What really happened to the U.S. Post Office?

Today’s headlines blame the economy on the fact that USPS is in the red over $2.8 billion. For the purposes of this blog, I’m going to lump the woes of DHL and Circuit City’s bankruptcy news in this today as well. After all, their challenges all have one thing in common…and it’s not the “bad economy.” It’s the inability for these entities to accept responsibility at an opportune time in which the economy can be blamed.

Now let’s get to the truth of the matter.

How about the fact that the USPS has lost a significant amount of trust with its consumers nowadays? High-count direct-mail marketers are strongly cautioned against sending out all of their mail on the same day due to historical instances in which the postal employee recipient will merely throw them away. As a result, not only do large-scale mail marketers have to separate their outgoing mail among several different post offices (which costs them more in the bulk mailing costs they pay) but they also have to be sure to plant “seed” addresses in their lists. In other words, have the items be mailed to individuals who they can trust and confirm that a mail piece was received.

What ever happened to “through rain, sleet, or snow?” Many business owners are reporting that the post office is refusing to deliver mail to any floor above the first level regardless of the presence of an elevator. Instead, regardless of what kind of sensitive documentation your business may receive, the USPS will hand over your mail to a business on the 1st floor and expect it to get to you. And thus wash their hands of any responsibility to do what they actually get paid to do…deliver mail to the addressee.

In this same situation, business owners are complaining that certified mail isn’t even being delivered to and signed for the intended recipient. It’s merely signed for by some mindless individual at the office that the post office determines will accept the mail for the entire building.

Have you ever noticed that smiling customer service is rare at a US Post office? Long lines all year round. Minimal supplies when they are available. Waiting in line only to be told that you didn’t need to wait in line or you have to do such and such and then get in line again. How does a post office run out of stamps on a regular business day? Isn’t that a big part of what they are supposed to do?

I don’t know about you, but over the last two years I’ve been receiving a significant increase in mail that’s not addressed to me. Not even close. And yet when I put it back in the mail box to be delivered to its appropriate addressee, my postal worker informs me that it will merely be returned to sender as undeliverable. Holy cow! The address is right on there only a couple blocks away!

And yet for all of these stellar benefits, we give frequent “raises” to the post office in the form of regularly increased postage costs.

Our office used DHL exclusively for some time, until we just got too fed up with packages not being delivered on time, being nickled and dimed with additional fees, and DHL not accepting any responsibility when a package was delivered incorrectly.

On the opposite side of this business, our Fed Ex delivery person once attempted to deliver a package to our office at Christmas time only to discover my husband and I had already left. So he drove over to our home and delivered it there! Fed Ex doesn’t deliver perfectly either. But when Fed Ex messes up on a delivery, an immediate credit is issued without having to wait on hold for 20 minutes to share the unpleasant tale.

Circuit City has been getting too big for it’s britches over the last two years as well. Winter shopping at this retailer proved to be confusing, frustrating, and altogether unpleasant—clearly reflective of their employee training program and management standards they have in place.

But hey. Let’s blame the demise of USPS, DHL, and Circuit City on the economy, shall we? That takes the blame and focus off of the real problems. That way no one has to accept accountability and learn from these horrendous mistakes. Too bad Enron didn’t close down in the midst of an economic crisis. No one would have gone to jail.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

Joe the Plumber

Joe the Plumber vs. Rick Sanchez—the talking head of CNN. And the winner is…Joe Wurzelbacher. On the other hand, at the risk of sounding like the amateur mass media, Rick Sanchez is this year’s entrepreneurial putz.

In his November 4th interview with the newly famous Joe the Plumber, Rick Sanchez appeared to be as knowledgeable of the abilities of entrepreneurs as the Mr. Clean knows hair care.

Mr. Sanchez’s mindless questions of Joe the Plumber demonstrated that he had clearly NOT done his research of this nation’s entrepreneurs. He joined the mass of misperception when he underestimated entrepreneurs all over the world as indicated by empty-headed questions to Joe Wurzelbacher. Sanchez’s ignorance was manifested on at least 3 separate lines of questioning.

1) “Why would you be so upset about people who clear more than $250,000 a year—having to pay taxes, when you’re nowhere near that category?”

One does not need to live in a leper colony to have sympathy for their plight. Wurzelbacher made it clear repeatedly that he objected to the principle of the wealthier paying more taxes simply because they had more of it. Like most entrepreneurs,

2) “…you are not in a situation where you’re going to be able to make that money any time soon.”

Who is this talking bobble head to dish out the socially acceptable level and speed of any person’s achievement or fulfillment in this life? (business owner or not)

The fact of the matter is, every entrepreneur is very near making $250,000. Many have succeeded in making multiple times that in one day. Some are content to choose to earn less, and some push themselves to earn more. There’s no mandate that it must take decades, years or months to earn this kind of income. No initials after your name are required. No special gene pool. It’s not a secret and it’s accessible to any literate human being in our nation. It requires applied knowledge, a restlessness with the status quo, and a combination of passion and commitment.

3) “You’re nowhere near being able to buy a business that clears more than $250,000 a year because that would take millions and millions of dollars, right?”

Another mistaken assumption. It does not take millions of dollars to clear $250,000. In fact, there are many well known business owners who have brought in significantly more than that for significantly less. Entrepreneurs of all kinds know how to create huge profit margins. Paul Hartunian, for example, paid $500 for the discarded wood of the Brooklyn Bridge walkway to be delivered to his home. He then cut the wood up in tiny little square pieces, wrote a killer press release, and made millions of dollars actually selling the Brooklyn Bridge to people all over the world. To this day he is STILL getting free press about this and subsequent feats of similar style.

Credible information marketers such as Dan Kennedy, Lee Milteer, Michael Cheney, Rich Shefren, Matt Bacak, Shawn Casey, Tellman Knudsen, Jeff Walker, Bill Glazer, Andrew Fox, and countless others regularly clear 7 figures within a matter of days in exchange for a weeks worth of writing and sharing their expertise—and do so repeatedly! Write, launch, reap, repeat.

Here’s the ultimate problem with Sanchez’s skewed vision of the world of capitalism. He’s forgotten about freedom combined with human potential. For every story of failure, there’s an enduring story of success in even greater proportions. In my opinion, there are equal amounts of ways to succeed as there are to stumble.

One of my clients recently earned over $500,000 on one transaction. Granted, he had to make his way through whole lot of “suspect clients” in the last 9 months to get access to the real deal, but he did so. And now that he’s accomplished this, no Rick Sanchez of the world can ever convince him that his ideas of success are impossible.

One significant success will breed a confident, unshakable entrepreneur.

My hope is that one day entrepreneurs will be viewed as the standard of success, genuine security, and credibility. In my opinion, they certainly deserve the respect, sincere assistance and accolades more than Wall Street, Big Corporate America, or the sacrosanct banking institutions do.

Here’s my challenge to all entrepreneurs—and a special invitation to Joe. Register as a Primary Member of 3M Mastermind—FREE. No strings attached. No charging your credit card later when you’ve forgotten all about it. Get real information so that you too can prove the mindless naysayers wrong about the strength and necessity of business owners. Simply go to www.3MMastermind.com

Entrepreneurs are the lifeblood of every economy in the world.
They are the fire behind invention.
They are the seeds of security.

Because of this unconquerable belief, Monetary Intelligence has paid enormous sums of money, put in countless hours with an army of researchers—and most of all their heart and commitment—to give today’s entrepreneurs the helping hand up they need. We’ve investigated a mountain of the “success systems” of gurus, experts, doctors, etc from all over the world. We’ve spent the last year implementing their theories and creating some of our own as a result.

Whether you’re in business or hoping to be, MI has created a training division, 3M Mastermind, to deliver substance to today’s frazzled business owners in the form of monthly live webinars and so much more.

We’ll prove to you your abilities now, for your market today.

Come off of the observation deck and take the wheel! Get access to your original content, exclusive training system for FREE right now! Go to http://www.3mmastermind/ to begin your journey with a partner who truly cares, and is willing to prove it. We’ve already invested in you. Your future success awaits.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

Confessions of a “Normal Woman”

I admit that I’m not the most objective person to determine whether or not I truly am “normal.” In fact, I’m not sure that “normal” really exists out there anymore. Regardless, I’ve decided to share some of my closet hang-ups and let you decide. Will the feedback convey an accurate assessment? Probably not. I’m sure that my writings don’t necessarily attract “normal” individuals either.

Confession #1- I’m a judgmental driver. Everyone who passes me is an “idiot” and everyone who goes too slow is a “moron.” I caught myself mumbling these exact two accusations within 30 minutes of each other on my way home the other day. No wonder the confidence of mankind has dwindled lately. They’ve got unrealistic expectations thrust upon them by drivers like me.

Confession #2- I think people are attractive until I see them chomping gum Seriously. I watched an absolutely beautiful woman in line at the grocery store the other day transform herself from a Perfect 10 to a Negative 2 because she was chomping her gum like a cow munching on his cud. I don’t care how beautiful you are. Even if I was a dentist I would have no desire to see what you’re chewing in there!

I also loathe the snapping sound that folks make with their gum…especially when I can hear it all the way across the store- or worse, church. I’ve turned people away from a job interview simply because of the gum chewing (and I confess that I strongly encouraged an assistant to quit once I discovered that they constantly chewed with their mouth open. Do I really want to lose a business relationship that affects my entire staff all because someone can’t keep their lips together while enjoying a business lunch with one of my clients? You really don’t want to turn someone’s stomach when you’re attempting to wheel and deal, right?

Confession #3- I firmly believe that the civility of our society has plunged dramatically because of the common courtesies/decencies that many parents have failed to teach their children. And our entire nation is suffering as a result. People spend more money when you’re being nice to them. People pass on smiles when they get them. Instead we spend our Saturday errands going from place to place attempting to get over the last painful business encounter we just had at the last place.

Did this training get left up to Dear Abby somewhere?

A couple of Christmas’s ago a much younger sibling of mine was having a really hard time financially. Being plagued with a boundless Christmas Spirit I decided to play Santa that year. Even though I was raised by strict parents who firmly required us to be polite, be mindful of others around us, and to exert impeccable table manners at the risk of death, this particular sibling must have worn them down by the time she came along. Because after all of the gifts were handed out, there was not a single “thank you” from the sibling or any of her 5 children, and in fact, my husband and I were greeted with an annoying wail that that’s all there was!

Oh, and if you really want me at your bridal shower or your wedding, you’ll give me more than 48 hours notice. And when I do give you a gift, you’ll darn well send a thank you note! (I bet getting in the business of selling thank you cards is about as profitable as Lehman is right about now.)

Ok. I’m done with my rantings and ravings. I’ve finally let down my professional demeanor and expose to all of you the inner seethings. Either you’ll admit you share some similar feelings, or you may inform me that your confession is that you loathe reading confessions.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

You Can’t Fix Stupid

Yup. You may not be able to fix stupid, but in this case, I think it’s perfectly legal to kill it.

Wow! I thought the majority of discrimination had been eliminated nowadays. Clearly I’m wrong and somewhat naïve though. Can you believe it? American Express is now openly admitting that they are lowering their credit exposure to individuals based on whether or not they have a loan with a mortgage lender that ALSO lends to sub-prime candidates and if the client has the audacity to shop at stores where low income individuals also shop. And apparently they aren’t the only ones to enact such insulting practices in the credit card industry.

Wells Fargo used to be one of the most aggressive sub-prime lenders in the nation. They are soon to be poised as one of the largest banks with their takeover of Wachovia, even if only receiving a portion of the assets of that bank. And yet someone who qualifies for an “A Paper, Roll Out the Red Carpet loan” from Wells Fargo could be targeted with less favorable terms because of Wells Fargo’s subprime division.

Countrywide was very aggressive in the subprime market as well. And as you know, Countrywide has bit the dust. Regardless of the fact that A paper, reputable, and financially strong banks have purchased Countrywide’s mortgage assets, you could still be financially penalized because you have a loan with them. Ironic isn’t it? You can pay perfectly on your loan with absolutely no hiccups, but because the company you make your check out to every month has made questionable decisions in their lending practice, your access to credit is compromised?



Is it just me, or is this absolutely ridiculous? (Warning: Sarcastic tirade up ahead) Let’s compound the suffering of the American people by penalizing them for the actions of others yet one more way. And when they try to react to the economic crisis by shopping at Target or Wal-Mart to make their dollars stretch that much more, let’s assume that they should be treated as a trailer trash drug addict and credit derelicts and minimize their accessibility to credit. After all, drug addicts have to shop somewhere, right? And if you’re dumb enough to shop where the financially struggling do, then your access to credit should be minimized, if not taken away all together! And while were at it, we should also be take preemptive measures and round up and put to death anyone who has the name of Charles or Manson or Oswald- just to be safe, you know.

Yup. The dumb keep getting dumber folks. This outlandish decision has three Code Red ailments.

1. It holds the potential to increase the gap of distance between the wealthy and the other classes. Such a gap can foster a surge in pride and snobbery.
   
2. If affects the spending ability of the wealthy. And I'm telling you… the wealthy do not like to be told what to do with their money. The wealthy now have reason to literally FEAR shopping at Target or Wal-Mart. Even if they pronounce either store with a French accent, they could lose their access to credit as a result. Just in case you didn’t know, the wealthy have experienced an inflation ratio of 12% over the last few years which is as much as double or triple what the other classes have been subjected to for the goods and services they buy. Thus the wealthy are now bound to experience an even bigger inflation ratio as they will now be required to buy their everyday goods from more upscale stores, or risk the fate of lowered credit access. With this asinine decision, the wealthy are less likely to change their inflation rate any time soon.


3. And folks, like it or not, the wealthy provide jobs. That’s the 3rd ailment. So not only does this Nazi-styled discrimination practice harm the middle class in their ability to grow their businesses, it has the ability to affect the lower class as well, in their dependence on the wealthy for employment.
   
   My vote? I choose to stop rewarding stupidity right now by eliminating all of my credit card access. Will it be challenging at first? You betcha! It’s ingrained in me to perform my business transactions this way. But I’ll be darned if I let the Plastic Prince tell where I can or can’t shop. I look at it this way. Benjamin Franklin was one of the wealthiest and most successful business people in history. He did so without the Melamine Methodology, and dog gone it, so will I.
   
   Credit Cards. May they melt in peace.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

Do the Math

Do the Math:

A very popular e-mail is making the circuit in the last several days espousing a new theory for what to do regarding the bail outs. The e-mail is as follows—however, there are some very grave errors in the proposed theory.


I'm against the $85,000,000,000.00 bailout of AIG. Instead, I'm in favor of giving $85,000,000,000 to America in a We Deserve It Dividend. To make the math simple, let's assume there are 200,000,000 bona fide adults in the U.S.

Our population is about 301,000,000 +/- counting every man, woman and child. So 200,000,000 might be a fair stab at adults 18 and up.

So divide 200 million adults 18+ into $85 billon that equals $425,000.00.

My plan is to give $425,000 to every person 18+ as a We Deserve It Dividend.

Of course, it would NOT be tax free. So let's assume a tax rate of 30%.

Every individual 18+ has to pay $127,500.00 in taxes. That sends $25,500,000,000 right back to Uncle Sam. But it means that every adult 18+ has $297,500.00 in their pocket. A husband and wife has $595,000.00. What would you do with $297,500.00 to $595,000.00 in your family?

• Pay off your mortgage – housing crisis solved


• Repay college loans – what a great boost to new grads
  
• Put away money for college – it'll be there


• Save in a bank – create money to loan to entrepreneurs.


• Buy a new car – create jobs
  
• Invest in the market – capital drives growth


• Pay for your parent's medical insurance – health care improve
  
• Enable Deadbeat Dads to come clean – or else
  
  Remember this is for every adult U S Citizen 18+ including the folks who lost their jobs at Lehman Brothers and every other company that is cutting back. And of course, for those serving in our Armed Forces.
  
  If we're going to re-distribute wealth let's really do it...instead of trickling out a puny $1000.00 ( 'vote buy' ) economic incentive.
  
  If we're going to do an $85 billion bailout, let's bail out every adult U S Citizen 18+!
  
  As for AIG –
  Liquidate it. Sell off its parts.
  Let American General go back to being American General.
  Sell off the real estate.
  Let the private sector bargain hunters cut it up and clean it up.
  
  Here's my rationale. We deserve it and AIG doesn't.
  
  Sure it's a crazy idea that can 'never work.'
  
  But can you imagine the Coast-To-Coast Block Party!
  
  How do you spell Economic Boom?
  
  I trust my fellow adult Americans to know how to use the $85 Billion We Deserve It Dividend more than I do the geniuses at AIG or in Washington DC.
  
  And remember, The Birk plan only really costs $59.5 Billion because $25.5 Billion is returned instantly in taxes to Uncle Sam.
  
  Ok. So here’s the problem. Many are forwarding this e-mail on to others (including me…*she says sheepishly* without doing the MATH. The math is not $425,000. It’s $425 dollars. And after taxes that won’t even pay for mortgage payment in most homes in this nation. The sorry thing is, and this includes me, is that so many times we as Americans do not demand the appropriate checks and balances necessary to truly be free. We are constantly subjected to numbers and so-called solutions which are not properly vetted, or disclosed to the American people. The lawmakers are constantly hiding this financial provision here and there. Frankly I firmly believe that if we had cause to pass a piece of legislation that laid out a woman’s right to life in the U.S. even after she was subjected to a rape, that some moronic lawmaker would refuse to pass it without sneaking some financial boon to himself or his cronies.
  
  I fully realize that not bailing out AIG, for example would create an enormous loss of wealth to many individuals who invested in AIG. Seeing that all over the news would pain be almost as much as witnessing the remains of a terrorist attack. The fact is, this mismanagement of funds is a terrorist attack on our nation’s backbone, but it’s perpetrated by big-wheeling deal makers who do not have appropriate accountability and oversight. While the retirement funds would be obliterated, you must understand that we’re already in an “Emporer’s New Clothes” scenario, folks. The retirements of the middle class have already dwindled down to virtually nil thanks to the devaluation of the dollar, inflation--which is orchestrated, and criminal mismanagement of funds. With us bailing out AIG we are in essence saying, yes, Mr/Ms. American citizen, you made a poor choice in your investment but the rest of the American people are going to atone for that error and pay for the mistake for you—even those who can’t even fathom ever owning a home, let alone an investment account of hundreds of thousands—AND we’re going to let the real perpetrators of the debacle walk or even salvage their big profits in doing so.
  
  Additionally, even if the numbers were real on this, it would only compound the problem of watering down the value of our currency which the Federal Reserve has already mastered quite well. Inflation IS a tax manipulated by those in power. And it’s a hefty one at that.
  
  Our currency is mismanaged, our taxes are mismanaged, and now when we discover just how badly our so-called backbone of the economy—Wall Street—has mismanaged their jobs, we’re compounding the problem.
  
  Mark my words. This debacle enslaves all middle and lower class tax payers even more harshly than if the true consequences were allowed to play out. At least then, those responsible would be forced to suffer the results of their actions. As a nation I believe we can suffer through the natural fall-out while being given the opportunity of a wake-up call. You can’t “repent” of your actions by forcing someone else to “atone” for you. (I believe there’s only one person who’s authorized to do that.) And yet that’s exactly what is being forced upon the American people.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

Why SHOULD Wall Street tumble today?

Wall Street SHOULD tumble despite the AIG bailout

Anything other than a “Wall Street tumble” would be a deception on the public. Why? Because there is no financial benefit for the investors of our nation when the “Fed” bails out another business gone amuck. It’s a generic band-aid, initiated to continue the perpetration of a century long façade. Let me say this again loud and clear… the Federal Reserve is NOT a government entity. Our government leaders have no say in how it operates, and no jurisdiction over it. So how does it have any authority over the use of YOUR tax dollars?? And yet it was the tax dollars of U.S. citizens pledged for use of the Federal Reserve for this AIG bailout and the so-called $70 billion cash infusion that occurred yesterday.

I’m having a hard time understanding how so little financial intellect can be present in the minds of our media reporters? They can get heavily involved in what celebrity was caught kissing whom, what crime rate is on the rise, whether or not a woman or a mother is fit to run a big business or serve in a major government position, but they can’t see the asinine proposal of our tax dollars being given to a foreign entity to bail out another big business gone amuck?

Since when did business failure deserve a reward? Let the consequences happen as they may to these big businesses. Give the American investors pause for more prudence in their investment decision making.

Why is it that our nation’s leaders are allocating our tax dollars to a non-governmental entity to bailout a company most of us could care less about? Since when does failure to operate a business properly merit the pity and hard-earned dollars of American citizens? I know of hundreds of business owners who have made mistakes in running their business; and not only does no one come to their aid one iota, but because they are self-employed business owners, even in a crisis they are unable to get access to simple financial benefits such as food stamps or Medicaid (that even illegal immigrants can get) when necessary! The irony is that small and medium sized businesses contribute the largest portion of tax dollars to these programs than even large corporations- yes more than Merrill Lynch and AIG put together! Do we simply discount or forget that these struggling businesses may have had a wonderful 5 year run previously in which they contributed to the economy by providing honest jobs to dozens of employees, tax dollars, vendor service dollars, etc?

Stop the insanity. Get educated about what’s really going on and then voice your opinion in these matters to the government leaders just as fervently as you would cry for help to save your family, your home, and your freedom.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

Legal Slavery in Our Borders

Opinions abound concerning the conspiracies that may have been present during the run-up to the Great Depression. Regardless of your beliefs concerning these conspiracy theories, you must acknowledge that several privately-held companies benefited greatly from the results of the Great Depression upon the people of the United States, in general.

How often does history repeat itself?

Current headlines read:
“Fed’s Regulatory Powers May Expand After Crisis”
“Fed Expands Lender of Last Resort Role Even As It Draws Line on Bailouts”
“WaMu’s Decline Values Lender Close to JPMorgan’s Takeover Offer in March”

If you are aware you will see these headlines as ominous indications of the future.

How much more power can be consolidated in the overgrown giant we know as the “Fed” before it owns us lock, stock, and barrel? Or, is it already too late to even consider that?

As the Fed grabs for more control at each and every turn (notice that, in the long-run, the results do not generally help the public but specific, private shareholders of entities shrouded in mystery), and as super-giants such as JPMorgan and others grow in leaps and bounds by buying smaller entities for a steal at the expense of the public, the question must be asked: Was our current situation engineered from the beginning?

How much imagination must one have to believe that the Fed and its “coordinators” intentionally made credit far too easy to obtain in our society in an effort to run-up prices (which empties the pockets of the public) and then intentionally began a series of credit-tightening (which inevitably results in defaults) in a concerted effort to relieve the American public of its hard-earned wealth (while leaving the public holding with a rather enslaving bag of debt)?

History may well tell the true story (albeit re-written to please its authors), but today one can only guess at the intentions of those in true power. Today’s best advice could be stated “Beware the wolf in sheep’s clothing”, in an effort to put all individuals on notice that the actions of the Fed and its consorts may not be in your best interests.

But how can you possibly avoid this uninvited impact in your life? GET OUT OF DEBT, even if it represents a small interest rate on your home, eliminate it. As long as you are paying on debts you are playing in their game. You can’t get out of the game until you get out of the debt. Debt requires you to pay interest on air. This is in addition to the heavy interest you pay on the “air” of our governments spending in the form of taxes and the so-called social security income (which is also a tax, folks, not an entitlement). You might as well be paying a fee for every time you exhale rather than be in debt. At least that provides you with a necessary freedom.

This may sound trite, but my emphasis here is to get you to realize just how enslaving this national debt and reliance on the Fed is. And I do mean SLAVERY. You are required to work through May just to pay your portion of taxes to the government. While it may not be the same as the 20 year requirement for indentured servants in the South, it’s still is a heavy toll. I hope that my sharing with you these alternative views may help you realize that you may be participating in game that you never wanted to play.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.