Building Bridges Between Islands

Willard “Mitt” Romney dropped by our area yesterday, stopping at a private country club for a fund-raising dinner, where one could have an intimate dinner with the candidate for a contribution of $50,000. I wasn’t invited, but our local newspaper kindly printed his remarks in this morning’s paper. Having read them, I’m not sure this man really understands business, despite the undeniable fact that he’s made hundreds of millions in the world of U.S. capitalism. I say good for him, but I’m still not sure he understood how it all came about.

During his speech, Willard blasted his opponent’s recent remarks about entrepreneurship. President Obama had said: “If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges…” You get the point, right? In his famous poem, John Donne said, “No man is an island,” a quote that has stood the test of time.

The newspaper reported that Romney was incredulous at the President’s remarks, saying, “It’s a shocking, shocking observation on his part of what he actually believes…what he’s saying is that Steve Jobs didn’t build Apple and Bill Gates didn’t build Microsoft and Henry Ford didn’t build Ford Motor Company. Ray Kroc didn’t build McDonalds. That Papa Johns didn’t build Papa Johns Pizza” (BTW Willard, the man’s name is John Schnatter, not “Papa Johns”). All fine examples of American entrepreneurship, but how about a little reality check.

For instance, Steve Jobs was a genius in areas of marketing and product design, but he wouldn’t have got his start without his good friend Steve Wozniack, who built the first couple of Apple Computers. Jobs lacked the engineering know how to do it. Bill Gates got his interest in computers at an early age when the Mothers Club at his exclusive prep school purchased a computer terminal and a block of computer time on General Electric’s mainframe computer. The little scamp found bugs in another company’s program that he and a few buddies exploited to get free computer time. How about a little shout-out to his parents for paying his tuition, the ladies in the Mother’s Club for their contribution, and the company that recognized the lad’s genius instead of having him arrested for stealing computer time?

Henry Ford did build a formidable automobile company, but he had help. Do you think the automobile would have become so popular if government entities hadn’t begun paving roads and building bridges? I believe that was the President’s point in part of his remarks. By the way, Ford is also credited with a philosophy known as "Fordism”: mass production of inexpensive goods coupled with high wages for workers. Ford had a global vision, with consumerism as the key to peace, something that the wealthy of our country seem to forget.

McDonald’s founder, Ray Kroc, road the wave of American suburbanization to fame and fortune. Of course, he was selling milkshake mixers to the McDonald brothers’ California restaurant when he spotted a good thing, and partnered with them, before buying them out. True, he’s the one that realized the potential and built his empire, but he had help. John Schnatter, the founder of Papa John’s Pizza, bought out the other owners of a bar that served pizza to start his empire. He too benefits from the nation’s roadways to deliver his products.

These fine examples of American know how have also faced criticism. Jobs has described himself as behaving like an asshole. Gates has been accused of trying to monopolize the software market. Ford was a meglomaniacal anti-Semite, while Kroc and Schnatter are accused of helping to super-size the American people and contributing to our health woes. No man is an island, but some of us are getting to be close in size.

Much of the rest of Romney’s speech that night rehashed his typical speaking points, including a promise to “increase economic freedom by reducing the burdens of regulations and repealing ‘Obamacare’” (which is modeled after his own health care plan that he signed into law as governor of Massachusetts). He also claims that his opponent has lost focus on the economy, and has implemented liberal ideas and pro-labor policies (you mean like Henry Ford’s famous $5 a day pay for workers that allowed him to sell more cars to his workers?). Oh yeah, don’t forget to transfer all of your money into gold or diamonds or something if Willard gets elected and starts reducing the burdens of regulations on banks. I don’t think we can survive another meltdown like the banking crisis of 2008.

So Mr. Romney fancies himself a self-made entrepreneurial genius whose business acumen is going to rescue our country from our past failings. But does he understand the difference between business and government? It doesn’t appear that he does. I personally don’t want my bridges and roads built only by businesses on a for-profit basis. Would we have a low cost bridge option, for McDonald’s employees for example, that may or may not fall into the river it spans, alongside a better built bridge option for rich people that can afford a higher fee to use it. Doesn’t sound like a rational idea, or the American Way for that matter.

So while you’re busy telling us where we went wrong Mr. R., it might be nice for you to thank some of the folks who helped you get to the podium. How about a shout-out to your folks for paying the tuition to your prep school, and Stanford, and BYU, and Harvard? How about saying thanks to the government entity that maintains the airport where your jet landed, and the ones that built and maintain the fine roads and bridges that took you to the private country club, so you can maintain a decent separation from the unwashed masses? While you’re at, don’t forget those greenskeepers that keep the golf course so nice and green during the drought. After all, it’s the least that any self-made man can do.

“ ... any mans death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankinde; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee.. ” 
                                                                                       — John Donne, Meditation XVII