> Remember Lee Iacocca, the man who rescued Chrysler Corporation from
> its death throes? He has written a new book, and here are some excerpts.
>
>
> Lee Iacocca Says:
>
>
> 'Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where
> the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder. We've got a
> gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff, we've
> got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even clean up after
> a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad,
> everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, 'Stay
> the course'
>
> Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America , not the damned
> 'Titanic'. I'll give you a sound bite: 'Throw all the bums out!'
>
> You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe
> I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country
> anymore.
>
> The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in
> hand cuffs. While we're fiddling in Iraq , the Middle East is burning and
> nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving 'pom-poms' instead
> of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of the ' America ' my
> parents and yours traveled across the ocean for. I've had enough. How about
> you?
>
> I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not
> outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have.
>
> The Biggest 'C' is Crisis !
>
> Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis It's
> easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk theory. Or send
> someone else's kids off to war when you've never seen a battlefield
> yourself. It's another thing to lead when yo ur world comes tumbling down.
>
> On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in
> our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. A Hell of
> a M ess
>
> So here's where we stand. We're immersed in a bloody war with no plan for
> winning and no plan for leaving. We're running the biggest deficit in the
> history of the country. We're losing the manufacturing edge to Asia , while
> our once-great companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs. Gas
> prices are skyrocketing, and no body in power has a coherent energy policy.
> Our schools are in trouble. Our borders are like sieves. The middle class
> is being squeezed every which way. These are times that cry out for
> leadership.
>
> But when you look around, you've got to ask: 'Where have all the leaders
> gone?' Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people
> of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense? I may be
> a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the point.
>
> Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us
> take off our shoes in airports and thro w away our shampoo? We've spent
> billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we know how to
> do is react to things that have already happened.
>
> Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane Katrina.
> Congre ss has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response to the
> hurricane, or demanding accountability for the decisions that were made in
> the crucial hours after the storm.
>
> Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't happen again.
> Now, that's just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a plan. Figure out
> what you're going to do the next time.
>
> Name me an industry leader who is thinking creativ ely about how we can
> restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have believed that
> there could ever be a time when 'The Big Three' referred to Japanese car
> companies? How did this happen, and more important, what are we going to do
> about it?
>
> Name me a govern ment leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the
> debt, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem. The
> silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at our
> country and milking the middle class dry.
>
> I have news for the gang in Congress. We didn't elect you to sit on your
> asses and do nothing and remain silent while our democracy is being hijacked
> and our greatness is being replaced with mediocrity. What is everybody so
> afraid of? That some bonehead on Fox News will call them a name? Give me a
> break. Why don't you guys show some spine for a change?
>
> Had Enough?
>
> Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm trying to
> light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope I believe in America . In
> my lifetime I've had the privilege of living through some of America 's
> greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our worst crises: the 'Great
> Depression', 'World War II', the 'Korean War', the 'Kennedy Assassination',
> the 'Vietnam War', the 1970s oil crisis, and the struggles of recent years
> culminating with 9/11.
>
> If I've learned one thing, it's this: 'You don't get anywhere by standing on
> the sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action. Whether it's
> building a better car or building a better future for our children, we all
> have a role to play. That's the challenge I'm raising in this book. It's a
> call to 'Action' for peop le who, like me, believe in America It's not too
> late, but it's getting pretty close. So let's sha ke off the crap and go to
> work. Let's tell 'em all we've had 'enough
**
*Disclamier* JMODYODD & IORock&Roll. :-)
