Down to Business
In the most recent issue of InformationWeek magazine that I recieved (Feb 16, 2009), Rob Preston (editor) had a great little column that can be found here.
The whole issue and the article talked about Obama's pending appointment of a new national-level CTO (chief technology officer).
What impressed me the most is Rob's abandonment of what could potentially be his and his audience's techy interests and treatment of the big issues that seem to be affecting one and all -- namely, economic and money issues. He hit some points so squarely that I'm including a few excerpts...
Points out real reasons for economic trouble
"The global financial system is near collapse not because Wall Street execs make too much money and float away from their failures under golden parachutes, but because those execs--with the government's urging and backing--issued far too many loans to people who couldn't afford them (and then blindly packaged and repackaged those loans). The U.S. auto industry is reeling not because Big Three executives live high on the hog, but because the industry is saddled with enormous capital, labor, and health care costs at a time when consumers aren't buying new cars. The U.S. deficit is out of control not just because of increased spending on defense, prescription drugs, and other discretionary programs, but because no one has the political courage to touch the entitlement programs that constitute the lion's share of the federal budget."
Focus on symbols rather than substance can delay fix
"Yes, symbolic gestures are sometimes important. But when they become the main focus, they're a distraction. Worse, they can be antithetical to the broader mission. If one of the government's goals is to turn struggling financial institutions around and spur liquidity, why make it harder for them to attract the strongest leaders? (The execs who used to run those institutions are the ones who made all the bad decisions.)" [capping exec pay, etc]
Be pragmatic. Not all businesses succeed forever
"Maybe the bigger question is this: Are the likes of Chrysler and Bear Stearns even worth 'saving,' or are they reaching the end of their commercial viability, much as former tech titans Data General, DEC, and Prime once did?"
Well, that was about 1/2 the article excerpted. I thought he raised good points and gave voice to some of my frustrations about what the government's involvement has become.