The Secret of My Success

Last Friday, President Barack Obama made the following statement while speaking in Virginia:

"If you've been successful, you didn't get there on your own. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen. The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet."

Did the federal government make your small business a success? Or did you?

As the owner of a small photography business, I was shocked and mortified that any elected official in the United States of America would make such a grossly ignorant, condescending statement. “I didn’t build my business?”  “Somebody else made that happen?” For these words to have been uttered by the president during an election year is stunning. To suggest that small businesses, the backbone of the U.S. economy, are successful only because of the federal government is insulting and inexcusable. If there was any doubt that the president is a socialist, those thoughts have been erased.

According to the Small Business Administration, firms with less than 20 employees account for 90 percent of U.S. companies and 97 percent of job growth. Small businesses hire almost half of the highly skilled workers (think engineers, computer programmers, etc.) and generate 13 times the patents per employee than large firms. And it’s no surprise that in a 2012 National Federation of Independent Business survey, the top three issues given as “the single most important problem for small businesses” were 1) poor sales (22%), 2) government regulations and red tape (21%), and 3) taxes (21%).

I’m proud of the small successes I’ve achieved. I got where I am because friends saw talent in me and encouraged me. I’ve found success because of initiative, innovation, and creativity. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve enjoyed success in spite of the federal government.

President Obama’s words are particularly insulting to me because of what I perceive as his hypocrisy. As best I can tell from examining his work history, Obama’s only private employment during his adult life was as a civil rights attorney in Chicago. He’s never manufactured a product (aside from his book). He’s never risked his own capital on a business venture. He’s never had to staff a company. He’s never created a private job. But he seeks through unabashed class warfare, to vilify those who have.

And for the record, despite President Obama’s misconceptions, the Internet was created by the U.S. Department of Defense, purely for military purposes. Not for job creation. And not by Al Gore.

Little Ocmulgee State Park

I spent the past weekend at Little Ocmulgee State Park in McRae, Georgia for a church family retreat. I’m embarrassed to say that I was too busy setting up PA equipment and musical instruments to take any photos of the snow, which for a few brief hours made the park quite beautiful before quickly melting. But in the few hours I had of down-time, long after the snow was gone, I discovered some interesting facts about the middle Georgia park that struck a chord with me.

Little Ocmulgee is one of Georgia’s state owned parks, one of eight with lodging and seven with a golf course. It’s definitely not luxurious. And compared to others in Georgia, it’s not even that picturesque. But for some strange reason, I keep finding myself back at this site. From lazy afternoons here from high school long ago to community planning retreats and Leadership Georgia, this park holds many memories.

The land for Little Ocmulgee State Park was donated by businessmen from nearby McRae. In 1937, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), built the first structure in the park and dammed the Little Ocmulgee River to create the lake. Shingles for the visitor’s center, which is still in use, were cut by hand from the cypress trees removed by the CCC workers to create the lake. The CCC, which employed over 80,000 workers throughout Georgia, built lakes, ponds, and lodges, and planted millions of trees throughout the state. Many of the structures built during the great depression are still standing today and still serve the citizens and visitors of Georgia.

In contrast, today is the one year anniversary of the passage of President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. President Obama claims the unprecedented expenditure of $787 billion has “saved or created” two million jobs. Strangely, these jobs have been calculated by the Office of Management and Budget. The Department of Labor, which tracks all other labor statistics, has no means of estimating or tracking “saved” jobs. Are they a fabrication? Who knows. I don’t know a single person who’s job was either created or saved by stimulus funds. And I know of not a single project that has been funded by the ARRA. Instead, these funds created massive debt while being used to shore up collapsing state governments.

J.W. Fanning, a pioneer of leadership and community service in Georgia, once said, “The greatest use of life is to invest in something that will outlast it.” Georgia’s facilities created by the CCC, including Little Ocmulgee State Parks, certainly meet that test.

Unfortunate Photo Ops

As a photographer, the idea of a dream photo shoot is captivating. What if I could shoot anywhere or anything I could imagine? A celebrity wedding? A sports photography gig at the Superbowl or the Masters? A supermodel shoot on a remote beach? So what would you do with a $328,000 budget, Air Force One, an iconic landmark, and an F-16? Chances are, even if you are a very mediocre photographer, you could do better than the truly awful image supposedly taken as a terribly controversial publicity photo. It is a poor photograph in every conceivable way—composition, saturation, and exposure, not to mention the bad shadow in the bottom right corner.

This past week, Louis Caldera, director of the White House Military Office, took responsibility for the blundered “photo op”, which took place on April 27, sending thousands of New Yorkers fleeing into the streets. Doubtless the fall guy for all of the other military brass and Obama administration wonks who had to also be knowledgeable of the mission, Caldera’s resignation was quickly accepted. And except for the likes of Jay Leno, who continues to use the incident as fodder for his jokes, the media has largely forgotten that it happened.It stands to reason that if the U.S. military and the Obama administration were to truly want a photo op of Air Force One and the Statue of Liberty, a professional photographer would have been involved. One glance and this terrible shot is suitable evidence that a pro had nothing to do with snapping this shot. Would the mission even be launched on such an obviously hazy day? And why use the cramped cockpit and solid bubble canopy of an F-16 as a photo platform? Air Force public affairs photographers do spectacular work. This photo is anything but spectacular.

But while the motivation for the Air Force One “photo op” is unclear, previous administrations and political candidates made critical errors in judgment. In 2003, President George W. Bush was at the controls of a Navy S-3B Viking as it landed on the deck of the U.S.S. Lincoln. The ship became the backdrop of Bush’s famous "Mission Accomplished" speech announcing the end of “major combat operations” in Iraq. It’s ironic that this photo op occurred on the Lincoln, named for an assassinated U.S. president, as the U.S. media did much the same to “W”.

Commenting on the Bush event, Sen. John Kerry, who was seeking the democratic nomination at the time said,"The president's going out to an aircraft carrier to give a speech far out at sea ... while countless numbers of Americans are frightened stiff about the economy at home." Oddly, neither Kerry or anyone else from the Democratic Party have seen fit to criticize a $328,000 photo op in the midst of a pronounced recession.

Most folks have probably forgotten the image of Michael Dukakis in the turret of a tank. Taken in 1988, the backfiring photo op of the presidential candidate in an Abrams M1 tank was very damaging to the Dukakis campaign and was ultimately used in future President George H. W. Bush’s campaign ads. Regardless of who you voted for, Dukakis just looks plain goofy in that helmet.

Back to New York in 2009, chances are, we will never know why the flight took place or who was on Air Force One while New Yorkers scrambled out of buildings below? And chances are, we will never see more images from this shoot or any other during Obama’s reign. But I’m sending my resume and portfolio to the White House, just in case there’s enough stimulus money left to fund my own photo op. Just imagine—me, my Nikon, an F-16, Air-Force One, and a supermodel. Hey, I said it was a dream photo op.

Dignity for the Fallen

On April 6, 2009, about forty members of the media attended a ceremonial transfer at Dover Air Base in Dover, Delaware. They were present to witness and photograph the arrival of the remains of Staff Sgt. Phillip A. Myers, a 30-year-old soldier killed by an improvised exploding device in Afghanistan. The event was significant because it was the first time in 18 years that a member of the media was allowed to photograph a coffin containing a fallen member of the U.S. military.

On February 26, 2009, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates announced the lifting of a ban on photography of the bodies of returning soldiers. The new policy reversed a ban placed by President George H. W. Bush just days before the first Gulf War that many considered unnecessary censorship. Families now have the final decision on whether to allow the media to cover the transfer ceremony.

The timing of the lifting of the ban is somewhat ironic. HBO’s Taking Chance premiered on February 21. The drama, starring Kevin Bacon, is based on the true story of Lance Corporal Chance Phelps, a Marine killed in Iraq. Bacon portrays Lt. Col. Michael Strobl, an officer who volunteers to escort the fallen soldier home to Wyoming. Like most of the network’s original programs, Taking Chance is extremely well-done and offers a compelling insight into the process of returning fallen soldiers home. By lifting the ban, the Obama administration affords both the opportunity for all Americans to see these daily or weekly events through the eyes of the media and the opportunity for the same media to invade these tragic and deeply personal events.

Controversy over the photography of war dead dates back to the Civil War, roughly the same time modern photography and photojournalism were born. In 1863, Timothy O’Sullivan, one of Mathew Brady’s photographers, captured “The Harvest of Death” a scene of the bloated bodies of Union soldiers at Gettysburg. The U.S. censored war photos during World War I and only after Roosevelt lifted the ban for political purposes in 1944 did Americans see fallen soldiers in the media during WWII. Life Magazine ran one of the first, a shot of three dead soldiers on a beach in Papua New Guinea. The photo was accompanied by text that read, “Why print this picture? Is it to hurt people? To be morbid? The reason is that words are never enough."

For many photographers, the censorship of anything is cause for concern, regardless of how they vote. Certainly, over the last hundred years, presidents have used photographs of dead soldiers, or the flag-draped coffins transporting them, for political purposes. President Obama has now entered into that fray. Regardless of the rights of photographers or the agendas of presidents, fallen American soldiers have earned dignity in death. That same respect should be afforded to their families.

Only time will tell whether the change in policy on these photographs will change public opinion about wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. And I can’t help but wonder how long it will be until another administration reverses this policy change in the name of political gain.

Obama's History Begins Tomorrow

So history will be made tomorrow. At 11:30 AM, Senator Barack Obama will be sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. I suppose I always assumed there would be a woman president before an African American was elected to the oval office. In September of 2007, Representative Jim Marshall all but guaranteed to me that Hillary Clinton would be the next president. Nonetheless, her new boss takes office tomorrow.

The Obama campaign and inauguration have been purposefully aligned with Abraham Lincoln. From the announcement of his campaign for president on the steps of the old state capitol building in Springfield, Illinois, the same spot where Lincoln announced his campaign, to the use of the bible from Lincoln’s inauguration, Obama has made an overt effort to tie himself to Lincoln. And certainly there are clear threads connecting the two men. Being elected the first black president from the same state as the man who issued the Emancipation Proclamation does give Obama better claim to comparisons with Old Abe than many who come before him.

But comparisons of Obama to a past president might be better directed at FDR. Based on his intentions to spend billions on stimulus packages, infrastructure investments, and job creation programs, Obama certainly sees himself as brokering the next “New Deal” for Americans. Obama arrives on the scene at a critical time. Like every recession, America’s economy can and will recover on its own. But Democrats and the president elect are determined to spend billions that our nation doesn’t have in the name of economic recovery.

Perhaps nothing can foretell of how the new president and Democratic leadership will approach the country’s problems any better than the price tag of this inauguration. Four days of celebrating the coming of Obama , including the favorite foods of Abraham Lincoln, will costs all of us a significant chunk of $150 million, a new record by a considerable margin.

So unlike Clinton and McCain, Obama proved to be superior at campaigning. But promises made along the campaign trail, many to the masses expecting a democratic president and Congress to fix all of their problems, have now come due. Huge stimulus packages will create worse deficits that may well prevent the hundreds of billions needed to fulfill Obama’s campaign promises.

The St. Petersburg Times is counting Obama’s campaign promises, currently at 510, and tracking action on each at http://www.politifact.org/. Rather than leaning on memories of the sixteenth president, Barack Obama now gets to make history of his own.

My 2009 Outlook

Everyone has probably wished for a crystal ball, especially when important decisions are at hand. It’s probably true that if you aren’t continually making decisions—putting things at risk—that you aren’t capable of growing. That certainly must be the case in business. In downturns—times of need—those making bold risks often gain the most. Does this carry over into other parts of our lives? I suppose time answers those questions, too.

It’s the very first New Year for Through My Eyes. Somehow, it seems appropriate for some predictions. So here are ten views into my crystal ball for what may come to pass in 2009:

1. At least one of the “double-wide divas”—Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, and Lindsey Lohan—will be arrested in 2009. I know, it’s a slam dunk, but I needed to ensure that at least one prediction would come true.


2. General Motors will be back in front of Congress asking for more money by July 4, and bankruptcy will likely be right around the corner. And the UAW will probably sit idly by and smugly fiddle while the remaining shell of Detroit smolders.


3. The New York Yankees have spent somewhere near the GDP of Central America this offseason. Assembling a Who’s Who of superstars has rarely equated to success on the field. Likewise, the 2009 edition of the pin-striped wonders will not win their division and will struggle once again to reach the playoffs.


4. Many Americans will be surprised at the “moderate” positioning of President Barack Obama during the first one-hundred days in office. But he will be overshadowed by the near lunacy of Pelosi and Reid, who will trip all over each other fighting to prove who is more “liberal” in an intoxicated atmosphere of new democratic dynasty.


5. Free from conservative resistance, a Democratic Congress will make life harder for American businesses, introducing an array of new legislation. Worst of all will be the failure of Congress to repeal “Mark to Market” rules, keeping undue pressure on slow-to-recover credit markets.


6. Despite the support of President Obama, the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) format will remain unchanged for 2009, irritating more American’s than any fiscal policy.


7. Assuming the Dallas Cowboys cut Terrell Owens, some NFL franchise will decide he’s the one missing piece of the puzzle to complete their team, sign him for an unbelievable amount of money, and then act completely surprised to find that he is a toxic, selfish jerk. (see disclaimer on #1)


8. Between the efforts of very leftist leadership in Congress and Henry Waxman as House Energy Committee Chairman, the country’s dramatic need for new electric generation will not see much improvement in 2009. In fact, it’s likely that not a single coal plant will get permitted in the next twelve months. Environmental groups will hail this as a victory, but ratepayers will ultimately pay as costs per kilowatt-hour will continue to rise.


9. Al Franken will apparently be the newest Senator of Minnesota. Amazing. The American press, pundits, and late-night talk show hosts will all struggle with how to treat him before finally giving in and reporting him as the complete kook that he really is.


10. I will find a way to grow in 2009, taking on risks unlike any before. I hope that by taking control of my destiny in new ways, these risks can be rewarded with profound personal growth.

Well, there you have them—ten absolute locks for 2009. Take it to the bank, assuming your bank is still open. In fact, I’m so confident, should any of these predictions turn out to be wrong, I’ll gladly refund the entire price of your subscription, of course minus the costs of shipping and handling. Happy New Year.

Barack Obama's Energy Plan

So America has spoken and Obama is the word. Now that the national post-election-day party celebrating the Obama victory is somewhat over, some fears emerge foreshadowing a lingering hangover that may impact us all. America is deeply mired in a very difficult economic situation. Unfortunately, it seems Senator Obama’s energy plan, as presented on his Website, could make matters considerably worse.

Obama’s energy policy seems to be centered on renewable energy. It is, after all, a bandwagon with very limited seating available. But the president-elect will soon have the power to make all of us pay for his environmental ideas. Foremost among his plans is the desire to eliminate any new development of coal generation despite the need for new generation to address growing electrical demands. In fact, he has said he would use carbon caps to “bankrupt” any companies seeking to build coal-fired power plants. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hdi4onAQBWQ) And he wants to have ten percent of the nation’s electricity generated from renewable resources by the year 2012.

America has about a million megawatts of electric generation capacity. Currently, about 106,500 MW are from renewable resources. But 77,000 MW of those are from conventional hydroelectric. The darlings of every environmental group, wind and solar account for a very small percentage of the country’s electric generation. Wind generation totals 15,600 MW and solar only 498 MW. Without the hydro generation, the total renewable capacity is about 2.5% of the total generation, a long way from ten percent.

So how will Barack Obama find 100,000 MW of renewable generation in three years? And where will it be located? Solar is just not a reasonable option, with costs exceeding sixty cents per kWh. Wind generation is only viable in limited areas of the country where average wind velocities are greater than 12 mph. (http://www.windpoweringamerica.gov/pdfs/wind_maps/us_windmap.pdf) That eliminates most of the country and most of the areas near population centers except California and the New England coast. At ideal wind speeds, larger wind turbines generate 1.8 MW of electrical capacity. They are also 260 feet tall. So if we can site, manufacture, and erect 55,000 turbines in three years, we’re home free… well, assuming the wind always blows. I don’t know that I would want to be in the hospital on life support on a really calm day.

So is Obama really committed to his energy plan? Is this symbolism over substance? If the track record in Illinois, his home state, is any indication, the effort may come up short. Despite having large rural areas with decent average wind speeds, Illinois has only about 700 MW of wind generation. Conversely, Texas has 4,800MW of wind capacity. Yet that equates to only about two percent of the Lone Star State’s total capacity needs.

Will Obama’s energy plan find success? If electric customers, including America’s struggling manufacturing base, can stand replacing affordable coal generation, currently priced nationally at less than ten cents per kWh, with wind generation, priced at twenty cents or more per kWh, the plan might work. But if electric utilities are forced to abandon coal and no viable replacement emerges, Americans accustomed to reliable electricity may suddenly be faced with darkness. Wouldn’t it be a shame for President Obama’s press conferences to go unseen on days that the wind doesn’t blow?