What's a few more billion...

While we are literally throwing billions around like pennies...why not just throw a few more billion at the U.S. auto industry? I stated clearly in my November 18, 2008 post that bailing out the auto industry was a big mistake and that it would just lead to more and more billions.

Let's be honest the U.S. auto industry could be weathering this economic downturn quite well if they had been managed effectively over the last few decades. There are thousands of companies out there (big and small) that are weathering this downturn and not turning to the U.S. government for a bailout. So, why is the U.S. auto industry turning to the government...the reason is pretty clear...they suck. Seriously, they have been managed so poorly that no one (outside of the U.S. government) is willing to provide loans to them. Think about...would you loan money to GM right now? How about Chrysler? Maybe Ford? I certainly wouldn't...they would only ask for more later. I certainly would not expect my money back any time soon.

So, the companies have been mismanaged and now we (the taxpayers of the U.S.) are being called upon to bail out the companies. This is beyond ridiculous. These companies are publicly traded (or were in the case of Chrysler) and operated in our capitalistic system successfully for decades. Decades until they lost ground to the competition. Most companies, when they lose ground to competitors, have to get creative to save their business. They can come up with innovative products, reduce price, cut costs, etc. All of these things are things the U.S. auto industry should have been doing since the late 80's. However, they have not...and now they are in trouble...I am not surprised.

We need to stand firm and let our elected officials know that enough is enough. We need to stop loaning them money and let the free market work. If they leave the market (go out of business) so be it. That won't mean our economy will fall into some abyss...usually when businesses collapse other businesses fill in. This means that other companies (Toyota, Honda, Audi, Hyundai, Mazda, etc.) will fill in the gap and provide vehicles to U.S. consumers. Many foreign auto makers (Honda, BMW, Nissan, etc.) are already producing cars in the U.S., buying U.S. parts from U.S. suppliers, employing U.S. citizens, etc. This is how the free market works.

The U.S. government needs to butt out of the free market and let the market work. If they continue to mess with the free market; we could be facing some serious and lasting problems for generations to come. Let's be honest...most politicians are lawyers...and most politicians have been in politics for a long time...would you bring in a politician to run your business? I wouldn't...and we need to remember this when it comes to election time.

Some fun facts about Pizza Hut in Hong Kong...

So, Randi and I had pizza and a movie night last Friday night in Hong Kong. In pulling up the delivery number for Hong Kong on the Internet; we found some fascinating facts about Pizza Hut in Hong Kong.

Now, first let me say that Hong Kong has just over 7 million people and covers around 386 square miles (which is close to the equivalent of New York City). However, 75% of the land is open countryside and mountains...that means that more than 7 million people live in an area approximately the same size as Washington D.C. proper, which has a population of around 600,000. On Hong Kong Island alone there are approximately 1,268,112 people which leads to a population density of around 91,500 per square mile. So, I hope you get the fact that Hong Kong is small and loaded with people.

So, now that we know about all the people and how big it is...the next questions comes to mind...how do all those people get their pizza...specifically Pizza Hut pizza?

Well, according to the Hong Kong Pizza Hut website Hong Kong is served by over 4,000 well trained professionals of the Pizza Hut Hong Kong delivery team. Thousands of people dedicated to getting you a pizza, broken down as follows:

1. 500 hotline order operators (covering Mandarin, Cantonese, English, and a few other languages);
2. 1,700 trained prime chefs;
3. over 900 take-out order operators (they drive mopeds and motorcycles with hot boxes on the back); and
4. over 1,000 support staff.

So, if you ever wondered, like me, that there seems to be a ton of Pizza Hut delivery drivers cruising around Hong Kong on their mopeds...yep, there are...there are close to a thousand of them. The coolest thing is that they have over 80 dedicated express centers (this is where the pizza is actually made) to serve the delivery orders. Your pizza is not coming from a restaurant...nope...from a specially designed express center. Pretty cool.

So, mathematically, even if just .1% of the population (7,000 people) order a pizza a night, that means a minimum of 7,000 pizzas are being ordered. That means (assuming 24/7 operations and equal distribution of orders and employees) each operator must take at least 14 calls, each express center must make over 87 pizzas, and every delivery driver must deliver 7 pizzas.

I found this fascinating...just thinking of all the work that goes into our steaming hot pizza making it to our flat.

Seriously President Obama...is this your best?

So, I have been quiet as of late...just sitting back and watching everything that is going on in our world as of late. I have to say...I am not surprised. Economic stimulus (1 trillion dollars), foreign funded abortion, closing Gitmo, etc., etc. I will say it again; I am not surprised.

I have no idea how so many people are looking to President Obama for leadership when he has never exhibited any leadership. I blogged about this awhile ago...but, do you realize our President has never led an organization larger than thirteen people. Thirteen people under the DCP organization. Now, some people are surprised that he can't lead 300,000,000 people...I am not shocked.

What President attempts to use scare tactics and writes opinion articles in the Washington Post to attempt to pass legislation. That is not leadership, that is a lame attempt at trying to coerce people into doing something.

I am so glad that not one Republican voted for the stimulus plan in the House...so glad. I hope that not one Republican will vote for the stimulus plan in the Senate. This is not a stimulus plan, this is nothing more than an attempt by Democrats to make the "big government" bigger. There are so many "pet projects" in the bill and so little actual stimulus that I have no idea how they are even calling this thing a "stimulus" plan.

I think our new President is having a "wake-up call" right now. This is not a Dictatorship and our Democracy means sometimes things don't go your way. I hope the Republicans continue to stand strong...otherwise we really could be faced with a calamity...a calamity created by the Democrats and our President.

I think President Obama needs to sit back and reassess his role and what he should and should not do. Objectively looking at his first few weeks in office...they have not been the greatest and I hope he is off to a rough start that will smooth itself out. However, I am not holding my breath as we are talking about a man who has no leadership experience and if there is one thing that is pivotal to the Presidency...it is leadership.

President Obama...stop the scare tactics...stop the oped pieces, stop the "Democrat Retreats", and at least attempt to lead. Also, while you are at...please try and maintain some respect to the office you were elected to...that means your staff need to wear a jacket and tie when coming into the Oval Office...I think that was your first mistake. The office of the Presidency deserves respect, there is a time and a place to be casual and roll up your sleeves...the Oval Office is not the place and now is definitely not the time.

As much as you want to be the next "Abraham Lincoln" Mr. President, maybe you should read some books on his leadership style.