American people have forgotten what it is meant to be a Republican.  A lot of leaders like to quote Ronald Reagan, but I don't think they remember how much discipline President (and even Governor) Reagan had in messaging.

We need disciplined leaders and candidates who can do this.  Standing up to the pork infested, non-private job creating Obama spending bill is a great start.  We just need to keep hammering home that being a Republican means:

1. Standing for small Government
2. Lower taxes
3. More personal freedom
4. Strong defense
5. A belief in the private sector for job creation and innovation

Notice social issues are not in my top 5.  I think they are losing propositions to run on unless your state or CD appeals to social issues.  Nationally, I think they are dead issues when people care about jobs and the economy.  BTW - I'm not the only one who thinks this way - see this article and link called Young Republicans Want More Open Party. 

Once we get that right, the internet will be there for us. Sure it will make our marketing better if the campaign managers and the people at the top know what the internet can do for organizing and messaging.  However, a bad message delivered online is still just a crappy message.  Focus on the message, we can handle the internet marketing.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

Obama Can't Deliver A Single GOP Vote On His Spending Plan

Yes you read the title correctly.  President Obama could not convince a single Republican in the House of Representative to vote for his pork infested, wasted spending, lack of job creating plan.  But President Obama promised to bring a new era to Washington politics.  Wrong.  He failed.  He failed spectacularly.

And do you know why he failed?  Because the Liberal Democrats who wrote the bill REFUSED to listen to their President (or perhaps that was the plan from the very beginning) and didn't even fake an attempt to make it bi-partisan.  Read the interview with Republican Eric Cantor - President Obama met with the Republicans and listened but the Democrats that controlled the bill refused any Republican input. 

Perhaps things were a little more sinister.  Perhaps President Obama was just for show.  You know shake a few hands, smile, try to make it appear that he reached out, but perhaps he had no intention of using his mandate to press the Democrats in the House to get Republican support.

Now for you kids keeping score at home it is now onto the Senate where their bill can actually get defeated because the Democrats don't have an overwhelming majority.  They can't ram things down our throats like President Obama and his House Democrat friends just did.

You know it is a lot harder to get the 178 Republicans to vote together in the house than it will be in the Senate.  Perhaps if Congress tried spending the money earlier to actually impact our economy or put through more tax cuts which Obama claimed he wanted, they might have an easier time.

Right, Change came to Washington.  This isn't Change it is More of the Same.

By the way, here are some quotes via TheHill.com.  This basically says "Obama extended his hand to anyone who will work with him" but Speaker Pelosi who is drawing criticism for not working with the GOP, "went through proper procedures".  Right, that sounds like Obama wants Change in Washington.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

Is Amazon Scamming You On Shipping Costs?

I've been shopping with Amazon from their earliest days.  In fact when I was with AT&T I negotiated a deal with them so that every new AT&T customer that signed up for online billing would get a $25 online certificate.  They were a tough negotiation back in the earliest days and were very shrewd.  However, lately I think they are working a little bit of a scam when it comes to shipping and shipping costs.

Case in point.  Last week I ordered a bunch of replacement Beatles CDs (for you fans that would be The White Album, Revolver, Magical Mystery Tour, Sgt Pepper's, Hard Day's Night, and Rubber Soul).  Amazon of course tried to cross sell me to the credit card and Amazon Prime.  Amazon Prime is their shipping ripoff product (or it seems to me) where for $79 you get to pay only $3.99 for overnight shipping or you get free 2-day shipping.  So that was a no.  Checking next day added like $22, so again that was a no.  So I went with the free super saver shipping which would according to Amazon would arrive in 5-9 days.

It came down to free shipping but getting it up to 9 days later or paying for premier shipping.  I went with the super saver and guess what it appeared 2 days later. 

Tonight I'm ordering Springsteen's Working on A Dream and a book called Magic Formula Investing.  Normally I would have bought Working on a Dream the day before it came out, but I'm in no hurry to get a CD that I expect to be below average. So just like the Beatles CDs, I went with the free but according to Amazon the 5-9 day shipping option.  Anyone out there want to bet me if I get the items by Friday the latest?

Is Amazon delighting me by having it appear at my home much earlier than promised?  Or is it a clever ploy to make the free, fast shipping option appear to be slow to get you to pay for something you don't need which is the next day/2-day shipping option?  Sure the next day is supposed to be guaranteed but is it something you really need? 

I hate to pick on them and I'm torn, but seriously what do you think?  Is Amazon selling you something you really don't need?  Let me know.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

P.S. For you fans keeping score at home, the package arrived Friday, January 30th.  Why pay for the next day shipping when the free stuff gets it there just as fast?

Do You Really Understand Obama's Spending Plan Part 3

Yes - I'm on a bit of a roll here, but when I see good information I like to post it for you readers.  Just for the record, the Obama Spending Plan is filled with pork and other projects that do little to stimulate the economy (Like Pelosi's suggestion that family planning stimulates the economy).  Now via the Sunlight Foundation Labs a Google spreadsheet that shows the spending appropriations.  It beats going through the details of that long link as provided by the Government.

The list right now can't be sorted, but here are the items listed around $10+ billion.  I red flagged the fishy ones. 

The $79B in State Fiscal Stabilization is typical smoke and mirrors by President Obama.  Nowhere in his weekly address does he mention the $79B in state funding. He only mentions feel good things like infrastructure projects.  This spending bill is crap.  $79 billion to help states balance their budgets is garbage.  It rewards poorly run states like NY, NJ, and CA (blue states).  Garbage.  This is NOT CHANGE IT IS MORE OF THE SAME.

• Community Development Fund: $5.19B I don't know enough as to whether this helps the economy but based on their link it appears to.  However, the bill does state that $4.19B to be used for neighborhood stabilization activities related to emergency assistance for the redevelopment of abandoned and foreclosed homes as authorized under division B, title III of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008.  That sounds like money that won't stimulate the economy but buy up bad mortgages which is just more TARP like money.
• Highway Infrastructure Investment $30B.  Some of this looks pretty good others sections are confusing and not sure if anyone can actually track this especially when it gets handed out to states.
• School Modernization, Renovation, and Repair $14B.  "Nuff said
• Student Financial Assistance $16.126B While this might be a worthy project, putting more kids through school or lowering their costs will not stimulate the economy.  We have a demand problem not a supply problem
• Special Education Disabilities Education Act $13.6B Same as Student Financial Assistance
• Education for the Disadvantaged $13B Same as Student Financial Assistance. BTW - that's over $42B in Education projects.
• Training and Employment Services $4.0B This is for the Workforce Investment Act of 1998.  This looks very fishy to me.
• State Tribal and Assistance Grants $8.4B- Based on the website link it appears to be an EPA project and I don't think it will stimulate the economy.
• Rural Housing Insurance Fund $22.6B - Providing loans for homes. 
• Energy Efficient and Renewable Energy $18.5B I hope this is where I can get a tax credit to put solar panels on my office building in Union NJ
• Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program $8.0B  Not sure but it looks like loans for hydrogen fuel technologies.  
• State Fiscal Stabilization $79B This is real garbage.  This is where the federal government bails out poorly run states like NJ, CA, and NY.  Not helping our economy. Doesnt create jobs.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

Do You Really Understand Obama's Spending Plan Part 2

Hey people.  You need to wake up and write your Congressmen before this crappy spending, non-stimulating bill gets passed.  As you start digging into this, you will quickly realize that the liberals in Congress are going to spend your money with no care in the world whether it stimulates the economy in the short term.  Need more proof.....

This Week Transcript with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (low lights below)

• Let's talk about what's in the package, then. I know you don't agree completely with the Congressional Budget Office, this estimate, assessment. PELOSI: Well, they're going to reassess it. STEPHANOPOULOS: They're going to look at it. But what they've shown so far is that only about 40 percent of the discretionary spending, including the highway spending in the bill, is going to be spent right away in the next year and a half.

• STEPHANOPOULOS: Hundreds of millions of dollars to expand family planning services. How is that stimulus? PELOSI: Well, the family planning services reduce cost. They reduce cost. The states are in terrible fiscal budget crises now and part of what we do for children's health, education and some of those elements are to help the states meet their financial needs. One of those - one of the initiatives you mentioned, the contraception, will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government.  STEPHANOPOULOS: So no apologies for that?

So, Pelosi's and Obama's spending bill according to the Congressional Budget Office won't be spent in the next year and a half.  That means it WON'T HELP THE ECONOMY in the short term.  Great.  That's some stimulus package.  Also, Pelosi is including family planning costs like contraception in the package.  This ISN'T CHANGE IT IS MORE OF THE SAME garbage from congress.

Finally, found in the spending bill is $26 Billion for No Child Left Behind and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.  Plus $15 Billion to encourage teaching reforms.  This is in addition to more Pell Grants.  While you might think these are good expenditures, they will not stimulate the economy. Oh wait one more thing.  Only 3% of this spending bill is going to infrastructure.  So much for how the liberal media is promoting this bill.

Republican or Democrat it doesn't matter.  Obama supporter or not, it doesn't matter.  If you care about jobs and the economy you'll write your congressmen to tell them this is a spending bill and not a stimulus package. 

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

Do You Really Understand Obama's Spending Plan?

Change has come to the White House but how much change has actually come to Congress who actually spends the money?  None.  It is the same old Congress which has abysmal approval ratings (14% as of two days ago).  While some of you readers might have been huge supporters of Barack Obama, are you really big fans of Barney Franks and Nancy Pelosi?  These are the people that are writing the spending bill err I mean stimulus bill.

President Obama in this week's address promotes his stimulus plan.  Personally I agree with the infrastructure plan.  I think it will stimulate job growth and the economy.  My friends that are in the construction business can't wait for this to start and they absolutely believe it will be helpful.  I drove from NYC yesterday and hit one of those massive potholes on the Pulaski Skyway - the kind that has ruined a door on my Acura and provided me with two flat tires over the years.  Roads and bridges need to be repaired.  Other things I like in the plan as proposed by the President include:

• Clean Energy Economy (I want a larger federal tax break for installing solar panels on my office building in Union NJ)
• Computerized Health Records
• Renovate the schools

I'd like to see a tax cut in there especially for Corporate Taxes but I didn't see that in his weekly address.  Plus more for Small Business.  Anyway, that's his ideas but what does the liberal, tax and spend Congress have to say.  Well a lot actually and surprise this isn't the Change you voted for.  Just more garbage from Congress and by the way, this isn't supply side economics this is standard demand spending by congress that you learned about in your College 101 Economics class.  Low-lights from this bill as per The Heritage Foundation include:

1. $87 Billion in Medicaid spending (hmmm - does that really help your economy?. Why didn't Obama mention that this week?)
2. Medicaid Expansion (same comment as above)
3. Family Planning Loophole (read this paragraph in detail.  once again noting to do with the economy)
4. $79 Billion Education Bailout (while you might think this is a good idea, what does it have to do with stimulating the economy?)
5. Additional $43 Billion in Education (again while you might think this is a good idea, how does more scholarships help the economy now? It doesn't)
6. Finally, not one guaranteed job (video is private now which is interesting but trust me I watched it yesterday).

Change might have come to the White House but the same ineffective and inefficient Congress is spending your money and they believe they have a greenlight from the President.  Same old Congress, new President...this isn't the Change you voted for.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

What Exactly Is The Borgata Hotel Selling?

I just came back from a Campaign Solutions and Connell Donatelli company retreat held at The Borgata Hotel in Atlantic City and it was a very productive event.  However, that's not what this post is about.  It is about a Casino which should really be described as an Entertainment Tower. 

The hotel is still beautiful even though it is 5 years old.  There are tons of slot machines and plenty of tables plus a Poker Room.  It also includes a retail section and some good restaurants.  Here's kind of how my 2.5 days went starting from a conversation I had with a server right before I left to go home yesterday afternoon.

Me: Man am I hungry.  I was up until 5:30AM today playing Blackjack.

Server: How well did you do?

 Me: Oh I walked away up $300 on the week, but I probably paid out about $200 in tips on top of that.  That Chinese BJ dealer (actually moved here from China so we'll call her China Girl) was smoking hot and the Borgata Girl waitress was sexy (notice the dress enhancements).  I couldn't leave the table and they kept getting me drinks.

Server: So you won money, got a lot of drinks, and had a good time? Well that's what The Borgata is about.

That got me thinking.  What exactly is The Borgata selling?  You go to a casino and you think well.., you want to win money.  I guess that's true for a lot of people and who doesn't want to win some cash but with all of the places to eat and shop, the modern casino sells fun.  That is if you can afford the fun.  Here's a quick run down of my time at The Borgata...

• Monday night a lot of us ate dinner at The Homestead.   The place was awesome but expensive.  I had the chop salad which wasn't chopped but it was tasty and so was the ribeye steak which was served like I wanted it rare.  It was covered with hot and sweet peppers and yummy.  Needless to say I couldn't eat dessert.  I gambled at a $25 dollar blackjack table and ended up down about $90 on the night playing with $700.  Not bad.
• Tuesday night my friend Ryan and I ate dinner with the Donatelli's at Bobby Flay's restaurant.  I had a yummy appetizer and the waiter recommended the veal chop.  The meal was more expensive but I enjoyed the steak better at The Homestead. We saw a comedy show for an hour which was fun.
• On to 4 card poker which I learned is for suckers.  I ended up down $100.  However, a young moronic woman who didn't like the way I bet said to me "I guess you don't like money." Which prompted me to turn to her and say "Look I'm trying a new game.  Besides, if you cared as much about money as you think, you'd be playing blackjack where the odds are much better not this crappy game."
• Then I went with a few co-workers to a $15 dollar BJ table.  That's when another co-worker named Missy said to me "don't leave me. Teach me how to play blackjack."  That was at 10PM and at the table with the China Girl.
• Missy then went on one of those blackjack runs when every time I told her what to do (which was almost every time) she won.  I won't tell you how much she was up, but let's say she went shopping at The Borgata's Whim retail store.  She was able to save her winnings because every time she had an extra $100 I had her drop the chips in her purse.
• Missy was getting hit on by other guys on the table once they figured out that a) I wasn't with her and b) that the hugs were not because I looked like George Clooney, but because she was winning good cash.  I don't think she noticed them.
• The hot bartender had to leave every 45 mins and was replaced by a dealer named Hims.  He was quite nice and occasionally dealt us good cards but we wanted China Girl back.
• By 1AM or so, Missy was asking me whether she hits on 18 and we knew it was time for her to go to bed.  Since 10PM we were getting drinks served by the Borgata girls so she was getting tired at went upstairs.  That left me at the table by myself once she cashed out.  I switched to Johnnie Walker Black on the rocks because I didn't want to drink caffeine (previously Captain Morgan and Diet Coke) and stay up all night.
• At around 2AM I asked for some food because I didn't want to get up from the table.  The Borgata Girl told me she couldn't bring food, but could bring me the most awful tasting Bloody Mary EVER but it had extra olives.  Cool hunger problem solved.
• Once I started getting some food the strange folks kept rolling in.  I tried scaring them away because they couldn't bet. The cute bartender told me not to bet big even though I was up big (more than a grand) because these guys were idiots (and very loud).  I had fun with other people that showed up at the table, however the idiots prevented me from putting down big money before I got too tired (maybe a little drunk) to bet correctly.
• You see I didn't want to get angry at people like the woman from the 4 card poker table so I bet low.  A few guys who were a lot more serious got really angry at the bad bettors and made a scene. I just bet low until they left. 
• I left the table when they closed it a 5:30 AM.  The China Girl was gone.  The Borgata Girl was gone and I was gone because of the food I was served (I'm still feeling the effects of my liquid snacks).  I went to bed sometime before 6AM and somehow woke up without an alarm at 7:45 AM for my meetings; for you Everyday Math wizards that's less than 2 hours of sleep.  In case you were wondering, the hangover crept in about 10AM.

I ended up $300 after putting out somewhere north of $200 in tips but I really can't be sure.  I had a blast at The Borgata, had a great steak at The Homestead, met a lot of different people at the black jack tables including China girl and The Borgata Girl food server, and I helped Missy win a new pair of boots and a purse. 

Good casinos don't sell gambling any more they serve fun.  Try not to take gambling so seriously....

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

Do You Really Need a Website for Your Business?

I'm back home after spending the past 2.5 days in Atlantic City's Borgata Hotel for some meetings and one of the more interesting comments mentioned was whether businesses (and to an extension campaigns) need websites.  This isn't the first time this has come up so that's why I decided to write a post on it. 

Before I put some thoughts down, if you are an eCommerce site you need a website.  Sure you can use Google Shopping/Checkout but that really isn't an online store for you.  Yes you can go the Amazon-eBay route which will work in the beginning, but eventually you'll need an eCommerce site.  Personally, I'm leaning towards not having my own corporate website and just go the blog route.

10 THOUGHTS YOU SHOULD HAVE BEFORE YOU SPEND BIG $ FOR A WEBSITE

1. Website are often just static pages that tries hard to get you to return over and over again via SEO, bookmarks, emails, etc.  Sure you can add blog components to keep content fresh, but if your site is not primarily about being a blog-news generating site, you are probably better off with other options
2. Now if you have a blog, you probably notice that a lot of your readers get your content off-site via email or more likely a feed readers.  You can still make money in the blog feeds with advertising and then if they want to make a comment they can click over to your site.  However, notice that you can get your message out and brand yourself as effectively offsite as you can onsite.
3. I don't know about you, but my traffic on my site has plateaued in the 150 daily page view range.  Granted I've focused less on traffic in the past 6 months, but I get the majority of my traffic now to my blogs from Twitter links and SEO results.
4. Twitter has changed the way you promote yourself and push information out.  People subscribe to your brand to receive quick, pithy messages and then decided whether to dive in or not.  Basically Twitter can act like your Outlook Preview Pane and once again remember people are primarily interacting with your brand offsite. Also, I personally have way more Twitter followers (560+) then I've ever had on my RSS subscribers or average unique website visitors.
5. Social Network sites like  Facebook have way more utility and way quicker updates then you can possibly have unless you are the king of spending like President Obama.  Your brand in Facebook is more powerful because of the embedded tools, linking, widgets, and commenting functions embedded within Facebook's basic functionality.
6. Have I told you that you can build a great looking website in about 1 hour of work by using Typepad or WordPress?  Now it would be blog based which helps quickly generate content but the ease of use and price (basically cheap + consulting/design fees if you need help) makes it invaluable. 
7. You can even add in Google Checkout to process your eCommerce activity if it isn't too large of a store on your blog site.
8. A combination of landing pages, YouTube channel pages, and Facebook profiles can deliver a cost effective and efficient marketing campaign.  For example, here is the Captain Morgan for President page on YouTube which links over to the key page at Facebook.  I can't go into the marketing details but this combination was very cost efficient at getting 20K+ Facebook supporters.  Think of what you would know about your supporters with this efficient combination.
9. A static website takes resources to keep running including an agency to host and build pages, plus some content management tools.  The cost doesn't just stop once the site is built.
10. Finally, think about how you are going to get traffic coming back and the tools you need to measure what people are doing on your site.  That probably means Google for SEO and advertising and Analytics for your tracking.  Big sites require big expenses for tracking while the blog-Analytics costs you around a cup of coffee.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

President Obama's Inauguration A Historic Moment

Well President Obama was sworn in as President and you long time readers are probably wondering how I'm feeling.  The answer is I'm OK.

No I'm not bitter.  No I'm not sitting around wondering what if.  Look I worked extremely hard to elect John McCain President for the past three years and it didn't come out the way I wanted it.  If Senator McCain had lost during the Primary Season it would have been far more devastating for me.  However, I cherish every moment that I worked on the campaign.

I'm a big fan of history and especially Presidents Lincoln and Washington so this moment of electing our first black President is not lost on me.  President Obama also ran a marvelous campaign and as a marketer there are a ton of lessons to learn whether you are in politics or not.  I also believe the era of Republicans versus Democrats or Liberals versus Conservatives is at an end.  I'm not sure parties are dead (HT to Patrick Henry), but this bitterness is over.  This moment is a proud moment for all Americans.

I am still concerned with President Obama's policies.  I'm a Republican because I believe in a small Government, lower taxes, and personal freedoms.  Some of Obama's policies worry me.  However, that doesn't mean I'm cheering for him to fail.  I don't want my friends and family having tough times paying their bills and earning a living.  I want them to have as much of a chance at succeeding and this economic environment is the worst I've seen since the 70s so it will be hard(I was only a little kid back then).  I want President Obama to do as much good as possible for the country, but just enough to miss getting re-elected.

Congratulations.  It is a new era in America.  Once I'm back from offsite meeetings I will watch his speech which my wife recorded for me. 

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

More Money "Change" By Obama

Not happy this morning.  Not happy with of course the crappy New York Times, but what did I expect?  Watching Fox News this morning...

• Tim Geithner Barack Obama's nominee for Treasury Secretary owed $30K - $50K in back taxes.  According to the New York Times Caucus blog he wrote out a check for $43K to cover this.  $43K?  This alone should make Obama remove him as Treasury Secretary.  You DON'T FORGET TO PAY $43K IN TAXES.
• Michelle Malkin tips off that Geithner also received refunds for taxes he didn't pay.
• The Treasury Secretary does this: The Secretary of the Treasury is the principal economic advisor to the President and plays a critical role in policy-making by bringing an economic and government financial policy perspective to issues facing the government. The Secretary is responsible for formulating and recommending domestic and international financial, economic, and tax policy, participating in the formulation of broad fiscal policies that have general significance for the economy, and managing the public debt. The Secretary oversees the activities of the Department in carrying out its major law enforcement responsibilities; in serving as the financial agent for the United States Government; and in manufacturing coins and currency. 
• Michelle Malkin is correct.  He needs to go and if you don't think so, you'll believe anything.
• Obama's inauguration committee is receiving BOATLOADS OF MONEY from banking-wall st executives.  Of course they claim no influence, but you can decide for yourself why banking executives want to shell out major money - TRY GETTING PART 2 OF TARP APPROVED.  Here's a link to a spreadsheet which you can sort and filter by employer.
• Of course the New York Times doesn't report this but reports that typical liberal poster children (Soros) gets top billing and they don't mention the financial donations because they know it would be damaging to Obama.

Banking executive donations to Obama.  A Treasury Secretary nominee who failed to pay $40K+ in taxes.  At least there is transparency from team Obama that a schmuck like me can sort and sum data.  Yep, that's the kind of Change we need.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

This Is True - The Best Job in the World Blogging on Australia

I read this article in this morning's Globe and Mail while in Toronto called Best Job in the World and after reading it, I have to agree 100%.  Besides that it is the best job in the world right now, it makes a ton of sense for Australia.  Here's the deal...

• You live on a tropical island in Australia for 6 months
• You get $150K in Australia moolah which is about $98K
• Hamilton Island is supposedly for the rich and famous
• Free airfare
• Free home with a pool
• Electronic gadgets

And all you need to do is blog about it.  Blog about the island.  Blog about what you do.  Blog about food.  Etc..Personally, I'd go for it but I have two little kids, but if you can blog, and love the tropics - THIS IS YOUR DREAM JOB.  All you have to do is beat out about 200K+ applicants and get through on the website that is still crashed.

This ad campaign is brilliant.  It is delivering huge earned media for the promotion and Australian tourism.  Plus once they select the blogger that person will be generating content and undoubtedly will have a huge following when they make post #1. That makes it an awesome online advertising play.

Brilliant job.  Brilliant for online advertising,  Brilliant for earned media.  Well done.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

Who Is President-Elect Obama to His Liberal Voters?

I found this post very interesting. Democrats.com  (aka Aggressive Progressive or written another way - Aggressive Liberals) blogger Bob Fertik gave an update regarding the #1 citizen sponsored question on Change.org regarding having Obama appoint a special prosecutor to investigate war crimes supposedly conducted by the Bush Administration.  Now I don't agree that the Bush Administration should be investigated - I just think it is a liberal plot, but what is very interesting is how Obama responds to this question as Bob points out.  You see, I don't believe people knew enough about candidate Obama.

People loved the marketing and the smoothness in debates.  Voters found him inspirational and the movement caught on to the point where it was cool to be part of the campaign.  He promised Change but what kind of change?  Obama was a rock star candidate who really didn't need a rock star to help fill stadiums; he could do it on his own.  His policies?  People were a little more confused or tuned that part at.

Sure he promoted a middle class tax cut, but will you really see the one you voted for?  My Uncle Gary told me he would get the tax cut funded by cutting back on troops in Iraq.  Do you think that is happening?  Where does he stand on marriage?  Israel? Wiretapping?  Do you really know what his policies are? Look, I worked for the McCain campaign, but candidate Barack Obama is someone I'd never vote for because I didn't know what I was voting for other than change.  At least with Senator McCain I knew what I was getting.

Anyway the Citizen Powered candidate has a problem.  You see he was many things to many different people and now has the capacity for a spectacular disappointment.  When the mob gets in control and delivers an election for you and then you don't return the favor you have a problem.  The mob will get disappointed. That's Option #1 on Bob's list and now it is getting national media attention.

I also read today, somewhere online, that Obama is now backing away from closing Guantanamo Bay. Wasn't that one of his promises to the liberal world within the first 100 days?  I guess I'm not the only one who is waiting for the backlash that will occur, but that effectiveness will really be determined by what happens with the economy.

Who is President Obama?  Besides being inspirational and a brilliant marketer, we will find out who he is.  And unless the economy rebounds and he doesn't disappoint the citizens who powered his election, he'll have a hard time governing.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

Dad's Jaguar XJ-S Is Not Driveable - Or Why Tech Isn't Always Better

I'm stuck with 2 Jaguars since my Dad died.  Yes I mean stuck.  The cars were leased through my Dad's company so until it goes bankrupt, I'm stuck with two cars with a car payment that approaches $1,900 per month - what a waste of money.  Anyway, the Jaguar hasn't been driven in about three weeks because we went to Disney and had the holidays so I thought well I'll take it when I visit my building in Union that I own.

The car has a lot of power in it and a decent set of speakers, plus it was Dad's car so it has some memories complete with Dad's favorite music like Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen, and George Thorogood.  We had a few snow storms since it was driven last and an ice storm so I went outside and warmed the car up before I got into it.  I'll admit that the driveway was a little icy as was the road outside my house.  The car started no problem but when I started to back up.....

It started beeping.  And not just any friggin' beeping.  Two different friggin' beeping sounds.  One sounded like the beep the car makes when you are too close to an object and then a second one that sounded like the beeping coming from a forklift backing up.  The damn beeping wouldn't stop.  I did know that I needed to check the tire pressure, but the car drove no problem and braked no problem (most important part of the car).  I took it out in the street and the damn beeping wouldnt stop.

So I put the Jag back into its spot and hopped in my baby - 2005 Acura TL - 6 speed manual and went to my office.  The Jag just sat there because the beeping wouldn't turn off.  That's what happens when you make the car so damn idiot proof that you can't even drive it to a gas station to check the tire pressure.

The Jaguar - too old, too techie, and too idiot proof that you can't even drive it.  Kind of like Windows Vista.  That's right.  The Jaguar is the Windows Vista of the car world.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

Dear Obama and Corzine - We Need Private Sector Job Growth

I had a conversation with a friend of mine the other day that got me really fired up.  She voted for Obama and when we discussed the Obama Stimulus Package and I told her that it would create 600K new Government jobs she was quite happy with that.  I was confused.  I couldn't believe that anyone would think creating more jobs on top of the Bush Government Job Expansion would be a good idea.  She said a job is a job and all I thought about was how we are becoming a welfare state.

In today's Star Ledger there was a quick blurb printed from James Hughes, dean at Rutgers who said between 2000 and 2008 439,000 more people moved out than moved into NJ.  Why?  Jobs, taxes, and expensive housing.  I also looked at OLS Revenue from NJ the past three years and here's what I saw from 2006 - 2008 (June 2008) in millions

• Income taxes:11,475 12,379 12,700
• Sales taxes:8,721 8,900 8,578
• Corp taxes: 2,607 2,623 2,670

I also looked at jobs in NJ over the past few years and here's what I found (in 000's)....

• Total Private: 3,424 3,426 3,415
• Total Government:  647 648 647

So corporate taxes haven't changed in three years.  Private jobs have been flat and I have to tell you I don't put a lot of faith in those numbers, but it is what we have.  Sales taxes have been flat to going a little lower and income taxes have gone up due to recent tax increases.  Jon Corzine the supposed business whiz has done nothing to cut back Government jobs or grow private jobs.  The numbers are terrible.  And that's what gets me worried about Obama's plan.

When Obama was campaigning all I kept thinking about was how Obama wasn't pushing for the American dream of doing what you can individually to improve your life, but more about relying on Government as a solution.  Push a middle class tax cut through, provide jobs - any jobs including Government jobs, provide Government mandated health insurance, Government 401K plans, and rely heavily on the wealthy to redistribute wealth to improve the middle class.  Oh and let's not forget TARP which Obama supported as well as an auto bailout; that just makes me think of striving for above average mediocrity.  Obama's current plan of increasing Government jobs by 600K or so does nothing to change my opinion; plus Obama seems to value Corzine as an advisor.

We need private sector job growth.  That's what fuels an economy.  We need to work the revenue line and not by increasing taxes but by increasing the private sector economic output.  More Government jobs increases debt.  Sure you get a job as my friend pointed out, but you only get that job by wealth distribution.  Hence the welfare state.

This reminds me of AT&T back towards they were gobbled up by SBC.  Back in those days all Wall Street cared about was revenue growth - top line revenue growth.  Why?  Because that was a measure of demand for our products and ability to sell.  AT&T should have cut non-marketing and non-sales job while focusing on products in demand.

Cut Government jobs.  Cut things in NJ like stem cell research grants.  Stimulate job creation in this state and encourage companies to move to NJ through tax incentives (BTW - Obama's plan for Green Technology and Infrastructure if done correctly does stimulate private growth).  We need to work the revenue line to improve our economy - not hand out more Government jobs which we can't afford any more.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric

BTW - you think I'm crazy?  How about this article from the WashingtonPost that summarizes Obama's speech today regarding the economy.

Al Franken Wins MN Senate Seat - Who's Next Artie Lange?

Yes my wife will tell me that I've run out of Artie jokes here, but then again she bought me Too Fat To Fish.  Anyway, the Associated Press has reported that comedian Al Franken has been certified the winner of the Minnesota Senate Race. Norm Coleman will of course fight this in court, but thanks to the people of Minnesota and a little Barack Obama coattails we in this country have to deal with this clown in the Senate.  I did a little work in this race and I can tell you that of all the races that I've worked on that lost, this is the craziest one. 

Al Franken has no business being a US Senator.  He has no real policies, but he made it in by bashing President Bush.  His company failed to pay taxes or carry workers compensation.  The guy is a clown and broke the law, but the people of Minnesota overlooked that and elected him anyway.  When Minnesota elected Jesse Ventura a lot of people snickered, but not me.  That's their state and they can do what they want but the US Senate effects all of us.

Seriously, that's awful.  That's like New Jersey electing Artie Lange to the US Senate.  Heck, I think Artie would make a better Senator than Al Franken and here's why....

TEN REASONS WHY ARTIE LANGE WOULD BE A BETTER SENATOR THAN AL FRANKEN

1. Like a lot of members of Congress Artie has already been arrrested
2. Sure Artie has a drug problem, but at least you know that going in and won't find that later on.
3. Writing of drug problems, who better to help fight drug abuse then someone like Artie?
4. Artie is a true rags to riches to on the rag and back to riches person.  He never attended a classy place like Harvard to get his education
5. Artie is a true working class person - driving a cab, working as a long shore man in Newark NJ.  He understands the working man.
6. Unlike other Senators, you're pretty sure Artie won't get caught soliciting a male police officer in the men's room of an airport.
7. According to Artie he already has a long history of dealing with prostitutes but unlike Spitzer he won't need to transport them across state lines or overpay for sex.
8. You already know he will work with labor Unions and is very liberal.  That makes him attractive to NJ's most influential voting group the CWA which if it isn't already, will be representing the largest pool of workers - the NJ Government payroll.
9. No need to worry about ties to organize crime; although Artie can help represent the gambling and casino groups since he can explain what a vig is...
10. Finally, Artie has a huge following especially in the youth voting segment making it easier for Artie to get elected in NJ.  You won't have to worry about long recounts because the youth vote will go in mass for him, plus the Unions, gamblers, drug addicts, pro-legalization of pot people, prostitution, Italians, the arts and entertainment, casino and horse racing industry, cab drivers.  Heck he'd probably carry NJ by a much larger spread than Obama.

So since I'm pretty sure that Artie could win a US Senate Seat if he can survive until 2012 or until Frank Lautenberg goes on life support, I've bought the URL http://www.artielangeforsenate.com.  You can email me now if you want to help.

PardonMyFrench and my joke,

Eric

Obama's Economic Recovery = 600K New Government Jobs?

Catching up after being in Disney for the past week celebrating the end to one of the crappiest years in recent memory and I read and watched Obama's American Recovery and Reinvestment plan.  And while I want to give him a chance there are just a few things that make me very skeptical. 

• We must demand vigorous oversight and strict accountability for achieving results. Hmm like the TARP bill he voted for?
• create three million new jobs, more than eighty percent of them in the private sector. 3 million * 20% = 600,000 public sector jobs.  That's just more politics of the same.
• we must restore fiscal responsibility and make the tough choices so that as the economy recovers, the deficit starts to come down. Hiring 600K new Government employees will kill our chances at ever digging out of this spending mess.  How will you get rid of them.

Tax cuts are a good idea and so is providing relief to businesses who we hope will not just pocket the money but actually add jobs (see TARP and Bank of America as the primary example of how this didn't happen).  However, adding 600K people to Government payrolls will kill our chances going forward.  The rest of these plans while HUGE are temporary expenditures, hiring people and putting them on payroll will cause HUGE problems for the future.   

OK, so you want to fixing crumbling bridges, roads, and school.  I get that.  That spurs contractors, banks, and etc.  You want to invest in green technology.  Check, get that too (BTW - I'm hoping for bigger tax credits so I can update my building in Union, NJ).  600K Government jobs - HORRIBLE IDEA.  Just visit NJ for a perfect bad example. Oh, I forgot, you like our Governor.

Sorry Obama, you won't get credit for meeting your 3 million new job goal by sticking it to the taxpayer.  That's just more politics of the same and offers no CHANGE.

PardonMyFrench,

Eric