On Nov 16, 1:05 pm, OMS-II <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> In all fairness, when the fed. govt. loaned money to bail out Crysler,
> Crysler had a plan to turn the company around (Lee Iacocca (sp?)) and
> in the end, the govt profitted off of the loans.
He has a new book, and here are some excerpts:
Lee Iacocca writes:
'Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's
happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming
bloody murder. We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship
of state right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us
blind, and we can't even clean up after a hurricane much less build a
hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods
their heads when the politicians say, 'Stay the course'
Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America , not the
damned 'Titanic' I'll give you a sound bite: "Throw all the bums out!"
You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and
maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this
country anymore.
The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys
in handcuffs. While we're fiddling in Iraq, theMiddle East is burning
and nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving 'pom-
poms' instead of asking hard questions. That's not the
promise of the America my parents and yours traveled across the ocean
for. I've had enough. How about you?
I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're
not outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have.
The Biggest 'C' is Crisis !
Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis.
It's easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk theory.
Or send someone else's kids off to war when you've never seen a
battlefield yourself. It's another thing to lead when your world
comes tumbling down. George Bush, Dick Chaney and who is this Bozo
coming up next? One of the most Liberal Idiots in the U. S. Senate
and he is talking about disarming America . I can't believe the
American people are seeing what he is about to do to this country.
May God have mercy on us all.
On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other
time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the
ashes. A Hell of a Mess. So here's where we stand. We're immersed in a
bloody war with no plan for winning and no plan for leaving. We're
running the biggest deficit in the history of the country. We're
losing the manufacturing edge to Asia , while our once-great Companies
are all moving offshore. We're getting slaughtered by health care
costs. Gas prices are skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent
energy policy. Our schools are the worst in the world. Our borders
are like sieves. The middle class is being squeezed every which way.
These are times that cry out for leadership and we are getting ready
to put the most Liberal Senator in the U. S. Senate in as our next
President because we want to be fair and
elect someone just because of his race. We don't have time to be
fair, we need a strong leader.
But when you look around, you've got to ask: 'Where have all the
leaders gone?' Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where
are the people of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and
common sense? I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I
hope you get the point.
Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than
making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo?
We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and
all we know how to do is react to things that have already happened.
Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane Katrina.
Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response to the
hurricane, or demanding accountability for the decisions that were
made in the crucial hours after the storm.
Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't happen
again. Well guess what people? We are having more floods right now.
What are we doing to help these people out. Now, that's just crazy.
Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a plan. Figure out what you're going
to do the next time. Why are we allowing people to build in flood
plains anyway? If you build in a flood area, expect to be flooded and
deal with it. Don't expect the Government to bail you out.
Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can
restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. All they seem to be
thinking now-days is getting themselves bigger salaries and bonuses.
Who would have believed that there could ever be a time when 'The Big
Three' referred to Japanese car companies? How did this happen, and
more important, what are we going to do about it? Likely nothing!
Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down
the debt, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care
problem. The silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are
eating away at our country and milking the middle class
dry.
I have news for the gang in Congress and the Senate. We didn't elect
you to sit on your asses and do nothing and remain silent while our
democracy is being hijacked and our greatness is being replaced with
mediocrity. What is everybody so afraid of? That some
bonehead on Fox News will call them a name? Give me a break. Why
don't you guys show some spine for a change? I honestly don't think
any of you have one!
Had Enough?
Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm trying
to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope; I believe in
America ... In my lifetime I've had the privilege of living through
some of America's greatest moments I've also experienced
some of our worst crises: the 'Great Depression', 'World War II', the
'Korean War', the 'Kennedy Assassination', the 'Vietnam War', the1970s
oil crisis, and the struggles of recent years culminating with 9/11.
If I've learned one thing, it's this:
"You don't get anywhere by standing on the sidelines waiting for
somebody else to take action. Whether it's building a better car or
building a better future for our children, we all have a role to play.
That's the challenge I'm raising in this book. It's a call to 'Action'
for people who, like me, believe in America . It's not too late, but
it's getting pretty close. So let's shake off the crap and go to
work. Let's tell 'em all we've had 'enough."
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