Usa Thread

[Steve]

The following message was approved by HH. Music and lyrics by Flash

 

[Flashermac]

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgJ4Q70FBWU&feature=relmfu

 

 

[Flashermac]

 

Steve Jobs biography: Did Apple CEO warn Obama?

 

 

Steve Jobs told President Barack Obama he was “headed for a one-term presidency,†citing the U.S.’s competitive disadvantages with China and a “crippled†education system, a new biography of the former Apple CEO indicates.

 

“You’re headed for a one-term presidency,†Jobs told Obama in a meeting last year where he asserted that the White House needed to be more friendly toward business, according to the Huffington Post, which obtained a copy of Walter Isaacson’s forthcoming book, “Steve Jobs.â€

Jobs also told Obama that “regulations and unnecessary costs†put the United States at a competitive disadvantage with China, where companies can build factories more cheaply.

 

The recently deceased Jobs also told Obama that the education system was “crippled by union work rules,†according to Isaacson. Jobs proposed principals be able to hire and fire teachers based on merit, and to extend the length of both the school day and academic year.

 

Jobs also suggested that Obama meet with several other CEOs who could talk about the needs of innovative firms, but in a characteristic huff, Jobs declared his intention to skip the event when the White House added additional names to the list.

 

Jobs also objected to the menu of that meeting, telling a venture capitalist that shrimp, cod and lentil salad was “far too fancy†and objecting to a chocolate truffle dessert. The White House overruled him, according to the book, citing the president’s fondness for cream pie.

 

According to the Huffington Post copy of Isaacson’s book, Jobs was reluctant to take a meeting with Obama without a personal invitation from the president. A five-day standoff ensued due to his stubborn insistence on this point, despite his wife’s exhortation that Obama “was really psyched to meet with you.†They eventually met at the Westin hotel at the San Francisco airport.

 

Jobs talked with Obama on the phone several times after that, according to Isaacson, and later offered to help with the creation of political ads for Obama’s 2012 campaign.

 

 

 

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[Bangkoktraveler]

Obie 1 wants to get the troops out of Iraq.

 

 

I gotta feeling the Republicans will not like that.

[Bangkoktraveler]

John McCain gave credit to kadafy's 'bagging' to Obama.

 

Obie already has 3 baggings now. GWB had none. figure it out.

[Steve]

Jobs has a point about regulations in some industries. There are numerous antiquated rules. Many of them are union backed. The Democrats need to have a heart to heart talk with unions. The UAW has bent over backwards. I'll give them credit. What can give them more jobs is a move away from traditional cars and a move to either hybrid or electric cars. If the alternative car industry saw a future in it they'd be more innovation. I suggest that the government (both federal and state) make a concerted effort to convert all government vehicles to hybrids. That would give domestic car makers a ready market, millions of jobs including the UAW and the environmentalists would love it as well. Demand for oil would drop and in theory the price should follow.

 

As for the schools, the teacher unions are very very powerful. No one wants to be pinned with the 'you don't care about our chidren's education' label if you suggest they need to accept some changes. Merit based is tough. It can not be totally objective. Its a bit unfair to use test scores as a main criteria. Some areas are simply going to have low test scores. If the parents don't make sure a kid does his homework, what can a teacher do? There is also too much bureaucracy. I went to a church with an elementary school principal and she said the amount of paperwork is staggering. You have satisfy the local school board, state and federal government and they all want all kinds of forms signed and documentation for all kinds of inane things. Education should be a local matter. The problem is that the urban areas don't spend money on education and the states are broke. Many state lotteries are supposed to help fund education and the state legislatures steal the money for other things.

 

Going back to making it easier for factories here. One reason China is more competitive (amongst many) is that they have an almost criminal disregard for safety and environmental issues. They are infamous for that. America will NEVER be able to compete with China on factory production. Nor should it try to be the same. We can make it easier to do business within our own borders though. No matter how much you cut regs and such China and other places will be a cheaper alternative.

 

As for meetings with CEOs and such, those are all well and good but lets not be fooled. They are going to suggest things that are advantageous to themselves and not always in the best interest of the average American. Their jobs is to make their companies money. In theory if they make money its better for everyone but theory and fact have a disconnect at times. Any meeting of CEOs should include a voice from a Ralph Nader, consumer advocate type. Some one to call bullshit...bullshit.

 

One last thing I'd suggest we do, which was suggested by one of the founding fathers, was to have a national lottery. It would rake in untold billions. Lotteries only tax the willing. The money can be used to fund any number of things. Social security for example. Or whatever pressing need we deem worthy. It doesn't have to hurt state lotteries. Part of the windfall can go to the state whose resident holds the winning ticket.

[Flashermac]

Alabama has repeatedly rejected a state lottery - the hardshell Baptists and other Bible thumpers froth at the mouth at the mere mention of it. So folks in Alabama buy tickets in the Florida lottery, and the money goes out of state. Brilliant.

 

"Pass the snakes, grandmaw."

 

 

Meanwhile, folks are already going after Marco Rubio. Looks like he is the man the Dems fear:

 

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[Flashermac]

Aha ... Obama is clearly in campaign mode. Besides maintain he got Khaddafi (I thought NATO did), he has announced he will bring home all of the US troops remaining in Iraq - just as he said he would do THREE YEARS ago.

 

Wonder if he will fix the US economy one of these days too, maybe by calling an air strike on the Senate.

 

 

[Hugh_Hoy]

Frankly, I don't like when blacks do this he or she isn't black enough tihng and I don't like seeing it involved in an election.

 

I'm thinking that this type of characterization is a "black thing". That is, limited to the black community. The first time I heard blacks put some kind of emphasis on the shades of "blackness" was when I taught at Markham (104th and Compton). I'd hear kids say to others, "yo sho is black. You as black as ....". It seemed that the more black another was, the lower on the totem pole one was. I also heard the use of the "N word" a lot. I was pretty sure that in both cases, there was an amount of "joking around" involved, cuz nobody died as a result. 55555555555 Kind of like calling a good friend an a-hole when you found out years later that he was dating "my girl" at the same time I was. LOL.

 

One thing that puzzles me: If a person is a mulatto (Barry), why is he referred to as "black"? He has just as much "white blood" in him as "black blood". Like you said, when it comes to U.S. politics, the amount of "American" a person reflects should be much more important than the amount of light a person reflects.

 

HH

[Hugh_Hoy]

The following message was approved by HH. Music and lyrics by Flash

 

 

555555555555555 Very clever.

 

HH