Lee Iacocca Says

[LastManOut]

Lee Iacocca Says:

"Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening?
Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder.
We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a
cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even
clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But instead of
getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians
say,
"Stay the course"

Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America,
not the damned "Titanic". I'll give you a sound bite: "Throw all the bums
out!"

You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe
I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country
anymore.

The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in
handcuffs. While we're fiddling in Iraq, the Middle East is burning and
nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving 'pom-poms' instead
of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of the "America" my parents
and yours traveled across the ocean for. I've had enough. How about you?

I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not
outraged.
This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have.

The Biggest "C" is Crisis !

Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis. It's
easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk theory.
Or send someone else's kids off to war when you've never seen a battlefield
yourself. It's another thing to lead when your world comes tumbling down.

On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in
our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. A Hell of
a Mess

So here's where we stand. We're immersed in a bloody war with no plan for
winning and no plan for leaving. We're running the biggest deficit in the
history of the country. We're losing the manufacturing edge to Asia, while
our once-great companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs. Gas
prices are skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent energy policy.
Our schools are in trouble. Our borders are like sieves.
The middle class is being squeezed every which way These are times that cry
out for leadership.

But when you look around, you've got to ask: "Where have all the leaders
gone?" Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people
of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense?
I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the point.

Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us
take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo?
We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we
know how to do is react to things that have already happened.

Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane Katrina.
Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response to the
hurricane, or demanding accountability for the decisions that were made in
the crucial hours after the storm.

Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't happen again.
Now, that's just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a plan.
Figure out what you're going to do the next time.

Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can
restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have believed that
there could ever be a time when "The Big Three" referred to Japanese car
companies? How did this happen, and more important, what are we going to do
about it?

Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the
debt, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem. The
silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at
our country and milking the middle class dry.

I have news for the gang in Congress. We didn't elect you to sit on your
asses and do nothing and remain silent while our democracy is being hijacked
and our greatness is being replaced with mediocrity. What is everybody so
afraid of? That some bonehead on Fox News will call them a name? Give me a
break. Why don't you guys show some spine for a change?

Had Enough?

Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm trying to
light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope I believe in America.
In my lifetime I've had the privilege of living through some of America's
greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our worst crises: the "Great
Depression", "World War II", the "Korean War", the "Kennedy Assassination",
the "Vietnam War", the 1970s oil crisis, and the struggles of recent years
culminating with 9/11. If I've learned one thing, it's this:
"You don't get anywhere by standing on the sidelines waiting for somebody
else to take action. Whether it's building a better car or building a better
future for our children, we all have a role to play. That's the challenge
I'm raising in this book. It's a call to "Action" for people who, like me,
believe in America. It's not too late, but it's getting pretty close. So
let's shake off the crap and go to work. Let's tell 'em all we've had
"enough."

Excerpted from "Where Have All the Leaders Gone?"
Copyright (c) 2007 by Lee Iacocca. All rights reserved.

[billamj]

Is this the same Lee Iacocca who went to congress to get them to help bail out Chrysler while he was in charge? The same man who never saw a corporate write off that he didn't love while he was chairman of Chrysler? Talk about a hypocrite! However I know that many will jump on the band wagon with this because he slammed someone that we dislike. What a freaking waste.

[phillyd2]

Same guy who gave us the K car? But he does have some credibility because of the Mustang

Anyway, I love any post full of mindless sound bits complaining about sound bits.

[BearTitan]

Iacocca is a brilliant guy. He knows first hand about government bailing out private business. As big a fan of Lee's that I have been and continue to be, he is making the same mistake as the people he is criticizing. All complaints and no solutions. Perhaps there are soluitions in the rest of the book?

I think it all comes down to accountability. We, as a society are lookign to blame somebody or something else for everything that is not perfect in our lives. Blatant sarcasm to follow.

Job outsourced to China? It's not because you were overpaid for the skills you posess. It's the damn commies and our government who will not fight against them taking away your $40 per hour job sitting around Homer Simpson style.

Gas prices? It's not because our thirst for petroleum has become stronger with every price increase. We are certainly not causing the increase in prices. Supply and demand applies to all OTHER economic scenarios but this one. It's the oil companies' fault that we all drive gas guzzlers.

Education system? It's not because our teachers are underqualified, overpaid, and backed by the most powerful union in the country. It must be because the kids in our country are just dumber than the rest. Or better yet, because of racial or ethnic prejudices in the system.

So Lee has a point that there are serious problems in this country. I totally disagree with him if he expects the government to solve them.

[LastManOut]

Is this the same Lee Iacocca who went to congress to get them to help bail out Chrysler while he was in charge? The same man who never saw a corporate write off that he didn't love while he was chairman of Chrysler? Talk about a hypocrite! However I know that many will jump on the band wagon with this because he slammed someone that we dislike. What a freaking waste.

Didn't Chrysler pay the loan back, early?

[billamj]

Didn't Chrysler pay the loan back, early?

First, its not government's job to make loans to ANY business. Second, they did in the first round of bailouts but in the second round Uncle Sugar ended up having to write it off which could explain why Chrysler is now a subsidiary of a German company these days.

[billamj]

First, its not government's job to make loans to ANY business. Second, they did in the first round of bailouts but in the second round Uncle Sugar ended up having to write it off which could explain why Chrysler is now a subsidiary of a German company these days.

Actually, I forgot that Daimler sold them last year to an American financial company, can't remember who at the moment, so I was wrong on that point. However I do have some very good reading on the bailouts from The Heritage Foundation and The Cato Institute. It is rather surprising to me just how much they agree on the subject.

[LastManOut]

First, its not government's job to make loans to ANY business. Second, they did in the first round of bailouts but in the second round Uncle Sugar ended up having to write it off which could explain why Chrysler is now a subsidiary of a German company these days.

Really no argument about the government loaning money. I'm not sure if it was a direct loan, or a government guarantee like a VA or FHA loan. Borrowing from the Federal Reserve in not borrowing from the government.

[billamj]

Really no argument about the government loaning money. I'm not sure if it was a direct loan, or a government guarantee like a VA or FHA loan. Borrowing from the Federal Reserve in not borrowing from the government.

The house and senate actually passed a funding bill in order to bail them out. Totally out of the scope but that hasn't stopped them from spending our money in the past. Jimmy, count the peanuts, Carter signed it as soon as it hit his desk. I've heard several TV idiots call him one of our greatest presidents in the past few days, makes me wonder if they've ever taken an American History course.

[P89]

I've heard several TV idiots call him one of our greatest presidents in the past few days, makes me wonder if they've ever taken an American History course.

Mindless chatter from talking heads.
Don't question what they say, just believe it...now be a good American citizen and bow to your TV.

BTW, TV's are fun to shoot at.

Bill, I wish I could give you more rep today.