About Me
I am a northern California high tech robotics and IT executive and engineer. I have worked with just about every imaginable industry on some truly amazing products and projects. I have given great thought on to create jobs and prosperity in an ever more knowledge centric and automated world. I believe that most of the pundits are mistaken, that the Great Recession was largely preventable, and that what we are truly experiencing is what I call The Great Transition (discussed more in my book).
I am blessed to be the son of two loving Great Depression era parents who taught me, and my three older brothers, the value of hard work and a great education, early in life. Because of a love of basketball, I was surrounded by All American coaches, mentors, teammates and competitors. Basketball gave me the unique opportunity to grow up in two worlds: a mostly white, working-class suburb; and the mostly black, playgrounds and projects downtown.
I married way up! She is my college sweetheart, a true beauty, and a brilliant renaissance women. If it matters, we are in an interracial marriage, and have two "All American Boyz."
I never thought I would become involved in an effort like this. I thought my way of paying it forward was BlackBelt Basketball, a life-skills and sports camp we founded when our kids were in middle school. Two videos (2003 and 2004) are still posted on YouTube. It is easy to see why we fell in love with the kids, and why we are so committed to making sure they have a better tomorrow.
We stopped the camp when our school district completely failed fiscally and academically. While not mutually exclusive, to me, a great education is a lot more important than a good jump shot, so I focused what spare time, energy and resources I had on improving our K12 education system instead. After trying repeatedly, without success, to get our district to think differently, I set out to start an unparalleled new charter middle/high school, NewERA Schools. I traveled the country, visited the winners and did a ton of research. While unsuccessful in raising the money necessary to open a school, I learned more than I ever could have imagined. The lessons learned from my 10-year journey are detailed in my upcoming book, A Nation At Even Greater Risk. It upends just about every piece of dogma you have heard about K12 education, school reform, and how to help All American children succeed as never before.
I am not sure how or exactly why I started writing the content for this book. I think it largely grew out of a few letters to the editor I wrote during the early stages of the recession. In the end, I pursued the effort out of my great love of our country, and the desire to help our kids and America's poor succeed. I understand many of the positions I take make me the target of many. Unfortunately, these issues are too important to ignore. I cannot sit idle.
I am blessed to be the son of two loving Great Depression era parents who taught me, and my three older brothers, the value of hard work and a great education, early in life. Because of a love of basketball, I was surrounded by All American coaches, mentors, teammates and competitors. Basketball gave me the unique opportunity to grow up in two worlds: a mostly white, working-class suburb; and the mostly black, playgrounds and projects downtown.
I married way up! She is my college sweetheart, a true beauty, and a brilliant renaissance women. If it matters, we are in an interracial marriage, and have two "All American Boyz."
I never thought I would become involved in an effort like this. I thought my way of paying it forward was BlackBelt Basketball, a life-skills and sports camp we founded when our kids were in middle school. Two videos (2003 and 2004) are still posted on YouTube. It is easy to see why we fell in love with the kids, and why we are so committed to making sure they have a better tomorrow.
We stopped the camp when our school district completely failed fiscally and academically. While not mutually exclusive, to me, a great education is a lot more important than a good jump shot, so I focused what spare time, energy and resources I had on improving our K12 education system instead. After trying repeatedly, without success, to get our district to think differently, I set out to start an unparalleled new charter middle/high school, NewERA Schools. I traveled the country, visited the winners and did a ton of research. While unsuccessful in raising the money necessary to open a school, I learned more than I ever could have imagined. The lessons learned from my 10-year journey are detailed in my upcoming book, A Nation At Even Greater Risk. It upends just about every piece of dogma you have heard about K12 education, school reform, and how to help All American children succeed as never before.
I am not sure how or exactly why I started writing the content for this book. I think it largely grew out of a few letters to the editor I wrote during the early stages of the recession. In the end, I pursued the effort out of my great love of our country, and the desire to help our kids and America's poor succeed. I understand many of the positions I take make me the target of many. Unfortunately, these issues are too important to ignore. I cannot sit idle.
About The Book
Pimping The Poor is the Freakonomics of today's socio-economic debate. I have written the book so that All Americans can better understand what drives a strong economy, and higher standards of living for all of us. It destroys dogma, and offers an array of new, more logical solutions to America's biggest problems.
In Chapter 1, America's Mid-Life Crisis, we analyze the Progressive narrative, and whether or not their socialistic policies create or kill jobs and prosperity for All Americans. I show how flawed these ideas are, and give you the chance to evaluate what direction makes the most sense for you and our people.
In Chapter 2 A Fatal Misdiagnosis, completely dispels the list of popular myths and mis-directions listed below and more.
In Chapter 3, The Great Transition, I explain why I contend that The Great Recession was really just one symptom to something much bigger, The Great Transition. This transition offers one of two outcomes for All Americans. One path leads to widespread prosperity and more freedom, the other to deeper pockets of poverty, and more dependence.
In Chapter 4, Smarter Solutions, I outline a series of steps America can take to create The All American Super Economy. These policies can accelerate All American prosperity and generate GDP growth rates of more than 5% annually. I understand, that sounds impossible given today's economic lethargy, and the pervasive reports on the news daily. That is why I rigorously show the data necessary to prove my case. There are plenty of examples to learn from. I do my best to bring them to you.
Chapter 5, A Nation At Even Greater Risk, is really a second book within a book. In it, I show that the real cause to 80% of America's biggest socio-economic issues is the failure of our K12 education system to properly educate 75% of American children.
In Chapter 6, A Call To Action, I share a few thought provoking examples that show the historic consequences of what happens when good men and women sit quietly and politely by, while the snowball of socialism picks up power and mass as it rolls toward the innocent people at the bottom of the mountain.
In the end, I hope this book makes you think, consider and stand up for what you deem best for All Americans!
In Chapter 1, America's Mid-Life Crisis, we analyze the Progressive narrative, and whether or not their socialistic policies create or kill jobs and prosperity for All Americans. I show how flawed these ideas are, and give you the chance to evaluate what direction makes the most sense for you and our people.
In Chapter 2 A Fatal Misdiagnosis, completely dispels the list of popular myths and mis-directions listed below and more.
- Myth: Progressive Policies Ended The Great Recession
- Myth: Poverty Is Rising
- Myth: The Shrinking Middle Class Spells The End of The American Dream
- Myth: Bigger Government and More Spending Creates Jobs
- Myth: Redistribution Creates Jobs, Prosperity and Grows The Middle Class
- Myth: Wealth Inequality Is The Result of an Unfair Capitalistic System
- Myth: A Good Education and Hard Work No Longer Are No Longer Worth The Effort or Expense
In Chapter 3, The Great Transition, I explain why I contend that The Great Recession was really just one symptom to something much bigger, The Great Transition. This transition offers one of two outcomes for All Americans. One path leads to widespread prosperity and more freedom, the other to deeper pockets of poverty, and more dependence.
In Chapter 4, Smarter Solutions, I outline a series of steps America can take to create The All American Super Economy. These policies can accelerate All American prosperity and generate GDP growth rates of more than 5% annually. I understand, that sounds impossible given today's economic lethargy, and the pervasive reports on the news daily. That is why I rigorously show the data necessary to prove my case. There are plenty of examples to learn from. I do my best to bring them to you.
Chapter 5, A Nation At Even Greater Risk, is really a second book within a book. In it, I show that the real cause to 80% of America's biggest socio-economic issues is the failure of our K12 education system to properly educate 75% of American children.
In Chapter 6, A Call To Action, I share a few thought provoking examples that show the historic consequences of what happens when good men and women sit quietly and politely by, while the snowball of socialism picks up power and mass as it rolls toward the innocent people at the bottom of the mountain.
In the end, I hope this book makes you think, consider and stand up for what you deem best for All Americans!
The All American Movement
If the past few decades of politics have not convinced you how dysfunctional, corrupt, and incompetent all of our existing political parties are, nothing will.
I say it's time we did something about it. We remain divided, because our political leaders have not come up with principled, enduring policies and plans to help All Americans prosper. I contend that it is indeed possible, and that we outline an array of positive drivers in these books. This is just the beginning.
We Are All American! We Are The SUM Nation! Like every great American movement, moving our country upwards, starts with a few dedicated citizens who bring nothing, but truth and new ways of looking things.
The All American Jobs Plan, is just one element to a bigger idea, and ideal.
In the months ahead, there will be more, much more. We will be bringing the conversation to the people. If you would like to part of the movement, part of an infinitely better conversation, let us know, at www.WeAreAllAmerican.org.
I say it's time we did something about it. We remain divided, because our political leaders have not come up with principled, enduring policies and plans to help All Americans prosper. I contend that it is indeed possible, and that we outline an array of positive drivers in these books. This is just the beginning.
We Are All American! We Are The SUM Nation! Like every great American movement, moving our country upwards, starts with a few dedicated citizens who bring nothing, but truth and new ways of looking things.
The All American Jobs Plan, is just one element to a bigger idea, and ideal.
In the months ahead, there will be more, much more. We will be bringing the conversation to the people. If you would like to part of the movement, part of an infinitely better conversation, let us know, at www.WeAreAllAmerican.org.
