Today we'll get a glimpse of Obama 2.0 and his new (read "old") economic plan that will try at the same time to be a victory lap and also a call to arms. The last time Barack Obama spoke at Knox College he veered off his prepared text a few times but the line that caught my attention most came at the very end of his speech (see in brackets and italics) and wasn't scripted - couldn't help it.
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Knox College Today, on this day of possibility, we stand in the shadow of a lanky, raw-boned man with little formal education who once took the stage at Old Main and told the nation that if anyone did not believe the American principles of freedom and equality were timeless and all-inclusive, they should go rip that page out of the Declaration of Independence. My hope for all of you is that you leave here today with the will to keep these principles alive in your own life and the life of this country. They will be tested by the challenges of this new century, and at times we may fail to live up to them. But know that you have it within your power to try. That generations who have come before you faced these same fears and uncertainties in their own time. And that though our labor [through our collective labor] and God's providence, and our willingness to shoulder each other's burdens, America will continue on its precious journey towards that distant horizon, and a better day. Thank you and congratulations on your graduation. |
That speech also included lines like:
"Where everyone has a shot"
"Decent wages and benefits"
"Free markets, but sense of mutual regard for each other, the idea everybody has a stake in the country"
"...were all in this together and everybody's got a shot at opportunity"
Today I expect to hear more of the same. A message that doesn't focus on individual achievement as something that's the result of hard work and determination but some kind of luck or nefarious system of selection that excludes the poor, young, women, blacks, Hispanics and anyone else that might be disgruntled. Everyone has a shot in America but the war on success hits those with the most obstacles hardest. I'm not sure if the White House gets this or if they know, and in fact it's their goal all along to make people more vulnerable - hence more dependent on government. I think the real battle isn't the little guy versus corporate America, but Big Government vs. Big Business.
In a nation with smoldering emotions, lingering economic plight and falling standards the last thing we need is the divisive gasoline of class warfare tossed into the mix.
There is no collective and successful people aren't in debt to government beyond the exorbitant taxes they're already paying. When my corner property is covered in 12 inches of snow nobody in my town benefitting from any number of government programs rushes over to pitch in while I'm shoveling. I get that and its fine except somehow, even after I've gotten up an hour earlier to shovel, travel dangerous roads and fight the typical battles that come with business, I'm expected to share more of my earnings with the collective.
I should welcome higher taxes as a good citizen in the eyes of President Obama but I actually have more respect for the jobless and lower income people, I don't think they're feeble. I don't think they're lazy. I don't think they're hopeless. Yes, people can be seduced into losing innate values and accept what might have been considered charity in years past as some kind of reward for jobs not only not well done ... but not done at all. As for the scam about redistribution of money, sure the administration is taking from higher income families and giving to lower income families but a giant chunk is lost in the transition.
To have "collective labor" there has to be labor.
This act has worked wonders in the political arena but people are antsy. Public opinion polls are in freefall and "blame Bush" seems lame... it will seem lamer as time marches on. Tax the rich will be the word today as they are the ones stopping people from getting their "shot" at the American Dream, not the lack of jobs or magnetic pull of gobs of freebies in exchange for dropping out of the labor market.
So far earnings season is bringing some encouraging surprises, and the most recent one came from Boeing Co, which posted a better-than-expected 13 percent jump in quarterly profit after delivering more commercial jets, shrugging off concerns about the 787 Dream-liner and sending its stock up about two percent in pre-market activity, reaching an all time high. Clearly, enthusing investors even more was that Boeing also raised its full-year revenue forecast to a range of $83 billion to $86 billion from its previous guidance of $82 billion to $85 billion, and the company forecast full-year earnings of $5.10 to $5.30 per share, up from its previous estimate of $5.00 to $5.20.
As we mentioned at the close yesterday, BEAV beat by $0.04, with revenues +10.7% to $850.3 million versus the $842.8 million consensus. Revenues were strong in all 3 segments. Bookings were also at a quarterly record $880 million, leading to a record $8.4 billion backlog. Full year guidance was also raised by $0.05 to $3.50 ($3.52 consensus). At the moment we are long this stock in the Hotline, which is up over 15 percent from entry and is trending higher in pre-market trading another two percent, catching some wing from Boeing's results.
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