…and there’s been a lot I’ve meant to say – share, but….
The headline – Ontario 24.7B Deeper In Debit got my engine going. Again.

This is what a Billion looks like:
1,000,000,000.
Hundred Million:
100,000,000.
One Million:
1,000,000.
Getting the idea about how big a billion is?

How many “working taxpayers” does it take to get the first billion of tax revenue?

For those that don’t relate to long, large, number of a Billion, take a smaller step – remember the folks at “e-health” Ontario who spent anywhere from 600 to 800 million dollars, of our money much of it recklessly? Now the Official Word is that “they thought it needed to be done quickly”. I ask was is the build of a system, or the burn of the money? And we the citizens are ok with their response, as justified and rational. Criminal maybe? Why is Conrad Black in jail? Why is Drabinsky headed there?

So when you hear $24,000,000,000; remember it was one Health scandal at a time. Had we removed the most recently discovered one, the headline would read closer to only $23 Billion, and despite what our political leaders tell us; save a billion here, a half billion there, and pretty soon we owe many less billions.

Then there was a Power Plant for a Casino in Windsor at 89 or 90 million, built by Ontario Lottery Corp, plus a management contract given out to run it for 9 or was it 25 years?.... and a few management salaries later at Ontario Hydro, then morphed into Hydro One, oh and then there were some other great ones over at The Ontario Lottery Corp, first paid, then quietly settled as it seems we fired 'em wrong; and did ya' hear about the stuff at the yet undiscovered LCBO...you will!

And why just kick the public issues, did ya’ hear about the multi-million dollar payout of the genius-guru that ran Sick Kids Hospital Charitable Foundation?

And now the Toronto School Board is hiring a Director of Marketing to help retain and enroll….got’a love it, more empirical power plays, on our dime, at a time of ‘restraint”.

No wonder we invented Viagra.
It's just with all the high blood pressure these fiasco’s should create, Viagra is a no-no. No?

So the Premier gives us, the voters, the snub in his continued backing of the Health Minister. In a world of political swords, sword swallowers and sometimes – daggers, seems to me if he wanted to at least show remorse, he didn’t even have to have it, he just had to care enough to say he had it…but nope, arrogance – he summed up the first 647 million and the second …funny they didn’t even get a total on the second e-health debacle, but anyhow he summed it all up by saying….”this just shows we got to get better at what we do”. One is left to wonder – who is this “we” and what is it that “they” do? Yes I’m really upset about 647 million – heck, it’s almost a “billion”…but I’m more upset that with a Cabinet Shuffle in progress, he didn’t at least respect the Taxpayer enough to say…’Section Head goes’. And we complain of Bay & Wall Street arrogance?

Oh, oh and the Toronto City council, so worried about crossing a picket line, was Mr. Mayor, that the taxpayers footed at $20,000 bill to hold the Council meeting in an arena. They had to rush through acceptance of a Bombardier streetcar contract for around 1.2Billion (there’s that number again)…cause I guess if they waited even a minute past the midnight deadline, Bombardier would’a said “fogett’a about it, we don’t want to build your lousy streetcars any more….our airplane business has taken off and we’re just too busy”. Just who invents all this false pressure?

In either form - not used by many of us before very recent times.

Before I became involved with rewards, loyalty and marketing for a mortgage bank, the word Billion eluded me. In fact for at least the first year, or even 3 of the relationship – the proportion eluded me, and even where the comma’s were to go, mesmerized me. But I became used to the term, the size, even the commas, as in ...”oh another billion”.

And before this I remember that Carl Sagan used it often to describe the universe as if an alliteration ….“billions and billions and billions of years ago…”

Today more often we all use the word “billion” as a synonym for “bailout”. So we’ve become numb in sense to a new dimension – ginormus. Ginormous debt. Ginourmous loans. Ginourmous gifts. Even ginoumours screw-ups don’t seem to phase us anymore.

Staying close to home – next up for my comment…the almost, or maybe more than One Billion Dollar screw-up in Ontario’s digital health document strategy.

Globe & Mail June 17, 09

Excerpt from an interview with a senior executive of a large corporation about his travel habits…

Globe – What do you do during these flights?

Executive – It depends on the flight. I do lots of preparation work. I’m a planner by nature. I tend to do that last minute on the plane. I always catch a flick too.

3 things come to mind:
1. I’ve often had trouble citing an oxymoron – But.... "lots of preparation as a last minute planner"….I’ll hang onto this one.
2. Drop the oxy and think moron.
3. If it’s an 80 minute flight and the ‘flick” is 95 minutes…does he miss the flick and cram his last minute planning, or pay the pilot for a “go around”.

Oh, but for the words we all wish we could suck back in.

A brand new Medical Doctor. Surely a coveted customer of all marketers looking for Customers that will have durable, likely above average value as they consider the Life Value of Customer – LVC – and how to enlist them as a Customer For Life – CFL.

Interesting then as I listened to this newly minted gold mine, having just graduated tell me about his Personal Loan, the one he used and grew to finance his education. Seems he was with a lending institution that pushes hard for relationship – they all do, don’t they? But this one pushes International status, around the globe….multicultural, multi country presence. They wouldn’t finance him ‘cause he was studying abroad…as they do business abroad nad psuh this had – he was confused. Move he did – to another. But now, now that’s he’s at the door, 30 days away from a growing his durable, above average income – no longer the life of a starving student – that’s it, Nirvana is here. But that’s it, present Bank says – “no more, not another dollar, ruble, or euro. Not even just for another 30 days funding as he sets up new ‘diggs’ from which to grow and prosper – become that perfect consumer.

He’s puzzled both banks advertise right at him. We want your business. We’re long term. It’s about relationship. And other melodic positioning lines. He’s confused. And he’s smart.

So I pose this question……do you think the guy running the bank, the whole show, has ever called his marketing guru in and said – “we know what our product is, money…what do you think we want to do with it?”

A reasonable answer from the Marketer would be “take it in from one, and loan it to another (safely)”

So then, should ask, the big boss…”have you ever sat down with our Chief Risk Officer and asked him if he’s prepared to allow us to do business with your customer?”

IE – “I know what we say we want to do, but are we prepared, and enabled, to do it?”

I’m willing to bet, Marketing and Risk have never met, at least not at these 2 banks.

I understand today’s necessity of being, “an informed consumer”, “A Smart Shopper”.
Used to be that we’d go get milk. There was 2%, Skimmed, Homogenized and even Chocolate milk. Recently due to some really smart tv ads, my childhood ideas were confirmed – Chocolate Milk really does come from Brown Cows.

Today, I’m told go for milk, I know that its supposed to be the 1% kind, skimmed a little more, or maybe a little less – I don’t know, but I’m told its better for my diet.

First, I go for coffee at the famous SB, they use the term Whole Milk – huh? But they also won’t use the words Small, Medium or Large. I like their coffee, but ordering it adds confusion to life’s already too many passwords, to as well remember the “code” word for the size of coffee I want. So I speak with my hands - in waving-stretching motion - i say Giant, Large, Real Big.

Then I go to pick up the milk for home – oh wow!
There’s regular 2% partly skimmed milk, only it has super fine filtering – so it’s better than just regular pasteurized milk.
There’s 2% milk with added calcium.
There’s 2% milk with omega 3 – low in saturated fat and free of trans fat – hey I thought milk was healthy in the first instance – now I find it has trans fat too – did the schools ban milk along with carbonated drinks?
There’s 2% Lactose Free – OK I get that one.
There’s 2% milk with added fiber – so who needs breakfast cereal? Take that on the chin Denny Crane aka Bill Shatner.
And, there’s 2% milk that makes someone smarter. It comes from cows fed an enriched diet containing the fatty acid Omega-3 fatty acid, DHA.

I wonder if the 2% Omega3 milk has some of the same stuff that the Smart milk has, don’t you? And I wonder do they make 6 different kinds of 1% milk, and if so are they the same kinds as 2%, or different kinds? It’s got to be time to stop advertising milk as Nature’s Wholesome Product…its become a marketers paradise. This is almost smarter & funnier than diamond shaped Shreddies.

And now you know why today, it’s a necessity to be an Edu-macated Smart Shopper.

So the Networks are out'a money. They want funding. And maybe the Cable TV companies should be doing a revenue share. But if they do, who do you think will pay….ie – reimburse them for the new expense? Uh huh…me, you and our neigbours.

Yes, advertising revenues are down. Of course we gave the “new”, now old - pay channels the right to charge us, through a revenue share with the Cable TV companies, then we gave them the right to sell advertising minutes ‘cause we just were not giving them enough through voluntary subscriptions.

Now there’s a tough economy, fragmented market of too much media, too many stations and oh’ this Internet thing - that seems a real revenue robber.

So a new Industry Tax, collected by Private Industry, so it will be called a “fee” is about to be levied to support the Networks. This year it may be 50 cents, next year 75 and then maybe a 1.50 per month.

At some point we blurred the line between Network and Public Broadcaster, while still calling them Private TV Networks, funded by a Private Voluntary Tax, The ‘fee’ you’ll have to pay, if you want cable tv. And in most neigbourhoods you’ve not got good choice for two reasons – TV antenna are illegal, and oh the Broadcasters have quit the expense of broadcasting and just piped their signal to the Cable TV companies as….. u beginning to see it yet?

And why should we be forced to voluntarily subsidize the very networks that over the past few years participated in creating massive and unsustainable debt-loads by highly leveraged amassing of new media libraries that didn’t quite work out…?

The players are performing in front of us on a stage for all to see, so when it happens we should feel good – after all when you’re being _wed, its supposed to feel good, isn’t it?

And next it will be the daily’s, the magazines and then who’s next on the ‘bailout’ road? Maybe we close the CBC, or restructure it to a smaller, boutique network that focuses on indigenous productions only, yes we'll include hockey. And we ask the CRTC to tell Global and CTV, go figure it out. Because, to me the thought of bailing them out on a monthly forever basis, just makes me wan’a say – me too, me too let me get to the trough. I'll invnet a loss too.

Some say he didn’t know when to quit. Wrong. Instead, Howard was almost impossible to distract until he was finished doing what had captivated his energy, focus and execution. Quitting was something Howard could do, but first he had to lose interest – not the logical or dollars based emotion of - the odds are against it. To use the word smart to describe Howard under-does it. To say he was eccentric – sets the tone for a conversation about the unique, creative and sharing spirit which is Howard. July 20 1950 - March 26, 2009.HowardGary_TorStar.pdf

Ok, we all live under the same roof, so yes I meant - “we” got a puppy. A new stage of life. Seems that I’ve left “top-dog spot” or worse - ejected. But that’s not what’s got me. Or so I think. ...It’s these new foreign toys, blankets and food bowls on the floor…and the fan club….i can’t say they were my fans before, but now, I’m not even on the list. Now we (they) cheer him and deliver hoops of hurray hurray whenever he does a “bio break” in the ‘right’, that as opposed ‘wrong’ place. More I’m sure I’ll write…in the meantime…goldfish seem so much less interruptive. Yes a puppy should if given the chance deliver tons of fun, companionship and furry funnies – but right now I’m just always, 100% of the time on the watch for signals that....oh boy, oh wow, get over here – fast, fast looks like he needs to do it…[again].

A new lawsuit by residents of a Habitat For Humanity townhouse cluster in upstate Florida claims that the HFH uses unprofessional labour and substandard materials resulting in leaky homes that rot easily. Why even speak to the irony of this one…..

Macy’s etc want a retailers ‘bail-out” fund.
GM & Cerberus, oops I meant to say - Chrysler, got theirs.

Wall Street– patched too (ahead of the pack). And in time for Xmas “performance/retention” bonuses.

WOW - now a Bail-Out for those stung by Madoff ??
Bernie you remember him? OK OK I knew him better, maybe you remember him as Bernard?

I have the “FIX”.
We go back to May 2005 BE. That’s ‘Before Enron’ (not the ugly part – instead, the part just before CIBC announced their ‘donation’)
We give ALL Players their money back, ALL of it. We make them sign a waiver that they’ve seen the future, kind’a like Scrooge in a Christmas Carol.
Then we play the game again.
My fear is that it goes the same way. But if we get lucky and it only goes a tad bad, – we show the ‘losers- now brandable as “idiots” their signed waivers. So instead of Politicians issuing reimbursements – the second round losers can instead hire lawyers and do what they used to do – tie it up in litigation until someone buys out someone else, goes broke, or makes so much money on some other venture they forget why they started the action in the first place.
Good times often bring -- Forgiveness.
Bad times –- Battles.
This time -- Bail-Outs.

Dateline – Canada. Globe & Mail page A8. Jan 3-09

Article titled - Terror suspect agrees to strict form of house arrest.

Well ain’t we lucky? Seems it’s confirmed that this 'fella' helped someone involved in the 911 incident – you remember that don’t you? Anyhow he helped launder some money, get fake US passports – generally some tough friends this fella’ had. Poor guy has sat in jail for 7 years and its time to get out….but can we send hom home to Syria? Seems not, he might be of all things, tortured – so our sense of morals says oh no can’t send him home. And can’t, for some reason let him sit in a normal jail. So best place for him is at his own home…which he does not have. So some friends and it seems the Government – that’s “us the people” will chip in for his new pad. And by golly 7x24 armed security at his door – his own personal detail, to watch his every move – the cost for this private party? Estimated at around a Million Taxpayer $'s a year….cool this liberty, our justice and sense of moral purpose….we’re nuts.

BUT WAIT – there’s more…he had 4 friends already in similar programs at our expense.

Thank goodness he acquiesced and agreed to such onerous terms. We’re Canadian-eh?

And Conrad Black – still a guest of the State. The other one.

Burn After Reading – a terrific movie. By no means as hilarious as described - instead it’s about "how it happened" - the economy. Not the subprime mess, not even greed - just a basic corporate need to "keep it simple" - "fit in" and "be on-side".

Script is smart. Not fast moving, but a growing story of related incidents. And as they grew with some parallel – the opportunity of tying it together was refused, defused. Closed. Next.

So simple its scary. As would be expected - it’s the conclusion that’s dryly hilarious.

2 Great or maybe dumb radio spots

Start of December, car radio on – break in the music – for commercials. And these two ran back-to-back.

Spot #1 – “Ho Ho Ho.” Why is this man so happy?"...asks the voice over….and then he provides the response….”you’d be happy too, if you only worked one day a year"….somehow it did a segue-way to a “Santa Sale”.
Huh? Today we can all think of those who likely don’t see the fun in this lack of work concept commercial. Topically funny maybe, sensitive to the times? Horrid no – but a commercial is supposed to at the very least create an Ah-Ha. Not cause an 'ouch'.

Spot # 2 – A private community college, likely with some government funding for retraining runs this in the Toronto market…"Get Certified as a Licensed Auto Technician now…there is a shortage of……"
now I would’a gussed – jobs? BUT no, the commercial went on to claim – "a shortage of candidates for these high paying positions in a growth industry.”

Governments across the board tell us they’re going to make massive investments in “re-training”
TIP FOR FUTURE HAPPINESS - The next growth industry: “edu-macation”. Fortunes are about to be spent on the promise of a new future, for ‘wrongly skilled, previously valuable workers”.

“Quick – where do I get a license to open a Re-Skill Ya Centre?”

And just who is it that going to ‘have the call’ on what the courses and strategic direction of this retraining will be?

Today, Garth Turner in trying to express that ‘a certain thing is less than clear said - "I think it's obfuscation of reality" in reference to CREA’s new Weighted National Average For Sales on the MLS.

Reminds me of the first time a teacher told me to stop or she'd ostracize me. Huh?

Please Garth, if you’re trying to say CREA is “confusing things” say something like, “less than clear”, or maybe even, “they are reinventing reality” – but I think you “obfusticate” when you use words like: obfuscation, to explain what you think happened – to the, may we call it the New WNAPfSMLS ?

Now maybe I’m just upset, or maybe happy - about Garth’s admission in a recent Globe and Mail Article of December 13, 08 – How High Risk Mortgages Crept North.

Excerpt from Globe & Mail Dec 13, 08.
Shortly after the hearing, Mr. Turner said he was approached by Mr. Flaherty's parliamentary secretary, Diane Ablonczy, in the House of Commons.

"She came to my desk where I was computing away on my laptop," Mr. Turner said, recalling that she told him to "get onside."

In the end, no one raised a single question about the prospect of 40-year or zero-down mortgages. The bill sailed through the committee - including a vote of support from Mr. Turner.

"At the end of the day I sadly acquiesced," he said, adding that he regrets voting the way he did. "At the time it was politically difficult."

Thanks for that admission Garth. We got into this financial mess by wanting to be “on side” with the club. Me too. See there, now we’ve both admitted. Only I didn't hold a public office.

The real estate market has changed, and continues to change - no kidding? As the world rode the wave of press releases about increasing home prices up, we all smiled and felt warm and tingly inside. The Real Estate Industry collectively trumpeted these facts of splendour - more, more, up, up ...

The US has taken an obvious lead in market value and activity decline. NAR, the collective voice of Realtors in the US, long ago recognized the need for straight talk – ‘market in change’, then finally in reverse – decline – this was open transparent admission and reporting.

CREA just invented a new standard. Claiming “House prices are skewed” CREA just reported the Weighted National Average Price for Sales on the Multiple Listing Service. Baaaad timing. In a world looking for transparency – who are these wizards of imagined standards? Hey people up there – look to NAR …lets report the facts so they are measurable, comparable…twisted any other way, your leadership as the credible source of information may in today’s new world fade.

Today as always – “average” is just that, “average information”. For exceptional information – hopefully people will rely on their trusted full-time professional that will share information as facts and trends instead of – sugar coated, credibility busting – invented terms to hide the obvious – we live in new and changing times.

In Ontario 65,000 Provincial Civil Servants are up for Contract Renewal this year and our Government’s opening offer is 12% - that’s 3% a year. Now pardon me, and maybe even forgive me – but a question to the Teachers Union – how is 3% a below par offer?

I’m astounded that some Government negotiator has placed a higher amount than private industry has enjoyed as an ‘opening offer’ – cause we all know they’ll need to move, even if just for goodwill.

I as well am not happy about the economic bail-out going to Bay Street chums, but how does the Teachers Union see an above the board, fabulous offer as – being asked to carry the new financial hardships on their back?

Most of us will roll back, this year, next and even maybe the next/ Net neutral would be fantastic….it’s going to be an interesting year as we see if sulking unions with in-tact pensions, protected holidays and more security than is left in the shambles of Industry take it [us] to the wall and if Mr. McGuinty possesses the same gut determination as former President Regan “go back to work, or you’re all fired”.

A perspective for Canadians

EVENTS –
The past weeks have been a roller coaster ride on the stock markets. Even economists & pundits – the “wizards’ are in new territory. Some publicly admitting – they “just don’t know”.

WHAT WE DO KNOW –
- Banks are pricing ‘risk’ into their rates so mortgage rates have been spiking. In Canada the Central Bank was surprised that the Big 5 Banks went a only quarter point down when the Central Bank went down a half point. Risk based pricing, so absent from the economy is back. But it will seek ‘right’ levels that we were previously used to.
- Governments around the globe will be saddled with debt from their cash injections to help manage the ‘markets’. So it will be in each government’s ‘best interest’ to promote a low rate policy.
- Fears of Inflation do not seem to be a near-term concern. So rising rates are an illogical presumption.
- And High Rates compete with the Stock Market for where investors will park their cash – and these days the stock markets need all the help they can get. YES low rates seem in the “best interest” of all.
IF higher rates are around the corner, its almost a good thing – as it will have meant the bailout worked, the economy is roaring ahead, and higher rates were brought in to cool things out…now that would be a change in headlines.
GOT A VRM Mortgage? Stop. Think.
In this time of change - Uncertainty breeds fear. Do not hastily exit an advantageous mortgage by listening to whispers of “lock-in-now” before mortgage rates climb. YES – if someone you know has a VRM mortgage with, for example a five year term, guaranteed to be half below prime – then why lock-in? It may well be a knee-jerk reaction to a rumor picked up by the Media last week, that said – “If you have a VRM, you can’t lock in fast enough”.
SILVER LINING –
And the fresh, international approach, (which seems to have begun in Europe), to planning and policy (the bailout) growing should ultimately calm “market turmoil”. Decisions today should be made with long-term views.
NEXT –
The US Dollar will likely not be the only International Benchmark currency. Likely a ‘pool’ of world currencies will emerge in what has finally been recognized, and is desperately being reorganized as one giant system called the “new global economy” - a now old term, that is finally about to reach reality - maybe. Funny how crisis can promt action.

WAY WAY BACK in March of this year I cheered then Chairman of AIG, as he lamented and warned of Mark-to-Market take downs. I chickened out in June and pulled the story - BUT I repost it here and now - it was right then and its right now, In Canada new standards announced Oct 16 - relieve Canadian Banks from the onerous pressure of Mark-to-Market. And AIG is here, but gone - some of it stupidity from their British branch, some if the famed necessity of Mark-to-Market accounting.

BELOW are my original comments from March of 08.


The Sheriff of Wall Street aka “the Spitz” rode his white stallion up and down the backs of us all. He built a modern day McCarthyism, Salem Which Hunts – fear, fear of being accused of not having enough ‘compliance’. We began to look in closets for ‘compliance’ and under pillows – like it was an object. Imagine the shame of it being said “you don’t have compliance’. The Spitz it is revealed didn’t quite have it either – but so long as it looked like there was ‘compliance’ it would be such a good world, so much better.

And then a new pet grew called ‘Sarb-Ox’. A wild animal – that was supposed to cull the beast of ‘compliance’ solved by the boogey bear of - disclosure. And some entities (corporations) finally said “too much”. They said it quietly of course for fear of The Spitz. But quietly some of them moved to London and other exchanges of the world to avoid the “Sarb-Ox’ beast.

Its coming undone – even with Sarb-Ox still on the loose, not as wild, and now more tame – but still its come undone. And in the midst – funny enough so too did the “Spitz”.

Well congrats and Bravo to Martin Sullivan of AIG – I dun’o if he’s right or wrong as far as his firms reporting goes – but he’s opened the floor to the question….is the reporting right? Is the disclosure working, is it real – does it need adjustment? So does it? Are we going to be brave enough to enter the dialogue?

Before we answer – remember, is was America that put “anti-bribery legislation into place” – forced and forcing themselves to take a moral high-ground. So seemingly strict it tied the hands of US companies operating overseas…seemed good at the time…BUT there was an unseen consequence…at the Xerox office in Cairo – the ‘company’ paid the local phone repairman a tip, a stipend of about $15. per month to keep Xerox connected – this was, under the new ‘law’ considered – illegal. Xerox Cairo stopped illegally bribing the phone repair man to keep their service at operational levels and poof, so went the phone service – gone.

Reporting, disclosure, transparency – all good. But is there really any of it – or is it fog, that only is conveniently lifted by “Spitz” like fella’s to expose when it best suits ‘their’ needs?

Lets encourage Sullivan, let’s engage the question – if the transparency that’s been built, that’s torn down so many, was so great – how’d this mess happen?

Timeline - 14th of September the venerable firm Merrill Lynch gets into unthinkable trouble – they fail. Not really – they got saved in a fire sale. Still ugly for such a long standing giant.

10 days later – Local Merrill Lynch economists - David Wolf & Carolyn Kwan, predict a mortgage meltdown will whack the Canadian real estate market, the magnitude of which would equal the events in the US.

Now on a sunny day, I’m told I can see far enough to find the storm clouds. I call it forward looking radar. What Msr Wolf and Mdm Kwan did was either a sour grape approach to their new, or as yet, undetermined employment, or just plain trying to join an alarmist bandwagon a tad too late.

Silly goofs, while I think we here in La-Belle Canada think ourselves too invincible, David & Carolyn fail to understand that the mortgage meltdown was precipitated by Money Traders – the poor homeowners fell into the soup after.

Not to replay the facts, stats or arguments here, just only to say – hey David, hey Carolyn – did you see the fundamental differences?
If risk had been priced in, the economy could have handled Homeowners that got whacked. BUT the economy could not handle the FI’s that leveraged, derivatized, swapped and put 125% of the face value of mortgage pools out at bonused rates “cause it was just so damned attractive”. And the math, if it ever could be figured out, which I’m sure won’t happen, then it’s likely a good bet that the economists wrote solid opinions as to why a bundle of 100 million of mortgage backed securities ended up selling for 150 or even 200 million due to what? Salesmanship, confusion or just being too tired to care.

Yes the Canadian market will likely have price adjustments –but not of the magnitude you unhappy birds suggest. The trigger to our local markets will be as in the rest of the world – general consumer confidence. The driver could be employment levels – and if they take a hit, well then it won’t be mortgage meltdown – it would’ve been economic.

To be fair, its been tough to see days ahead, never mind months, but David and Carolyn are late, late in the game and wrong side of the 49th.

Enthralled. First there was the Obama Acceptance Speech – yes he delivers well, - still no Trudeau or Reagan. Of most interest was the brilliance at the assembly and cadence for each topic – or more correctly “Voter Segment” that he touched. His speech ended with a touching quote, but what surprised me, was that he actually used the Power Close – about half way through instead. Brilliant construction – only they left part of the roof on the main floor.

I couldn’t wait to hear how the McCain Team would position the response. It could be a tremendous study in respond, attack, gain favor. Not sure if after the storm and the amended Republican Convention format that it all fell apart, or if the construction just not great from the start – but McCain's Acceptance Speech said little of a well played response to Obama’s strong opening night performance.

And last night I fell asleep to the murmurs of the “great debate”. Yes today the Pundits are saying volley, attack, joust, avoiding direct hits on each other…but landing well placed blows. HUH? Hey they had to say something other than limp. I awoke to replay after replay. I found last night’s performance a polite discussion, no, not even as good as a discussion – more a ‘plea’ from the podium. High School debating teams have had more spark, brilliance and intrigue. Each candidate for much of the evening went eye-to-eye with the Moderator – not even direct to the camera – let alone, each other! Witness a Moderator that asked more than a half dozen times – please respond to Mr. McCain, please address that to Mr. Obama, please, please and please.

Leadership debates are supposed to give a glimpse into the ‘character’ of the Candidate. In truth what we want to see is much like a car race – the impact – that moment. Bush looking at his watch, Trudeau stepping out from behind a glass podium and then Joe Clark taking a step back in retreat…oh yes Marshall McLuhan.

Yes, yes I know, we’re not supposed to say we’re there for the knock-out punch…but remember back to the movie Grand Prix when Eva Marie Saint stepped from the ambulance and quite literally tarred the Media with...”here, this is what you want, this is really why you come to the races…” Well in a word “yes” I was there to see diplomatic attack and rebuttal…not for the Sport of it, but to learn from what should be the pinnacle of style…a machine assembled behind each of two men who wanted to lead the free world….before the economic hobbling which will redefine much of what we today call…Leadership.