Help wanted - NOW!!!

"The brave new world is upon us. The new opportunities are just starting to show green sprouts. There is money to be made, jobs to be created, opportunities to be chased."

Okay young folks. Looking for a career with a future? Oh, there are going to be lots to chose from. BUT - one which is right around the corner, is connected with the new direction the auto industry is going in. ICYMI, I did an article earlier this week about the rapid changes coming in cars. Not just a design change, but a fundamental change on how they will run. The world is going electric on vehicles, that is a certainty, and the logistics to support that change will be sprinting like crazy to catch up with that change.

Today, I attended a monthly political luncheon event. On the way home, I stopped at my auto dealership to get a slow leak in a tire fixed. While I was waiting, I was standing outside enjoying this 20 degree warm-up. I noticed the dealership (a very large one), still had only one charging station for the Volt. I asked one of the people on the sales floor if they we aware in five years, GM was planning on having 20 new models which will be 100% electric. In those five years (and the other car manufacturers are also joining the crowd), we are going to need a boat load of new charging stations to service these cars. 

How many charging stations will be required all over town, on the road, and in most garages? Millions. Maybe tens of millions. So opportunity is there. To be able to have the capacity to manufacture as well as install these stations. These are HUGE opportunities in this developing market. Then (and this is also a big one), is the juice. Will we be able to produce enough electricity at an affordable price to charge all these cars? And how will we produce this electricity? Bring back coal? Nukes? Oil? Wind? Solar?

This is something I can tell you right now is going to be a big problem. The industry has made the choice (and the financial commitment) to evolve from gasoline to electric. And in five years, we will be in the smack dab middle of this change. We better (as a nation), come up with a plan on how this will work. If we don't, we are going to have a whole bunch of electric cars sitting idle and people being stuck in their homes. 

One more thing. As we are starting to phase in the charging stations, we also need to start phasing out gas stations. This change on how we keep our vehicles running is going to be HUGE - MASSIVE. How is it going to work? Pay attention youngins. This is your opportunity to excel and shine. This is virgin territory where there is no plan, no cookbook. You will able to shape the future by the way you solve this opportunity (and problem).

The brave new world is upon us. The new opportunities are just starting to show green sprouts. There is money to be made, jobs to be created, opportunities to be chased. It is now 2018. The clock is ticking. If we don't grab the future, someone else will. 

Move over Gipper! We have some new Teflon here!

"If Trump was a Democrat instead of a dastardly Republican, the Left would already be prepping Mount Rushmore for a fifth sculpture." 

What is wrong with that Donald Trump guy??? Turns out - not much. He has become the new version of the Teflon President. He has even "less stick" on himself than Ronald Reagan had. And the funny part for us on the Right is this - whereas Ronald Reagan had the Left mesmerized with his affable nature and quick wit, Donald Trump has the Left spinning in circles.

Since it is Muhammad Ali's birthday today, I will somewhat quote him. While the MSM has been trying to tag the President with a knockout punch, Donald Trump has been "floating like a butterfly and can sting the press like a bee." In other words, the press cannot lay a glove on him.

Yesterday, the President's doctor gave a presser on the results of 45's first physical while in office. This was the moment the press had been waiting for. The Russian thing kind of went flop, the corruption thing never materialized, and the "palace drama" in the White House has been a bust. But the physical! Now is when they are going to really nail him. Get that copy of the 25th Amendment ready, because now they can use it! Trump is going to have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, bad joints, obese, and most of all - he will prove to be a "dotard". 

What the what just happened? This President who is suppose to be five minutes from a heart attack or stoke is in excellent health (for a 71 year old man). He whizzed through the cognitive test and passed the rest of the physical just fine, thank you. His resting BP is 122/78 (okay - I am very jealous of that!) and his eyesight is so good, he does not even need to wear glasses (jealous again). 

Donald Trump continues to play the press just like a master musician plays an instrument. And Trump's Press Secretary? Wow! Sarah Sanders is better than excellent! She handles the daily press briefings like Diggs handles a fourth down pass from Case Keenum. Donald Trump has brought Teflon back to the White House. We have not seen it since the Gipper left. But it is back now. Will that stop the MSM from trying to break through that Teflon? Na! But they will keep trying, and POTUS will continue to make them look like fools. 

One more thing. While the attacks on this Administration keep coming in, stuff keeps happening. The stock market hit 26,000 for the first time this week, and the economy continues to roar along. Even though Trump has not won over the African American community as yet - he should have. The unemployment rate in that community is at a 45 year low. If Trump was a Democrat instead of a dastardly Republican, the Left would already be prepping Mount Rushmore for a fifth sculpture. 

One more thing. Thanks to CNN, the most commonly used word this month is "shit hole". If Trump said it, or did not say it, "shit hole" has become the most commonly used word since "covfefe". Once again, Donald Trump plays the Left like a violin - and his Teflon coating continues to do just fine.    

Plugged in for the future...

"The gas tax will probably go out the window. It won't be nearly enough to keep our roads in good repair. Get ready for a usage tax."

Wow! This new year is barely a half a month old, and I have already read two articles about how our auto industry is in the beginning stages of a massive change. How big of a change? A total change. Some blame China. After their proclamation that soon all non-electric cars will be banned from their roads, it set the US auto makers into a frenzy. By the way - California might also do the same. The change over to electric cars, which was going to take decades, is now only going to take years.

By 2023, General Motors has plans to introduce 20 new electric models. 20! And Ford also has plans to introduce 13 new electric models, including an F-150 electric truck. It is not just Ford and GM - just about every auto maker on this planet is following suit. Where at one time it was just the Chevy Volt and the Tesla, in five years there will be a wide variety of electrics to choose from. 

As if this revolution in the auto industry will not be massive enough, it will also be happening right on top of another equally massive (or more so) revolution. That would be the self-driving car revolution. Just this month, GM unveiled a concept car on what their version of a self-driving car might look like. Think it looks weird? Get used to it. We will be seeing a lot of weird looking autos being produced in the next 10 years. 

With every improvement however, comes challenges. And these challenges will be huge. The new batteries which will power all these cars are still being refined. Currently, some auto batteries will go up to 300 miles on a charge, but most are still down in the 200 mile range. These batteries need to be at least doubled, or tripled. Long lasting and quick charging will be the name of the game.

The gas tax will probably need to go out the window. It won't be nearly enough to keep our roads in good repair. Get ready for a usage tax. Most believe this usage tax will incorporate a GPS system which will report your miles and location to some governmental taxing authority. Hello, big brother!

I would be remiss if I did not bring this up again. With this projected (and very massive) change as to what we drive, and how we drive (or don't, as in driver-less cars), why in the Sam Hill are we still pouring billions into transportation which runs from a fixed location on a fixed schedule? Yes, I am talking about choo-choo trains. We ALL need to be ALL IN to make this electric revolution work. To take money away from getting our infrastructure ready for driver-less cars, and then pour that money into a rail system which few, if any will ride, is a fool's errand of biblical proportions. 

What? Some are saying right now they don't want to drive an electric car, and they sure don't want one which drives itself? Not to be the bearer of bad news, but those folks need to get with the program. The wave will overtake all of us. The future is coming and in some ways, the future is already here. We need to get plugged in for the future. Much more on this subject coming soon.  

Hello Vikings - welcome to history!

"Welcome to history Vikings. Win, lose or draw next weekend, the 'Minneapolis Miracle' will be talked about for years, and years, and years. My only comment? SKOL!!!!" 

Back when I was a newlywed, and just starting out in the working world, my Dad was also still working. He worked as a Purchasing Director for a manufacturing firm in St. Paul. Back then, the rules for gifting were more lax, so my Dad would occasionally get free tickets to the Vikings or Gophers. My parents had no desire to go to the games, and put up with rowdy fans - but my wife and I did. We went to as many Viking games as we could out at the old Met Stadium. The Gophers - not so much. They kind of sucked back then (sure glad that has changed!). 

One of the more memorable games we went to during the age of the Purple People Eaters was a cold December playoff game in 1975. Yes, it was the now infamous "Hail Mary" game. This game is still being talked about in Dallas. It was that big. And (by some of the older Viking fans) it is still being talked about in Minnesota. How Drew Pearson got away with a flagrant push off on a Minnesota defender and made a miracle catch on a desperation fourth down Hail Mary pass from Roger Staubach. It was the 50 yard catch which broke purple hearts for decades.

The 1975 "Hail Mary" pass ranked right up there with the "Immaculate Reception" from the 1972 Steeler/Raider AFC Playoff game. As famous as Franco Harris was before the catch, this play solidified his place in football history. Two great catches, in two critical playoff games. That is until yesterday. Now we have added one more. The one which many are now calling the "Minneapolis Miracle". 

There are so many things that were right about how the game turned out yesterday. First, it helped right a huge wrong from 1975. The Vikings got royally screwed by Dallas on that "Hail Mary" pass. Now all the Vikings fans can think about is the "Minneapolis Miracle". Next, it happened against the Saints, who "mugged" Bret Favre in the 2010 NFC championship playoff game in New Orleans in 2010. The Saints played so dirty, they should have been barred from playing in the Super Bowl, and that honor should have gone to the Vikings.

In any event, that was then, and this is now. The only thing which could have made yesterday even sweeter, is if the Dirty Birds had beat the Eagles. We would have then played Atlanta AT HOME for the NFC championship next Sunday. We could have settled one more playoff score from the past. 

Welcome to history Vikings. Win, lose or draw next weekend, the "Minneapolis Miracle" will be talked about for years, and years, and years. My only comment? SKOL!!!! 

The coming era of the climbers and the coasters

"We can look forward to the next age with dread or anticipation. I would like to think of it as the later. Opportunities will abound."

Heads up kids. The party is almost over. I know - during the age of Obama it was cool to follow your muse. Do what you want, when you want, and the nanny state will provide. The workforce participation level dipped to historic lows and unemployment was often times referred to as "funemployment". In other words, being out of work went from a stigma to a benefit. Buckle up - there is a change in the economic wind coming. 

I have reading more and more articles about the upcoming labor shortage in this country. How bad is it going to be? Many employers which need higher tech skills are starting to lobby Washington for more I-9 Visas. Yes, we are still producing some of our kids who want to "climb". Those who will put in the elbow grease and late nights to get the right type of training and or degrees. However, the numbers to fill those new high tech jobs are not there. Our problem is too low of a birth rate, as well as we still have too many young folks who want to "coast".

Now don't get me wrong - all work is honorable. But this country, as well as the rest of the civilized countries in the world, are getting ready for the next leap forward. And that leap is going to happen in the next seven years. For the "climbers", who really want to be major players in this next industrial revolution, the welcome mat is out. For those who want to remain "coasters", the vertical opportunities will become fewer and fewer. Plus - be prepared to see more and more folks coming here from India, China, Japan and points west. These are the new immigrants who will fill the jobs which we will not be able to.

I have said this before. If you know a young person, the best advice you could give him or her is to 1) get trained and or educated, and 2) stay nimble. The staying nimble part is almost as important as the training part. Why? Many of the jobs on the new frontier are not even jobs yet. They don't exist. But they will. 

One more thing about the coming labor shortage. In some areas, it is already here. Don't think so? Try going in ANY fast food outlet without seeing a help wanted sign. Just about any department store. People can say they are not going to take employment at a low skilled job until it pays $15/hour. To those people I would tell to wake up and smell the coffee. First off, $15/hour is only $30,000/year. Not nearly enough to live on. Next, I would tell them they will cut off their noses despite their faces. Many employers cannot afford to pay that much for low skilled labor and will phase those jobs out.

We can look forward to the next age with dread or anticipation. I would like to think of it as the later. Opportunities will abound. Some opportunities will be low fruit on the tree. That is - for those who want to climb, will grab them. The coasters however, will have to settle for what little falls on the ground.

Is nuclear war really that close?

"Yesterday the very blue state of Hawaii got a wake up call. I would hope the rest of our nation did also. Do we want to live under this (mushroom) cloud, or do we want to do something about it?"

Back in the Cold War days (which now seems so long ago) a standing joke was if the civil defense alarms went off, warning of an impending nuclear strike, we had only minutes to react. So the joke was instead of doing the "duck and cover" as we did in grade school during drills, we were to bend over and "kiss our sweet ass good-bye". Why? Because there was really nothing else you could do. We were all going to be toast (literally).

Yesterday in Hawaii, the good residents (as well as the many tourists this time of year), had a unwelcome dose of deja vu. Early in the morning when most folks were planning out their Saturday, an unbelievable message came across the media as well as the internet. Hawaii had just minutes before a ballistic missile arrived. Then for almost 40 minutes, time stopped for the people who saw that message. Things became real and surreal at the same time. Had the Norks really done it? Were we now at war? Were many about to die?

What happened yesterday was both good and bad at the same time. First off, the butt head who pushed the wrong button should be pushed out his or her comfy government job. Like today. Next, it really showed how ill prepared we are for an event like this. This should have been (as the educators say), a teachable moment. People had absolutely no clue what to do. Some were lowering their kids into sewers. Anything to get away from a blast radius. But for most of the folks, there would have been just a blinding light, and then silence.

Here is a news flash for our federal government. We don't want to live this way. We don't want to live on the precipice of some kind of nuclear holocaust. General Keane was on the news yesterday. He said having a nuke on a ballistic missile and pointed at us (like the Norks say they do), is an absolute provocation. (My words now)...We have every right to go into North Korea and neutralize this threat. The same goes for Iran.

Will we have another nuclear war at some time? I think we will. Why? Ever since 1945 when the nuclear genie was let out of the bottle, it became only a matter of time before some unstable regime or terror group unleashes a nuke or nukes. The United States had done a TERRIBLE job in the past in allowing the proliferation of nukes by unstable countries. Hello Pakistan, North Korea, and soon - Iran. We have nobody to blame but ourselves for this mess.

Yesterday the very blue state of Hawaii got a wake up call. I would hope the rest of our nation did also. Do we want to live under this (mushroom) cloud, or do we want to do something about it? Like I say, it is only a matter of time when this message will come across the media again, followed shortly by that blinding light - and then silence.   

A city engineered wrong

"We need more and better roads, especially the main arteries. If we do nothing, I can only imagine what our roads will look like in 2025."  

Had quite a day yesterday. And it all started with a planned trip down to the Reserve Air Base by the airport. When my wife made her appointment (she had a minor glitch in her Tricare insurance we needed to clean up), she asked me what would be a good time. Being cautious, I recommended 9:10 in the morning. That way rush hour would be about over, and we should make it in plenty of time.

We left the house at 7:55. Once we got on highway 10, I could see the traffic was still heavy. And it stayed heavy from highway 10, to highway 252, and then onto I-94. When we got close to the Lowry Hill Tunnel on I-94, things went from bad to worse. Traffic had come to about a dead stop. It took almost 1/2 hour to get through the tunnel and then onto I-35 W heading south towards highway 62. Why did it take that long? An accident? Nope. Snowing? Nope. Icy roads? Nope - roads were in very good shape. Why then? The way that spaghetti junction was engineered.

Here is the problem. I am a veteran in traveling though the Lowry Hill Tunnel. Did it for years. To work, and home from work. In all sorts of weather. Many times during rush hour. However, my travels through that tunnel in the 1970's and 1980's were NOTHING like what we saw yesterday. And it is not just yesterday. Most times we have had to go through that tunnel recently, no matter what time of day, it is very congested. Why? Way too much traffic merging in to I-94 right before and right after the tunnel. Piddle poor job of engineering.

Solutions? The North Star train? Nope - been running for years and things are still hosed up. The LRT system? Nope - nada. Staggered rush hours? Nope - now our rush hours look like Chicago's. Start at 5 in the morning and continue on until 9 or so. Rather than one hour of misery, try four.

Other than just staying home, is there a solution to the Minneapolis mayhem? Don't chuckle St. Paul - you are almost as bad. The solution is what it has been for quite a while now. Plus this solution is nails on the chalkboard to the Met Council. LANES NOT TRAINS!!! We need more and better roads, especially the main arteries. If we do nothing, I can only imagine what our roads will look like in 2025.

As a post script, we did make our meeting yesterday with one minute to spare. However, it involved me going 75 on I-35 once I got beyond the tunnel and we were both frazzled once we got to the base. Did I get a ticket for speeding that fast? No. That was the only good part of the commute.