A pragmatic, visionary perspective —–
Has America slipped into a vortex of declining mediocrity that is irreversible or is it coming back stronger in seeking more opportunities and setting higher goals to attain? Do we need to get back to the roots of leadership of what America was, not only in government, but in business, innovation, and corporate endeavors as well? There is a lot to learn from how the governmental and economic frameworks of this country were built and how they need to be re-built.
Are we as good a country as some have claimed or have we slipped in our international stature? What qualities and actions do we need to re-acquire and re-apply? What qualities and actions do we need to discard? Is it too late for this “American Renaissance” to unfold? These are questions I am starting to seek out answers for, in my next book.
Think about today’s rhetoric from various political views. Many people are tired of listening to the agitated arguments of politicians who don’t grasp what is actually happening in the country’s economy as well as its work-ethic. Politically correct assessments are obtuse at best and at worst, permanently damaging because they fail to provide a true assessment of what is happening and any corrective decision cannot be formulated or acted upon because of the out-of-focus and “out-of-touch-with-reality” analysis.
From a mix of quotes from government and business leaders, what should we embrace today? Here are a dozen quotes from business and political leaders as well as inventors:
1) Those who stand for nothing fall for anything.
2) Hell, there are no rules here. We’re trying to accomplish something.
3) Discontent is the first necessity of progress.
4) Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer, but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past. Let us accept our own responsibility for the future.
5) The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission.
6) This American system of ours, call it Americanism, call it capitalism, call it what you will, gives each and every one of us a great opportunity if we only seize it with both hands and make the most of it.
7) Where there is no vision, there is no hope.
8) Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.
9) I’ve always found that the speed of the boss is the speed of the team.
10) One of the things the government can’t do is run anything. The only things our government runs are the post office and the railroads, and both of them are bankrupt.
11) If a man is going to be an American at all let him be so without any qualifying adjectives, and if he is going to be something else, let him drop the word American from his personal description.
12) True Americanism recognizes the enormous gravity of the social and labor problems which confront us.
Do you think you know who said the above statements? You can tell by the tone of them who probably said them, right?
Don’t be too sure. Your own biases and political leanings may distort the answers.
Are some of the quotes from potential candidates for the Presidency in 2016? Are some from current Congressmen who were just elected? I will give the answers as to who belongs to each quote at the end of this article.
POLITICAL ACCURACY: THE DEMISE OF LIES & EXCUSES
One of my last column focused on CARLINI-ISMs, personal pragmatic insights developed from years of experience that I included in my book, LOCATION LOCATION CONNECTIVITY. I have always liked the idea of learning from other people’s quotes and was told by several people who have read my first book, to write a book of CARLINI-ISMs. I think I will go one step further and include those quotes that have made an impact on me by a diverse group of political, business, and civic leaders.
One of the things we need to get away from is being politically correct. When you look at the decisiveness in taking action to do good things and creating new opportunities, those decisions were made by those who were politically accurate.
You need to assess the current environment and deal with the realities of it – not create some shaded or obscure definition of it. You have to face the reality of the situation in order to come up with the best solution or decision for it.
Here are the answers as to who made the statements. You might be surprised.
1) Those who stand for nothing fall for anything. ALEXANDER HAMILTON (Who was one of the signers of the Constitution, the first Secretary of the Treasury, who also established the US Mint. He is on the $10 bill)
2) Hell, there are no rules here. We’re trying to accomplish something. THOMAS EDISON, Inventor, Innovator.
3) Discontent is the first necessity of progress. THOMAS EDISON, Inventor, Innovator.
4) Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer, but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past. Let us accept our own responsibility for the future. President JOHN F. KENNEDY
5) The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission. President JOHN F. KENNEDY
6) This American system of ours, call it Americanism, call it capitalism, call it what you will, gives each and every one of us a great opportunity if we only seize it with both hands and make the most of it. AL CAPONE (Bet you didn’t get this one!)
7) Where there is no vision, there is no hope. GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER, Inventor & Botanist
8) Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom. GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER, Inventor & Botanist
9) I’ve always found that the speed of the boss is the speed of the team. LEE IOCOCCA, former Chairman of Chrysler
10) One of the things the government can’t do is run anything. The only things our government runs are the post office and the railroads, and both of them are bankrupt. LEE IOCOCCA, former Chairman of Chrysler
11) If a man is going to be an American at all let him be so without any qualifying adjectives, and if he is going to be something else, let him drop the word American from his personal description. HENRY CABOT LODGE, US Senator from Massachusetts and first Senate Majority Leader in the early 1900s.
12) True Americanism recognizes the enormous gravity of the social and labor problems which confront us. HENRY CABOT LODGE, US Senator from Massachusetts and first Senate Majority Leader in the early 1900s.
LEADERSHIP?
As you can see, some of the issues we face today were also issues faced by America’s leaders over a century ago. We need to learn from the past to move forward into the future. We need to stop the decline and surge forward with new goals for individuals, companies, and government.
CARLINI-ISM: We need to review the framework of this country and how it was built, in order to add on improvements for the framework of its future..
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Copyright 2015 – James Carlini