From Caveat Emptor To Carpe Diem

4 for me, 1 for you, 4 for...

Am I the only one who thinks that we have become a nation of accountants and interns? No, I though so.

Growing up, even in a largely upper-middle class community, I do not remember people being so interested in the Dow Jones Average, the Federal Budget, and Secretary of the Treasury, bank CEO's (please), and certainly not the head of the Federal Reserve Board. We're even becoming experts on public pensions, which requires knowledge of a very special kind of math.

We used to save all that boring stuff for school. Yuch.

Yet, pick up what passes for a newspaper today, turn on the TV, or simply stand in line at a bank or waiting for a plane, and somebody is telling you all about these things...and more: The Deficit (again!), Medicare/Medicaid, Social Security (again!), interest on the National Debt, etc. The sky is falling in pieces made of quarters and dimes.

Meanwhile, corporate America has trillions in cash on hand, while we hear and read ad infinitum about the official jobless rate of 9% plus, which means to anyone with a brain that the real jobless rate is closer to 15-18% or higher.

In-Turns

And, while some companies are hiring, they are not adding any new jobs. Why would bean-counting CFO's approve jobs, when people who still have jobs are working overtime for no extra pay? When they leave the office, they work on their BlackBerrys and computers at home, on the train/plane, even while driving ? These folks are willing to hold on to these jobs despite the disappearance of some benefits and the ever-escalating cost of their share of healthcare premiums. How do we account for this insanity?

Every business and non-profit organization appears to have fallen in love with "internships." At Thirdgarage, we call these "in-turnships," in which the worker does everything asked, for free or for very low pay and zero benefits, and the organization, in-turn, owns the value of the work and does not owe squat to the worker.

What a great concept! For accountants. But, not so great for young college grads or boomers trying to stay in or re-enter the workforce.

Shanghaied

Is it a wonder that in an environment, in which we politely and incorrectly refer to the result of organized, massive stealing (really bad accounting!) by those who were meant to protect our financial system as a "recession," we do not have great political leadership? In Washington, Albany, Sacramento, they all sound like accountants, or more precisely, accounting professors, whom in-turns have provided massive amounts of mind-numbing data.

But, nobody actually ever does anything, unless, of course, you call playing accounting-chicken real action. It' just cha-ching, cha-ching, cha-ching. Oy.

We bought the whole concept of corporate and public capitalism and quarterly accounting hook, line and sinker. Even the Chinese thought it was a great idea, and it is for about 300 million of their 1.3 billion people. They even continue to lend us money so that their Party can keep our party going strong until...we have to account for our actions and do something about it.

Seize! Not Seizure.

Which would be right about now. Until we wake up to that fact, we will be stuck listening to the accountants jabber. Where is our Lincoln, our Churchill, our Ike at D-Day. Where is the next generation of women to call all of this BS and lead us beyond the balance sheets and Power Points and get us balanced and powerful again?

We forgot about Caveat Emptor, big time, but we can still Carpe this f*@#*#g Diem.