Widening The Moat

Every day, in countless ways, the competitive position of each of our businesses grows either weaker or stronger.  If we are delighting customers, eliminating unnecessary costs and improving our products and services, we gain strength.  But if we treat customers with indifference or tolerate bloat, our businesses will wither.  On a daily basis, the effects of our actions are imperceptible;  cumulatively, though, their consequences are enormous.
When our long-term competitive position improves as a result of these almost unnoticeable actions, we describe the phenomenon as “widening the moat.”  And doing that is essential if we are to have the kind of business we want a decade or two from now.  We always, of course, hope to earn more money in the short-term.  But when short-term and long-term conflict, widening the moat must take precedence.  If a management makes bad decisions in order to hit short-term earnings targets, and consequently gets behind the eight-ball in terms of costs, customer satisfaction or brand strength, no amount of subsequent brilliance will overcome the damage that has been inflicted.  Take a look at the dilemmas of managers in the auto and airline industries today as they struggle with the huge problems handed them by their predecessors.  Charlie [Munger] is fond of quoting Ben Franklin’s “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”  But sometimes no amount of cure will overcome the mistakes of the past.
—     Warren Buffett
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Is #45 Warning Alabama Again?

Wise men talk because they have something to say;  fools talk because they have to say something.
—    Benjamin Franklin
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It Is A Start…

Below you will find the U.S. House of Representatives Resolution 489 condemning #45 for his racist remarks (on Twitter and in public speech)…   The Resolution appears as 1)  individual images (click on them to enlarge them in your image viewer), 2)  a link to the full PDF file (click on it to read the PDF in your viewer), and, finally, 3)  the text of the Resolution…
Click on the following link to read the full pdf file in your reader:  BILLS-116hres489ih
116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 489
Condemning President Trump’s racist comments directed at Members of Congress.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Mr. MALINOWSKI submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
RESOLUTION
Condemning President Trump’s racist comments directed at Members of Congress.
Whereas the Founders conceived America as a haven of refuge for people fleeing from religious and political persecution, and Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison all emphasized that the Nation gained as it attracted new people in search of freedom and livelihood for their families;
Whereas the Declaration of Independence defined America as a covenant based on equality, the unalienable Rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and government by the consent of the people;
Whereas Benjamin Franklin said at the Constitutional convention, ‘‘When foreigners after looking about for some other Country in which they can obtain more happiness, give a preference to ours, it is a proof of attachment which ought to excite our confidence and affection’’;
Whereas President Franklin D. Roosevelt said, ‘‘Remember, remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrants and revolutionists’’;
Whereas immigration of people from all over the Earth has defined every stage of American history and propelled our social, economic, political, scientific, cultural, artistic and technological progress as a people, and all Americans, except for the descendants of Native people and enslaved African-Americans, are immigrants or descendants of immigrants;
Whereas the commitment to immigration and asylum has been not a partisan cause but a powerful national value that has infused the work of many Presidents;
Whereas American patriotism is defined not by race or ethnicity but by devotion to the Constitutional ideals of equality, liberty, inclusion, and democracy and by service to our communities and struggle for the common good;
Whereas President John F. Kennedy, whose family came to the United States from Ireland, stated in his 1958 book ‘‘A Nation of Immigrants’’ that ‘‘The contribution of immigrants can be seen in every aspect of our national life.  We see it in religion, in politics, in business, in the arts, in education, even in athletics and entertainment.  There is no part of our nation that has not been touched by our immigrant background.  Everywhere immigrants have enriched and strengthened the fabric of American life.’’;
Whereas President Ronald Reagan in his last speech as President conveyed ‘‘An observation about a country which I love’’;
Whereas as President Reagan observed, the torch of Lady Liberty symbolizes our freedom and represents our heritage, the compact with our parents, our grandparents, and our ancestors, and it is the Statue of Liberty and its values that give us our great and special place in the world;
Whereas other countries may seek to compete with us, but in one vital area, as ‘‘a beacon of freedom and opportunity that draws the people of the world, no country on Earth comes close’’;
Whereas it is the great life force of ‘‘each generation of new Americans that guarantees that America’s triumph shall continue unsurpassed’’ through the 21st century and beyond and is part of the ‘‘magical, intoxicating power of America’’;
Whereas this is ‘‘one of the most important sources of America’s greatness:  we lead the world because, unique among nations, we draw our people — our strength — from every country and every corner of the world, and by doing so we continuously renew and enrich our nation’’;
Whereas ‘‘thanks to each wave of new arrivals to this land of opportunity, we’re a nation forever young, forever bursting with energy and new ideas, and always on the cutting edge’’, always leading the world to the next frontier;
Whereas this openness is vital to our future as a Nation, and ‘‘if we ever closed the door to new Americans, our leadership in the world would soon be lost’’;  and
Whereas President Donald Trump’s racist comments have legitimized fear and hatred of new Americans and people of color:  Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives —
1	(1) believes that immigrants and their descend-
2	ants have made America stronger, and that those
3	who take the oath of citizenship are every bit as
4	American as those whose families have lived in the
5	United States for many generations;
6	(2) is committed to keeping America open to
7	those lawfully seeking refuge and asylum from vio-
8	lence and oppression, and those who are willing to
9	work hard to live the American Dream, no matter
10	their race, ethnicity, faith, or country of origin;  and
11	(3) strongly condemns President Donald
12	Trump’s racist comments that have legitimized and
13	increased fear and hatred of new Americans and
14	people of color by saying that our fellow Americans
15	who are immigrants, and those who may look to the
16	President like immigrants, should ‘‘go back’’ to
17	other countries, by referring to immigrants and asy-
18	lum seekers as ‘‘invaders,’’ and by saying that Mem-
19	bers of Congress who are immigrants (or those of
20	our colleagues who are wrongly assumed to be immi-
21	grants) do not belong in Congress or in the United
22	States of America.
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Too True

Life’s tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late.
—    Benjamin Franklin
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Speaking Of #45

Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain, and most fools do.
—    Benjamin Franklin
[Hmmm…  Since I criticize both his policies and the man himself, (to no practical effect,) does this make me a bigger fool than #DonTheCon?  Just wondering…     —    kmab]
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The Stumbling Block, Too

The doorstep to the temple of wisdom is knowledge of our own ignorance.
—    Benjamin Franklin
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Gifts

The best thing to give to your enemy is forgiveness;  to an opponent, tolerance;  to a friend, your heart;  to your child, a good example;  to a father, deference;  to your mother, conduct that will make her proud of you;  to yourself, respect;  to all men, charity.
—     Benjamin Franklin
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Knowledge Pays

An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.
—    Benjamin Franklin
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No Less

Today, as always, the people, no less than the courts, must remain vigilant to preserve the principals of our Bill of Rights, lest in our desire to be secure we lose our ability to be free.
—   Earl Warren
Former Chief Justice
United States Supreme Court
[Note the use of the word “principals” instead of “principles”.  This indicates superior position rather than “simply” equally important opinions and conditions.  To quote Benjamin Franklin:  “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”   —    kmab]
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Corrected And Amended

Franklin’s Epitaph
The Body of B. Franklin,
Printer;
like the Cover of an old Book,
Its Contents torn out,
And stript of its Lettering and Gilding,
Lies here,
Food for Worms.
But the Work shall not be wholly lost;
For it will,
as he believ’d,
appear once more,
In a new & more perfect Edition,
Corrected and amended By the Author.
—    Written by Benjamin Franklin
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On Worshiping God

I imagine it great vanity in me to suppose that the Supremely Perfect does in the least regard such an inconsiderable nothing as man.  More especially, since it is impossible for me to have any positive clear idea of that which is infinite and incomprehensible.  I cannot conceive otherwise than that He, the Infinite Father, expects or requires no worship or praise from us, but that he is even INFINITELY ABOVE IT.
—    Benjamin Franklin
[I do not believe God expects or requires worship or praise from us, and yet I still give it freely.  God is infinitely above it, but I am not burdened by it nor beneath God in offering it.  My faith is in a loving God, and it suffices me.    —    kmab]
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Hangin’ With His P’s

We must all hang together now, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.
—    Benjamin Franklin
[Remembering that only 10% of the American colonists supported a revolt from England, I wonder if the majority considered the “Founder’s” to be “Patriots” or “Terrorists”…     —    kmab]
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Franklin’s Creed

You desire to know something of my Religion.  It is the first time I have been questioned upon it:  But I do not take your Curiosity amiss, and shall endeavour in a few Words to gratify it.  Here is my Creed:  I believe in one God, Creator of the Universe.  That He governs it by his Providence.  That he ought to be worshipped.  That the most acceptable Service we can render to him, is doing Good to his other Children.  That the Soul of Man is immortal, and will be treated with Justice in another Life respecting its Conduct in this.  These I take to be the fundamental Principles of all sound Religion, and I regard them as you do, in whatever Sect I meet with them.  As to Jesus of Nazareth, my Opinion of whom you particularly desire, I think the System of Morals and his Religion as he left them to us, the best the World ever saw, or is likely to see;  but I apprehend it has received various corrupting Changes, and I have with most of the present Dissenters in England, some Doubts as to his Divinity:  tho’ it is a Question I do not dogmatise upon, having never studied it, and think it needless to busy myself with it now, when I expect soon an Opportunity of knowing the Truth with less Trouble.  I see no harm however in its being believed, if that Belief has the good Consequence as probably it has, of making his Doctrines more respected and better observed, especially as I do not perceive that the Supreme takes it amiss, by distinguishing the Believers, in his Government of the World, with any particular Marks of his Displeasure.  I shall only add respecting myself, that having experienced the Goodness of that Being, in conducting me prosperously thro’ a long Life, I have no doubt of its Continuance in the next, tho’ without the smallest Conceit of meriting such Goodness.
—    Benjamin Franklin
March 9, 1790
Letter to Ezra Stiles.  Franklin passed away in April, 1790
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Good And Bad

When a religion is good, I conceive that it will support itself;  and when it does not support itself, and God does not take care to support it, so that its professors are obliged to call for help of the civil power, ’tis a sign, I apprehend, of its being a bad one.
—     Benjamin Franklin
[And why are we continuing to support “Faith Based” charities with government funds?  Would the Founding Fathers do so?    —    kmab]
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Skeptical Fathers

Yesterday, I developed a bad sore throat.  I made it through the work day, but it was getting progressively worse.  I woke up around 2:30am with difficulty breathing, unable to swallow, and what felt like sandpaper at the back  of my throat and a walnut under each of my jaws.  This morning I went to the doctor’s office and was told it’s viral not bacterial, so all I can do is continue to gargle and hang in there (lots of fluids and rest) for a few days and it’ll go away.
So today I completed “Moral Minority: Our Skeptical Founding Fathers“, written by Brooke Allen (2006©).  The book is about the religious beliefs of six of the “Founding Fathers” of the United States of America (George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and John Adams).  If you’ll pardon the pun, the book has been a revelation to me!!
I had always assumed our Founding Fathers were highly religious (Protestant) Christians.  It seems this is mostly (but not entirely) untrue.  For example, Washington was an occasional church attendee, but he never participated in communion.  In fact, when communion was about to begin, he would stand and leave the service.  When confronted about this behaviour, he admitted he never considered it to be distracting to others attending the service.  Although he continued to occasionally attend services, he never attended another service where communion was to be offered.  The rest, although raised in Christian faith, appear to be mostly Deists.  The exception being Hamilton, who seems to have re-discovered Christianity late in life – but not early enough to have had it significantly affect his politics.
In any case, all were stridently against the mixture of Church and State, and so it seems strange to me to think the Religious Right in today’s America hold up the Founding Fathers as the guides in returning the United States to our religious and political roots.  It seems they (the Religious Right) either don’t read (or refuse to understand / believe) the history of our country.  Well, what else is new?
After presenting a chapter on each of the six Founding Fathers, the book concludes with two chapters describing the world which produces the Founding Fathers and some of the turmoil and issues since 1787.  Both chapters are excellent overviews of the religious / political worlds before and after our Constitution and are worth the price of the book themselves.
I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in American History, Politics or the specific issue of the separation of Church and State.  Rest assured you will see numerous quotes from this book over the next few months…
And lest I forget to mention, this is one of the two books I purchased with the gift certificate my daughter Rebecca gave me for my birthday.  Thanks Bec, this book has brought me hours of enjoyable reading and reflective thought!!
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