School Shootings

        There is a saying that you should never take a knife to a gun fight.  Another saying is that it takes a good man with a gun to stop a bad man with a gun.   

        We have had a terrible shooting in a Florida school. Seventeen dead is a new record, and the shooter almost got away.  We can be sure that another mentally ill person is planning to break that record.  It is like a new high score on a violent video game. 

        This is a complicated problem with no simple solution.  Many people and organizations made mistakes.  They all must take responsibility, and change to prevent it happening again. 

·       The FBI and local police ignored the signs of a problem.

·       The FBI, state law enforcement, and local police do not communicate. 

·       Armed police and security on site did not react to gunshots in the school.

·       Mental health people are not doing their job and we do not have the facilities to evaluate and detain potentially dangerous people.

·       Background checks are flawed because all felons and mentally ill people are not reported to the data base.

·       Gun laws presently on the books are not enforced. 

·       Moral and religious conditions in the family unit contribute to the problem.  Parents must be parents and not friends to their kids.

·       The “See something – Say something” rule is good, but often when people do say something, the warnings are ignored as in the Florida shooting.  People are also afraid of not being politically correct so they keep quiet.

        All of these things need to be addressed, but it takes time to pass good legislation.  It takes even longer to teach people to be responsible citizens.

        One thing promoted by the left and the lame stream media is more gun control and banning certain guns.  This is a political agenda and an attack on the Second Amendment.  Banning the AR-15 or high capacity magazines would do absolutely nothing to stop mass shootings, and takes the focus off things that could actually save lives. 

        One thing can be done immediately that would have an immediate impact, is improved school security.  We go through security to get on a plane, but not to get into most schools. 

        The National Rifle Association has offered security consulting services to any school in the country for free.  Who else would offer that kind of service for no charge?  Thank you, NRA.  

        Armed and trained security guards, teachers and school staff would stop most school shooters.  Teachers and school staff would be totally voluntary.  Many already are proficient with guns, have their own weapons, and have a concealed carry permit.

        Most mass shooters are cowards and will avoid any target where they know someone will shoot back.  Gun-free zones could just as well put up a sign like this:

Gun-Free Zone

Prime target for a mass shooting.

No one will shoot back.

        If a mass shooter does pick a target where there is armed security, they will be stopped fast.  Calling 911 when there is no armed security is a joke.  Most mass shootings last about 3 minutes.  First responders to a 911 call arrive in 4 to 8 minutes.  This is too late to stop the killing.

        But, most fixes take time and money to implement except one.  Giving teachers and school staff gun training and concealed carry rights in the school can be immediate at almost no cost, and is by far the most effective. 

        Most effective - Least expensive - Immediate 

        Sounds like a no-brainer to me.  I wish most business decisions were so simple.

God bless President Trump and guide him to make America great again.

http://BusinessFits.com

Advertising

        There are many different advertising mediums.  Some offer a low cost per exposure, but have a lot of wasted exposure.  Some target the market or specific potential customer wanted, but will have a higher cost per exposure.  Let’s take a look at a few.

·       Television:  A 30 second Super Bowl ad costs $5 million.  Great exposure for a national product, but not practical for most companies.  Cable networks and local stations might be a better fit.

·       Radio: More local stations, but more competition for listeners.  At least the listener doesn’t record the program and skip over the commercials.

·       Newspaper:  Low cost per image, but high waste exposure.  I was taught 3 ads to be seen once, 6 ads to be read once, and 9 ads to be remembered.

·       Magazines:  Waste coverage if magazine does not target your customer.  The geographic market covered might be larger than the market your serve.  Magazine ads can be reprinted as handouts.

·       Yellow pages:  This market is changing due to smart phones and the internet.  Some franchises used to coordinate openings with yellow page printings.  This has changed. 

·       Outdoor advertising:  Road signs can be very effective for some businesses.  Burma-Shave and others had some phenomenal success stories.

·       Direct mail:  This can be a great way to offer discounts and coupons.  It is also easy to track results.

·       The internet now offers opportunities to advertise and pay on a per-click or per-sale basis.  This can be very cost effective and easy to track results.

·       A website can be great, but totally worthless if no one visits the site.  Something must drive people to the site.

        I have only touched on a few advertising options.  There is no magic solution, just as there is no perfect business for everyone.  

        Tracking results is important for future ad campaigns.  In one industry, I told my salespeople to ask customers what prompted them to call.  They seldom asked because they were more interested in what the customer wanted to buy. 

        When the salespeople did ask, some customers mentioned a specific magazine we had not advertised in for years.  They remembered us from that magazine, but did not remember the specific ad that prompted them to call.

        Advertising is only one small part of any marketing plan.  Some very successful marketing plans might not include any advertising. 

        An advertising campaign might be so successful that it will guarantee a business fails.  I give examples of this in my book Business Fits. 

        For a better understanding of how advertising fits in a total marketing plan, read Business Fits.  It is available on Amazon as an eBook or a paperback. 

https://www.createspace.com/429091

        God bless President Trump and guide him to make America great again.

http://BusinessFits.com

Bureaucracy

A system of government in which most of the important decisions are made by state officials rather than by elected representatives – Oxford Dictionaries

        We all have horror stories about working with bureaucracies.  It could be government agencies or our medical insurance providers.  The red tape created by bureaucracies increases the cost of everything. 

        Bureaucratic red tape has stifled our economy for decades.  I am so happy to see President Trump keep his promise of reducing government regulations.  He has eliminated 20 regulations for every one he has initiated.  It is easy to understand why the economy is growing.

        I have a problem with bureaucrats enacting regulations that have the force of law and do not have the approval of Congress.   Bureaucratic agencies should not have the power to legislate law. 

        We have a problem with bureaucratic agencies going beyond their designated power and actually committing crimes for political and/or personal reasons.  We have seen this with the Internal Revenue Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice, and possible the State Department. 

        This bureaucratic corruption must be stopped and prevented in the future.  No one is trying to degrade the FBI or DOJ.  Quite the reverse is true.  We need to clean up the corruption at the top to preserve the reputation of these great agencies.  Some people don’t want to clean up this bureaucratic corruption because they are trying to cover their own ass.  

        When Trump said he was going to clean up the swamp, I had no idea how corrupt it was.  We are just starting to uncover the truth.  Things to consider: 

·       Are bureaucrats committing these crimes because of partisan politics?

·       Are bureaucrats committing these crimes for personal gain?

·       Are partisan politicians controlling the corrupt bureaucrats?

·       Are the political elite and deep state controlling both the corrupt bureaucrats and politicians?

·       Are the corrupt bureaucrats actually the deep state and do they control the politicians?

·       Who is controlling the lame-stream media, or are they just going for ratings with no concern for reporting the facts?

        These are some interesting things to think about.  I wonder if we will ever know the truth.  Both major political parties may not want the public to know how corrupt the government has become.  People might loose faith in their government. 

        Unfortunately, even if we do learn the truth, the people at the top of the corruption will probably never face any serious legal consequences.  I heard one political commentator say these corrupt bureaucrats should be ashamed of themselves.  Being shamed is not enough.  I want to see people go to jail. 

        God bless President Trump and guide him to make America great again.

http://BusinessFits.com

Oh Shit

        I admit my language can be colorful.  I do embarrass myself on occasion, but I am totally upset by how politically correct everything we say has to be today.

        Some liberals make all kinds of assumptions based on an individual’s choice of words.  Words alone do not make a person a racist, sexist, homophobe, or Islamophobic. Discounting a person’s contributions to this country because of offensive language is a violation of our first amendment rights. 

        In September I had a heart attack.  I did not recognize the symptoms and didn’t know I was having a heart attack until I was in the emergency room.  The staff was very fast and efficient checking me out.  When I heard one of them exclaim, “Oh Shit,” I knew I was in trouble.  Within seconds, the room was full of people who were very efficient and well trained.  A helicopter was immediately ordered to take me to a level III trauma center. 

        Should I have been offended by the “Oh Shit” comment?  If words hurt and it was offensive, I should have told him to leave the room and let me die.  Actually, I thought the comment was very descriptive of my medical condition at the moment.  He and other medical professionals saved my life.  I didn’t care about their language. 

        I feel the same way about liberals picking on President Trump’s choice of words.  As long as he continues to win and make this country great, I don’t care about his colorful language. 

        Trump’s language might offend people sometimes, but he often uses the most descriptive words possible to paint a picture.  Calling some African countries shit holes is pretty descriptive to me.  It paints a picture. 

        I recently saw a presentation by an individual that spent two weeks in Tanzania.  He went there to teach people how to grow soybeans.  These people had no electricity, running water, indoor plumbing, or safe heat.  Their houses were the most rudimentary structures.  Our old outhouses with the half moon on the door would be an improvement over what they used for toilets.  Their primitive dirt roads were impassable in the rainy season. 

        I don’t think I would describe that country as a garden paradise.  Trump got it right.  He described the country and living conditions.  It had nothing to do with race.

        We need to get over banning certain words.  This is not Orwell’s 1984, but liberals banning speech scares me. 

        Liberals have given politically-correct lip service to minorities for decades, and never improved their situation.  President Trump has reduced unemployment and welfare for all minorities in one year.   We need to look at who people are and what they are doing for this great republic, and not their choice of words. 

        God bless President Trump and guide him to make America great again.

http://BusinessFits.com