[Rhodes22-list] Fall Boat Pull-Out

[pdgrand at nospam.wmis.net]

Andrew,

I pulled my boat out a couple of weeks ago.  Last week I power washed the
bottom, got it all emptied out & put away.  I'm in Michigan & sail on Lake
Michigan.  With football, cooler weather & fall chores I don't get out on
it much after Labor Day.  As much as I love to sail, my priorities change
to other things in the fall.  The colors are at their peak right now here.
 I love the autumn season.

Paul

> PD
>
> None taken, it seemed to me the quality of that particular 'essay' was not
> up to par.  My subject line didn't show the 'political', so if it did, my
> apology.
>
> The two parts of the 'healthy debate-slug fest' that troubles me is the
> grinding use of epithets and personal attacks, to wit, Herb wants to tell
> me
> to stuff it. That is not a debate it is a conversation stopper. The other
> is
> that the back and forth seems to be just shouting, without communication.
> It really reminds me of rap music, all shouting and no music.
>
> Been sailing much? Mine is coming out this week, more's the pity.
>
> Andrew
> sv Carmen
> On Fri, Oct 17, 2008 at 5:01 PM, <pdgrand at nospam.wmis.net> wrote:
>
>> Andrew,
>>
>> Sorry to offend you.  I don't think what I did was any different than
>> what
>> many others have done, in terms of reading something that mirrored my
>> views and posted it for others to also read.  How is this different than
>> some of the left leaning New York Times articles or other MSM stuff that
>> has been posted here?  It's from:  http://www.americanthinker.com
>>
>> What is your problem with the subject line?  I correctly listed it as
>> "Political".  Also, I don't call it a lowly slug-fest.  I call it a
>> healthy debate.  I don't take offense at any of the left leaning posts.
>> I
>> actually enjoy reading both sides.
>>
>> Regards,
>> Paul D. Grandholm
>>
>> > Dear pdgrand nospam:
>> >
>> > awful post
>> >
>> > " ... when decades of liberal energy policy came home to roost "?
>> >
>> > This post isn't worthy of even this lowly slug-fest we call a sailing
>> > forum.
>> >
>> > And whaddabout the subject line? Ed where are you?
>> >
>> > Can we have a new rule: you have to write it yourself not cut and
>> paste
>> > any
>> > old uncorroborated opinion that oozes across the web?
>> > And if Joe is an unlicensed plumber, he is just that. He should be
>> > licensed,
>> > take the tests, go to trade school. Do unlicensed pilots fly? Do
>> > unregistered engineers practice, do unlicensed beauticians give
>> facials?
>> > No,
>> > they don't
>> >
>> > This unlicensed tradesman is manipulating gas installations,
>> connections
>> > to
>> > the public water supply, connectiions to public sewer systems, etc.
>> This
>> > work brings with it responsibilities that every municipality requires
>> be
>> > satisfied by obtaining a plumbing license before being allowed to this
>> > kind
>> > of work.
>> >
>> > Andrew
>> >
>> >
>> > On Fri, Oct 17, 2008 at 2:37 PM, <pdgrand at nospam.wmis.net> wrote:
>> >
>> >>
>> >> October 17, 2008
>> >>
>> >> Hey Plumber Joe: Been There, Done That
>> >>
>> >> By C. Edmund Wright<http://www.americanthinker.com/c_edmund_wright/>
>> >>
>> >> God love you Joe. Bless your heart Joe.  You, and people like you,
>> are
>> >> what makes the country work. You make the country great. You get it
>> --
>> >> you
>> >> act on it -- and you enrich the lives of your family and your friends
>> >> and
>> >> your communities and your charities as a result.
>> >> But I think what I should say now is "God help you Joe."  Look, 16
>> plus
>> >> years ago I was where you are now. And I must tell you  if Obama
>> wins, I
>> >> am pulling the plug in a few months. I am out. I have had it.  I am
>> >> preparing to destroy almost 100 jobs and lower my tax bracket and I
>> >> can't
>> >> wait.
>> >>
>> >> Consider: 16 years ago I was statistically in poverty, but I had
>> dreams
>> >> and a plan. At the time, the remnants of Reaganomics still set the
>> >> economic tone and a fired up Newt Gingrich was forcing conservatism
>> on
>> >> the
>> >> Clinton White House every time Bill and Hillary tried to move left.
>> >> There
>> >> were actually politicians who praised business owners and business in
>> >> general.  Against that backdrop, I've had a pretty good run. It's
>> been
>> >> extremely challenging and the move up was not a straight line, but I
>> am
>> >> better off than I was 16 years ago. And 8 years ago. And 4 years ago.
>> >> And
>> >> so are a lot of folks who have been on this ride with me.
>> >>
>> >> But Joe, I am not better off than I was just 2 years ago. That's when
>> >> decades of liberal energy policy came home to roost and four dollar
>> gas
>> >> took several hundred thousands from my bottom line faster than I
>> could
>> >> possibly react.  That same gas price slammed my customers -- and my
>> >> customer's customers -- forcing our company into a vice of rapidly
>> >> rising
>> >> costs and rapidly dropping revenues. Oh, and for fun, slower payments
>> >> from
>> >> our customers.
>> >>
>> >> That started the ripple through the sub prime mortgage industry, and
>> we
>> >> have all seen the unraveling of our financial system which was more
>> or
>> >> less totally underpinned by real estate "values." Those assumed
>> >> valuations
>> >> were the basis for any number of derivatives and credit swaps and so
>> on.
>> >> Well, forget all that Wall Street talk. To you and me it means
>> employees
>> >> are more desperate for money, customers are less willing to buy,
>> slower
>> >> to
>> >> pay and banks less willing to lend. It certainly means whatever homes
>> >> and
>> >> 401K's you have are worth less too which makes your bank even less
>> >> anxious
>> >> to lend to your business. It is the main street carnage of
>> "unfettered
>> >> government" onto small business. It is the destructive fruit of
>> >> environmental leftists, the Fannie-Freddie cronies in government and
>> >> other
>> >> corrupt liberals in positions of power.
>> >>
>> >> And sadly, this is also the result of George Bush giving into these
>> >> folks
>> >> all too often in defense of his "new tone." (That worked out well,
>> >> didn't
>> >> it?) This was helped ironically by John McCain "reaching across the
>> >> aisle"
>> >> to vote against tax cuts and vote for energy restrictions and so on.
>> All
>> >> of this was nicely summed up by Mitt Romney when he said that our
>> >> problems
>> >> stem from "too many Republicans acting too much like Democrats." Now,
>> if
>> >> the polls are anywhere near accurate, we are going to get a taste of
>> >> "real
>> >> Democrats acting too much like Marxists" for at least a few years.
>> >>
>> >> Mitt was right, but the pundits said McCain was more acceptable to
>> the
>> >> moderates. Hmmm. Wonder if a financial turn-around specialist like
>> Mitt
>> >> might sell to the moderates now? Just a wild thought from someone not
>> >> smart enough to be a beltway pundit.
>> >>
>> >> Now Joe, as someone whose been there, let me tell you how this works,
>> >> though I think you have a good idea.  At the end of the year, as an
>> LLC,
>> >> I
>> >> do file taxes with the business profit on my personal returns like
>> many
>> >> of
>> >> others do as well.  And yes, that figure is much bigger than 250
>> >> thousand.
>> >> But that's not really MY MONEY to keep. It's how I underpin my
>> business.
>> >> When customers disappear or take their time paying bills, I still
>> have
>> >> to
>> >> pay my employees, rent, suppliers, and countless other expenses.
>> Every
>> >> penny that the tax man takes out of that profit is less money that I
>> >> have
>> >> to carry forward to stay in business for the next year. And if Obama
>> and
>> >> Reid and Pelosi take more of this by "raising taxes on the rich" then
>> of
>> >> course my business will suffer. And so will all the employees.
>> >>
>> >> This is exactly what almost none of those lawyers turned politicians
>> >> understand.
>> >>
>> >> But of course, you will have to send tax money into the government,
>> Joe,
>> >> because the man who is in charge of spending that money -- Charlie
>> >> Rangel
>> >> -- damned sure wasn't paying his fair share as we know now. Get out
>> that
>> >> checkbook.
>> >>
>> >> Of course, all of this matters only if you can afford to fill your
>> >> plumbing vans with gas at gosh knows what price. It could be that the
>> >> recession will lower the gas price, but that's not terribly good news
>> >> for
>> >> you either, since customers don't spend as much money in a recession.
>> I
>> >> mean, I hate to burst your bubble, but small business owners are
>> >> surrounded by a sea of challenges outside their control and almost
>> all
>> >> of
>> >> them are caused by liberalism. Government has formed a business
>> firing
>> >> squad and it's a doggone circle!
>> >>
>> >> I wish you well, guy.  You might just have the genius and persistence
>> to
>> >> pull this off. I really do hope so. As for me, I have had enough. I
>> have
>> >> fought creeping liberalism and managed more wins than losses over 17
>> >> years. We have progressed to where  our business,  now a corporation,
>> >> is
>> >> big enough so that Obama and his ilk now have their own ideas about
>> >> "what
>> >> larger businesses can afford" and what "corporations can afford."
>> >>
>> >> Well I've got news for him. I cannot afford what they think I can
>> >> afford,
>> >> so I am breaking her up and giving her away to some key employees.  I
>> >> wish
>> >> them well too. They are like you, tough and smart. Perhaps if they
>> stay
>> >> small enough and never can carry forward more than 250 thou to the
>> next
>> >> year, they will be allowed to keep their businesses through a
>> downturn.
>> >>
>> >> As for me? I'm outta here.
>> >>
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