Now I know even a die hard nicotine addict will find this impossible to do - as in smoke in the mirror. But when looking at a mirror one hopes to see a reflection or a truism of sorts not smoke..
Reality is often something else than advertised, in many parts of the world and America is no exception.
I will cite 3 examples of how bogus the world we live in has become -
1. General Motors - At one time and for a long time was touted as the world's largest automobile producer. Fast forward to late 20th century and it had already morphed into a 'General Healthcare enterprise' spending amounts on employee benefits (and their families) well in excess of what it spent to produce what its moniker said - motor cars. It ended very badly. The government had to bail their ass out from bankruptcy proceedings circa 2008 because they became fat, dumb and ill.
So a car company can actually become a hospital or healthcare management outfit when no one is paying attention to doing the business and staying competitive. So the question is - are we still supporting a number of such business models where the core competency is a distant second?
2. Capital markets - Is what it is supposed to be known as but in reality it has morphed into a large algorithm driven computer that destroys and creates paper money in milliseconds based on someone's idea of code - aka Computerized Trading. There is no rationale for the series of psychotic episodes the American equities market has thrown in the past eight years since the government embarked on a single handed mission to save the world from financial Armageddon brought on by few very bad apples. No one it would appear is lending money to drive actual growth but it is merely a paper empire that seems destined to burn.
So the question on the table - are we letting computers make profits for a select few or actually investing for the long term?
3. Superbowl 50 - a sporting event like no other - only Americans play it but it is touted as the game that decides the world champions (Copernicus wake up). Here is the larger irony. It has become a junket where more money is easily being spent to arm the surroundings from airports to the actual venue where the ball game is played turning it into a military apparatus that will stop the most evil minded terrorists, than on the ticket sales (although with $25,000 for a late ticket purchase the numbers might be getting eerily close). Might is on display on the field and off.
So the question is - is this a large military operation on our own soil or a sporting event?
Reality is often something else than advertised, in many parts of the world and America is no exception.
I will cite 3 examples of how bogus the world we live in has become -
1. General Motors - At one time and for a long time was touted as the world's largest automobile producer. Fast forward to late 20th century and it had already morphed into a 'General Healthcare enterprise' spending amounts on employee benefits (and their families) well in excess of what it spent to produce what its moniker said - motor cars. It ended very badly. The government had to bail their ass out from bankruptcy proceedings circa 2008 because they became fat, dumb and ill.
So a car company can actually become a hospital or healthcare management outfit when no one is paying attention to doing the business and staying competitive. So the question is - are we still supporting a number of such business models where the core competency is a distant second?
2. Capital markets - Is what it is supposed to be known as but in reality it has morphed into a large algorithm driven computer that destroys and creates paper money in milliseconds based on someone's idea of code - aka Computerized Trading. There is no rationale for the series of psychotic episodes the American equities market has thrown in the past eight years since the government embarked on a single handed mission to save the world from financial Armageddon brought on by few very bad apples. No one it would appear is lending money to drive actual growth but it is merely a paper empire that seems destined to burn.
So the question on the table - are we letting computers make profits for a select few or actually investing for the long term?
3. Superbowl 50 - a sporting event like no other - only Americans play it but it is touted as the game that decides the world champions (Copernicus wake up). Here is the larger irony. It has become a junket where more money is easily being spent to arm the surroundings from airports to the actual venue where the ball game is played turning it into a military apparatus that will stop the most evil minded terrorists, than on the ticket sales (although with $25,000 for a late ticket purchase the numbers might be getting eerily close). Might is on display on the field and off.
So the question is - is this a large military operation on our own soil or a sporting event?
In general, the police and military seem to rule the world under the garb of security, apart from the virtual media that have relegated the word privacy to cold storage.
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