Up, Down and Around Our Town

The times are somewhat interesting. Lessons are being sought and some are being learned. Yet, as we enter the spring and summer of this year, there are, lurking just beneath the surface, the template for what may or may not be significant signs of the future. We'll see.

Three months into the Obama administration we see that there have been some successes, mostly in the image area. The unprecedented dumping of trillions of dollars into an economy that had been ravaged by its own greed and stupidity is starting to take on another color. That color is anger. While there is great faith that this perhaps was the only alternative that the 44th President had in his arsenal, it nevertheless looks like it may have a downside that will divide and unfortunately, alienate others. It is the taxing of America that is about to kick back. We'll see what move this growing anger will produce, but make no bones about it, there will be a price to pay.

As a country, we deal with anger in a lot of different ways. Violence is always an option and we have had our share of that; moreover, the loss of confidence and a future are the residual victims of those who perhaps feel that their futures have been compromised.

Retirement? Not likely. Or at least not soon or at a level that we had been envisioning. Our dependence on employee-funded programs (like your 401K) has shown that perhaps the risk was not worth the reward. Add to the fact that many companies used to match a portion of the employee's contribution and those are rapidly coming to an end. Want to see anger? Take away hope.

It all ends up being a sense of safety. That shield has been dented, bent and in some cases, actually destroyed. All because of the excesses of our past 10 years and the greed of those we used to trust. Damning? Not really, but we'll have to see how it comes out.

What we do know is that our world's privacy has been compromised to such a degree that we may never get the chance to kick back and simply enjoy what we have created. The 24 hour a day news cycles are not seen on network or local television - it is seen at the click of a key on a phone and is available anytime that the user desires. Any wonder that local news and newspapers are on the endangered list? We'll see.

Economic development? Slow, if any at all. Debt management? Bigger than the Rocky Mountains. Job possibilities? Not likely in this environment simply because, at least right now, most consumers aren't buying anything. Oh yes, there are bargains out there for those with cash, but those are the exceptions. Most are hunkering down and hoping to ride it out. By the way, the longer the ride, the greater the anger. Take a look.

And sometimes I wonder what lessons have been learned in general. We'll about to come to the 10th anniversary of the Columbine shootings. We haven't learned much. Misguided young people act out their anger with high-powered weapons and have convinced themselves (thankfully a very small number) that going out literally with a bang - and then committing suicide - is the ticket to answer their pent-up anger.

From Columbine to 9-11 to Virginia Tech to Northern Illinois to Binghampton to Wall Street. Where is the carnage coming from and why, does it seem, that we cannot protect ourselves from both the known and unknown? Perhaps as our ability to spend dwindles that we will reprioritize what is and is not important. Sadly, the economy is full of those still trying to sell excess at the expense of those who have no excess to spend. We'll see.

On a much lighter note, I had a delightful reunion with a true friend in St. Louis. Frances (Eaton) Gilday was in town to run in Sunday's St. Louis Marathon. For the record, she plans to run a marathon in every state and is down to single numbers to complete that act. In fact, she'll be heading to Alaska in June for her assault on the 26 miles during the 24 hours of sunshine. That should be a hoot. But, mostly, we chatted about our common past and that was in High School some 4+ decades ago. As you might imagine, she has weathered far better than I and we savored each other's company sharing stories of family (she came from a large family and I got the rundown in about 30 minutes) and the pride of my own brood. Particularly my little hero who will celebrate her 1st birthday in less than a month. It was wonderful reconnecting with such a friend. A colleague and a sounding board. A sense of purpose and a feeling of accomplishment. This came from my optimistic friend who was part of the carnage left by Circuit City - an employer of hers for almost 30 years. Better days ahead? Probably and we'll see.

There is much to reflect upon in these times. Patience has never been our strong suit, but perhaps the reward for some degree of frugality will start to pay off. We'll see. What I do know is that the clock doesn't stop ticking and I'll look forward to a wonderful relationship with six very fine students over the next three weeks. I know I'll enjoy it. More on that later.

So, enjoy the spring weather and get your lawnmowers out. We'll check on that progress soon. Drop us a note with your thoughts and we'll take it from there. Till then, and as always, I remain.....