While in New York last month my wife and I visited the Federal Hall where President George Washington was inaugurated as our first President of this great and free land. Standing on the steps of that great monument I felt for a moment the powerful strength of the Founding Fathers. They were men of Character and Valor. Standing on the tops of the steps one looks directly out at the New York Stock Exchange. It is an interesting juxtaposition of two of the great pieces of the United States. The last few years have seen what each the Federal Hall and the NYSE represent challenged, tested and beaten up. Our economy is in peril and the leaders in our government have in many ways let down the people they were asked to serve.
I came across the following quote from the magnanimous Thomas Jefferson:
“I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.”
My view from sitting on the steps of the Federal Hall was clear. It’s time to stand up. Literally, the steps were quite cold and I didn’t need my back side getting cold. In a more meaningful sense it was time to stand up and start acting.
I am so grateful to live in America. This truly is the land of opportunity, and now is the time to seek out those opportunities. Fortunes are made in the Bear markets, the profits are usually just realized in the Bull.
It’s not the proper roll of the Government to come in and save all of the companies or to bail each of us out. It’s our job to learn from our mistakes and grow stronger. We can grow stronger. We can get smarter. We can prosper again.
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