Parallel Worlds

"Whereas Obama (in his world), loves to tout the U3 unemployment rate of 4.7%, it is a false number. It is a math thing."

It truly is like President Obama and the Republicans live on two separate planets. Almost like in a parallel universe. While Obama thinks he has done a bang up job and everything is just hunky dory, the facts say otherwise. In fact yesterday (at long last), some financial guru on CNBC said the same thing this old Bird has been saying for years now. He was asked by the moderator with the unemployment rate approaching "full employment", why is there still so much misery in the heartland? The pundit looked at her and said, "The jobs being created are not the same as the jobs being lost." Bingo!

The financial guru went on to say many of the new jobs "created" are in the service sector. Lower pay, low or no benefits. In other words, jobs which will not support a family. This past month, only 150,000 of those mostly service sector jobs were created. Meanwhile, we find out that more people are getting thrown out of jobs they have held for years. Macy's and Sears are now closing stores in Minnesota. Last year it was Sports Authority and Old Country Buffet. Even those were not high paying jobs, the number of employment opportunities continues to shrink.

Whereas Obama (in his world), loves to tout the U3 unemployment rate of 4.7%, it is a false number. It is a math thing. It is true however, that every Administration has used that phony U3 index. It is a "feel good" number. For example, if everyone today was in the hunt for a livable wage job (instead of having 94 million people over the age of 16 sitting on the sidelines and not working), the unemployment rate would be much higher. If fact the U6 indicator which takes some of those factors (plus underemployment) into consideration, our unemployment rate would be 9.2%. That is a number which is never mentioned in Obama's world.

Donald Trump, who lives in the other world, is going to have some unique problems to deal with. And those problems will be obstacles for him in getting our economy back to a roaring 80's type of economy. He will have two enemies to fight - demographics and automation. Demographics in that the "baby boomers" are now retiring in waves. And the birthrate in this country is no longer robust. Plus the age of automation is poised to take its next leap forward. In the eight years of Trump (assuming he gets re-elected), expect to see many more jobs being replaced by robotics or rudimentary AI.

The question I have wrestled with in my head is this - what are the jobs in the 2020's going to look like? Or the 2030's? True, we will always have a need for plumbers, electricians, carpenters and so forth. But many of the service sector jobs which are low skill and repetitive are low fruit on the tree for being replaced by technology. Last week there was just an article in the paper on how Amazon has over 45,000 robots in their warehouses. And that number goes up every year. 

I think the biggest difference when we travel from Obama's world to Trump's world on January 20th is this - President Trump is not going to put lipstick on this pig called our economy. He will be truthful in what he can and can't do. I do believe he, working with Congress, will "plow the road" as much as they can to allow for the creation of better jobs. But automation and demographics will remain the two specters which will haunt this new world.

I could be wrong, and I hope I am. I would love to see the country have another ride like we did in the 1980's. In any event, the ride (this new world) will be better than the old world we have had for the past eight years. How much better though, we will have to wait and see. 

Community Policing

"I seethe with anger every time I hear of one of our police men or women getting killed in the line of duty."

Well it is now official. In Minneapolis in 2016, many crimes were up and arrests were down. One would think, "Wait just a second! That makes no sense!" No it does not. But the very blue and PC city of Minneapolis is experiencing this phenomena. Why is that? This city is experiencing what many other large, blue cities are experiencing - community policing.

Before you go diving for your Funk and Wagnells Dictionary, let me save you the trouble. However, you might need to look in a Urban Dictionary to find what community policing means. Why don't we ask the good folks in South Chicago what community policing means? That is, if they feel safe coming out of their basements. Rahm Emanuel, with all his PC garbage, has let Chicago become one of the most dangerous cities on the planet. 

Under this Administration, many blue mayors have done an excellent job of both tying the hands of the police, and then demonizing them to the point where they have become targets. That is a fact. According to USA Today, police deaths (by ambush) were up 167% over the year before. That statistic in and by itself is so unacceptable, I can barely stand to repeat it in this article. I seethe with anger every time I hear of one of our police men or women getting killed in the line of duty, particularly by ambush. 

One of the effects of police not being allowed to do their jobs the right way, is we end up with less policing. Why? First off, every cop wants to come home at night. Many have families. Many streets have become "war zone" dangerous. Also, many city leaders do not have the backs of their police forces. 

In the paper this morning was a terrible story about some thug beating an innocent merchant almost to death with a hammer. Once the alarm went off calling for police help, this man had to wait over a half hour for police to arrive. Why is this so surprising? The merchant is located in the heart of South Minneapolis, very close to a police precinct. The merchant, although in the hospital in a medically induced coma, was lucky to escape with his life. The response time for a crime like this was totally unacceptable.

What is the answer to how to stop community policing? Here is my opinion:

• Allow police to restore law and order for all crimes. In other words, "broken window" policing. In other words - allow cops to be cops.
• Mayors and city leaders MUST back their police forces. Plain and simple. Police are here to protect and serve. All they ask in return is our support.
• Increase the sentencing for crimes against police. If you assault a cop, draw on a cop, or shoot at a cop, 20 to 30 years. If you wound a cop, or kill a cop, life with no parole.
• In high crime areas which are known to be drug or gang turf, allow police to practice "stop and frisk". Only a moron would argue it would be a waste of time. Many illegal guns and bad actors could be taken off the streets that way.

That is my take. I know some will disagree. But this crap has gotten way, way out of hand. People in cities like Chicago deserve a safe place to live and the police in Chicago deserve a mayor who supports and defends them.

The Jackass and the Barn

"However, when the carpenter (that be Speaker Ryan) was asked yesterday what the plans were for rebuilding, it seems the cat got his tongue."

Sam Rayburn is quoted as saying, "Any jackass can kick down a barn, but it takes a carpenter to build one." Well the barn in 2010 was our nation's health care system. And the jackass which kicked it down was the head jackass of the donkey party. Even though he was warned over and over and over again by people much smarter than I, he went ahead and did it anyhow. Not the barn is partly broken and the other part has a serious lean to it.

And the $64,000 question is ----- where do we go from here? The Republicans have been saying for years now that if they ever get back into power, they will pull this cancer called ObamaCare up by the roots! Kill it! And then replace it with something much, much better. In other words, they promised to be the carpenter. The carpenter who could rebuild the barn. However, when the carpenter (that be Speaker Ryan) was asked yesterday what the plans were for rebuilding, the cat seems to have got his tongue.

In 2013, when our health care system first started to become dismantled and molded into this thing called the ACA, our old health care system started to became history. Every year since 2013, the ACA stuck its roots deeper into our economy and national health system. And it is not over yet. This total roll out of ObamaCare is not supposed to finish until 2022.

As we enter the year 2017, the roots of the ACA are so deep and pervasive, to end this thing without significant repercussions will be a balancing act. Now word has it that our incoming President has zero interest in ending ObamaCare unless Ryan has a much shinier penny ready to go at the same time.

On a related note, Congressman Erik Paulsen, whose district contains many medical device manufacturers, cannot wait to gut the "device tax" from the ACA. Should he be able to do that, a plan would need to be hatched where to make up that revenue. Currently, many costs once the ACA went into effect were supposed to have gone away. They have increased instead. So much so, many insurance companies have asked to he dealt out of the game. Then where did many of those costs end up? In higher premiums for the middle class. If the "device tax" goes away, those costs will only climb further.

Not to equate the world of politics with a chess game, but I will anyhow. The Democrats have played this one well. They have boxed the Republicans into a tight corner. Our incoming President does not want to be tagged with the ruin of our nation's healthcare. As bad as the ACA is right now, it is still something.

Right now, there are zero Republican fingerprints on ObamaCare. Once the Republicans become the jackass who kicks down the rest of the barn, the Republicans will own it. If a carpenter is not standing right next to that jackass with plan and tools in hand, it could cost the Republicans dearly in 2018. And the Democrats are counting on that.

One of my former managers told me when we were trying to reconstruct a deal with the Navy something very profound. When I complained how difficult this task was, he told me, "As easy as it is to take a watch apart, very few people can rebuild one. Our success lies in rebuilding this watch." 

Remember that Speaker Ryan. You must rebuild this watch. Be the carpenter and not the jackass. The stakes on this issue could not be higher.   

Isolationist to Hegemonist?

"As much as we would like to say our world is sunshine and lollipops, it is not. As we have seen from world history, evil always seems to find a way to fill a vacuum." 

The man is waiting in the wings. Biding his time so to speak, just waiting until January 20th. Meanwhile, the world continues to turn. Stuff is happening. North Korea is starting to act up again. Terror has struck in Turkey. The Syrian mess always seems to get messier. The centrifuges in Iran continue to turn. And of course, the possible false flag of Russia being behind the hack of the DNC. 

Many around the world are starting to wonder what the world will be like a month from now. They know what the world has been like for the past eight years. With a feckless United Nations and a isolationist United States, any country who had designs on expansionism or regional influence, basically went unchecked. What will happen with a President Trump? Some fear that Donald Trump might try to run the world like he has run his businesses. In other words, they fear he will be a hegemonist.

I have said this before, and it has got me in trouble with some who read my blogs. I favor a strong United States in the world. I don't even mind being considered the world's "policeman". Why? As much as we would like to say our world is sunshine and lollipops, it is not. As we have seen from world history, evil always seems to find a way to fill a vacuum. Over the past eight years, we have seen the Islamic State do things to innocent people which are so graphic, they can't be put in print. And yet, there was nobody there to stop them.

When I hear that Donald Trump will lead our country into hegemony, I reject that premise. I do however, think we are going to see a more "Reaganesque" type diplomacy around the world. There are many (myself included) who think that our current President has had his ears boxed by tin horn dictators. That has made our country look weak. I don't believe that will happen under a President Trump.

The problems that President Trump will face in getting our global presence turned around will be as daunting as getting our economy going and our healthcare fixed. First off, the Iran deal needs to be fixed. Right now, that deal in nothing more than a ticket to ride for Iran to build a nuclear program. They are becoming another North Korea. Only this state (Iran) has vowed to wipe the State of Israel off the map.

Speaking of North Korea, while the United Nations and the United States have done NOTHING, this rogue state has been going gang busters in building bigger bombs and more stout delivery systems. They recently announced they will test fire an ICBM. To get this genie back into the bottle will be President Trump's biggest challenge. 

One more thing. President Obama has been a one man wrecking crew to the military. His actions towards our military has exhibited an antipathy towards force readiness. Our Navy has new ships which don't work, the Army is critically short of troops, and the Air Force Chief of Staff recently said he needed an additional 30,000 airmen just to meet force requirements. 

President Trump has a huge wall to climb once he is sworn in. When Obama took office, he lamented on how messy the world was he inherited from President Bush. I think Donald Trump would take that world over the one he is inheriting from Obama in a heartbeat.      

Irrelevantly yours....

"Truthfully (and this will come as no shock to those who know me), I have no time nor respect for this guy. I thought he was a gutless wonder when he was appointed to be our Senator. As Governor, he has been feckless."

"I am not going quietly into the night!" mumbled the Governor of a state which has recently and mysteriously acquired a redder hue. I think Governor Dayton might have taken that statement from the same playbook that our soon to be EX-President Obama did. Intoxicated by power and authority, the thought of not having much or no power anymore is vexing to these two statists. But as of today, a new Congress is being sworn in for both national and statewide bodies.

In the paper this morning, a long article talked about the challenges our poor, overworked Governor is going to face the next two years. The article talked about how this most accomplished civil servant has given 40 of his 70 years to public service. Boo flipping ho. The first thing which came to my mind is this - to go most of your career without having a real job is an anomaly. That is, unless you are a trust fund baby and can just play for a job.

Truthfully (and this will come as no shock to those who know me), I have no time nor respect for this guy. I thought he was a gutless wonder when he was appointed to be our Senator. As Governor, he has been feckless. His amazing devotion to universal Pre-K has shown he has devolved into nothing more than a shill for Educate Minnesota. Politically, he is our version of Barack Obama - a version who just can't speak nearly as well as the President. 

Not once has this Governor talked about the exploding growth of government. Not once has he offered to kill any existing program. Not once has he thought there might be some redundant, obsolete, or cost ineffective programs which needed to be fixed or eliminated. No, all he has talked about is we have too many people "not paying their fair share" and we need to tax more. Tax more and spend more. What Samuel Gompers was to the unions is what Mark Dayton is to the DFL. More! More! More!

Here is a news flash for the soon to be EX-Governor. You are irrelevant sir. Always have been. Your calling as a teacher is where you should have stayed. You have been a lousy Senator and Governor. You were not that hot as an auditor either. Your best play for the next two years is to wake up and smell the coffee. This state, just like the rest of the nation, changed on November 8, 2016. And that was just the start of the change - more to come.

Anachronistic Democrat dinosaurs from the past are on the way out. We have tried their stick and received nothing but misery. Their playbook is worn out and dated. There are new sheriffs in town this year. Ones who want to make America great again. And ones who want to make Minnesota great again. Welcome to 2017.

Our "Island of Blue"...

"While most of the country is trying to straighten itself out after the socialist gymnastics Obama put us through the past eight years, not Minneapolis. Nope. They are going the other direction. If anything, Obama was too tepid for them."

Great article in the local paper this morning. Was it some new truism? Something horribly profound? Not a bit. It was an article which reiterates what most of us already know. In an increasingly red Minnesota, we still have a bright island of blue. Or putting it another way, we have a big group of later day hippies who still don't "get it".

Who am I talking about. Why the Twin Cities of course! In particular, Minneapolis. This is the group of nincompoops who are keeping this state "blue" on the electoral map. Yes, there is that many of these progressives/socialists/commies who live in the inner city. How bad is it really? The article in the paper said in Minneapolis these days, there is the Left and the much further Left than Left. Republicans are banished from any elected position. In other words, it is hopeless.

While most of the country is trying to straighten itself out after the socialist gymnastics Obama put us through the past eight years, not Minneapolis. Nope. They are going the other direction. If anything, Obama was too tepid for them. A reconstituted Karl Marx would have been much better, thank you. So the battle lines have already started to form for the next Minneapolis City Council race. It will be those who are navy blue, against those who are florescent blue.

Besides the Minneapolis City Council race, I am going to be particularly interested in seeing who will replace Keith Ellison, should he be selected to head the DNC. Right now (according to the pundits), Keith has the upper hand. Congressional District 5 (which Keith represents), is right in the heart of the beast. I look for the next Democrat who represents that seat (remember - Republicans like hen's teeth in that area), to be even more progressive. 

People I have run into who live outside Minnesota, and who have not consumed the "bath water", ask me a similar question - "What the hell has happened to the Twin Cities?" As much as I would like to give some scholarly answer to that vexing question, I am stumped. The once fine metro has turned into a cauldron of commies. A cesspool of socialism. A pigsty of progressive nonsense.

One final word before I go watch college bowl games. Many of the ill informed who live in Minneapolis have a seething hatred for "Big Business". They want to punish business - end any corporate welfare. Stick them with $15/hour, more regulations and mandatory sick and maternity leave. What they don't realize is simply this. "Big business" can leave - and many have. It often times takes a bit of "corporate welfare" to lure a business into this expensive city. And the Lefties in Minneapolis are forgetting one vital fact. Driving out "Big Business" is cutting off your nose despite your face.

To the poor people who are stuck in Minneapolis and do not believe in this socialistic dribble, you have our sympathy. I would like to say things will get better, but they will not. That is, until you can turn your deep blue into at least a light purple.    

2017 Prognostications

"Bottom line is simply this - 2017 could be a very good year indeed. Don't be disappointed if everything which has been promised is not delivered." 

New year, new page. Out with the old and end with the new. Like most of us, I know many of the old adages for bringing in the new year. But I am much more interested in looking forward. To take a peek out over the horizon and then make a few prognostications (or guesses) for 2017. Here goes:

• The Western World will get very serious about the seemingly endless War on Terror.  And that would be for the first time since 9/11. Look for simultaneous fronts to open up against Boko Haram, Al Qaeda, ISIL, and any other Islamic Terror organization which is brutalizing innocents. President Trump will give General Mattis (with the blessing of Congress) carte blanche authority to clean this mess up. 
• There will be no massive stimulus package to upgrade and fix our infrastructure. The House simply will not fund it. It is a noble idea for sure, and one which is long overdue. However, there is just not enough tea in China to do it. Translation = we have no money, and very little national will to explode the national debt any further.
• President Elect Trump will put an end to sole source or single source contracting. That is, unless there are overwhelming reasons why to continue it for a procurement. Our incoming President believes the country has been getting hosed by contractors taking advantage of this practice. I happen to agree with him. 
• ObamaCare will not be repealed. It will be fixed - and it will take a massive fix at that. As much as many of us would like to see this evil program pulled up by its roots, it is simply embedded too deep. The unacceptable risk of killing it outright would be this - people losing any coverage for a period of time. Our last best chance to kill this thing would have been 2012. My fear is it may not even be fixable now.
• The IRS will have its teeth pulled out. It will still exist, but be a shadow of its former self. The crap which went on with Lois Lerner and Commission Koskinen has not been forgotten. Many are still after their scalps. Along with much needed reform of this agency will be a massive re-write of our nation's tax code. Don't look for a flat tax or fair tax - just lower rates across the board with fewer deductions.
• The VA will also under go massive changes. The malfeasance and mismanagement of that organization has gone on much, much too long. President Trump will put someone in charge of that organization (and empower that person) to "kick butt and take names". Our vets deserve so very much better!
• On a personal note, the Very Angry Bird will continue to pontificate and spew. Early in the year, he will pen his 2,000 article and shortly thereafter (based on 2016 trends), he will hit the 200,000 view mark. As always, he is very grateful for each and every reader who takes time out of the day to read his daily rant.

Bottom line is simply this - 2017 could be a very good year indeed. Don't be disappointed if everything which has been promised is not delivered. As good as President Trump is, this is after all, still politics. In any event - HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!