Is He Able To Think Clearly?

Is He Able To See Clearly?

	Warren Buffett, the self-made billionaire who made his billions by investing in America and American productivity, announced he will donate around $40 billion to a fund run by another self-made billionaire, Bill Gates. Buffett fails to see clearly. He should use his billions to assist America in her time of stress.
Recall that Bill Gates established his foundation when the spotlight of do-gooders was turned upon him. They embarrassed Bill Gates and threatened to damage Microsoft unless he promised to give away billions of his honestly-earned dollars. In the nasty, embarrassing spotlight, Gates took the only course he could. He established a foundation whose purpose is to give away money. The foundation produces nothing other than jobs for do-gooders to wield power while administering donations of money previously taxed and earned by Gates.
Do-gooders tend to waste money and resources through misdirection. For example, literally trillions of dollars have been given so-called nations of Africa and other continents over the 20th century. A huge majority of the money and resources was usurped by dictators and demagogues of the top 1% ruling elites and used mostly for self-serving ends. Where in the world have the trillions of dollars contributed to results in building a nation with a productive, educated, safe, and happy people?

Buffett is little more than a very patient stock picker. Over 50 years, Buffett selected the stocks of America's finest companies and held on for decades. During the massive growth of the American economy over those decades, his companies and their stock, greatly increased in value. Buffett held on and used ongoing gains to buy more, and, then held onto more stock. His reputation fed the usual hordes of starved stock pickers who are always searching for the next winners.

Buffett's reputation caused Wall Street and many Americans to buy the same stocks as he had. Often they cared little about the underlying companies. They only knew that Buffett bought and would hold. This created an aura around the companies and, to various extents, reduced the stock float. This reduced stock float contributed to the stock's rise. And so on over and over again....

This is a stock pyramid scheme. This is not a Ponzi scheme only because Buffett holds on along with many of his followers. When most investors hold on, the act of holding prevents the pyramid scheme from collapsing.

There is nothing illegal, untoward, or even counter-productive about this scheme. But the reality of buying quality American companies and passively building an investor following that buys the same companies' stocks over decades does define Buffett's greatest skill. He buys, holds, and announces that he would continue to hold. Certainly his influence and the watchdog nature of his holdings has intimidated boards of directors and top managements for decades. They understood that there was a big brother monitoring their performance. That fact has been positive for the stocks of those companies and is due to Buffett's visibility and quiet policing.

The wisest stock maneuver Buffett could pull off today to ensure continuation of his scheme is to find a new "Warren Buffett" to pass the majority of his holdings to. He found Bill Gates.

Today the global economic structure is evolving in revolutionary ways. There is nothing that promises Americans that the American economy will be the world leader in 10, 20 or 30 years. In fact, the trend in American management and labor skills, productivity, and corporate infrastructure may justifiably be characterized as weakening. Manufacturing is waning except when owned and operated by foreign companies such as Toyota-America which builds in America to sell product to Americans. The American economy is heavily service-oriented. Its most promising heavy and light industries are being taken over by foreign corporate giants. Technology has diminished the intrinsic value of any specific localized labor force. Soon nearly any widget may be produced better at a lower cost elsewhere. Try to explain that to a UAW worker and gain his support in operational and financial planning.

General Motors, the quintessential American company, is faltering. Bankruptcy will not provide GM a path to recovery. GM may likely wane, fail, shrivel, and be taken over by a foreign entity.

Buffett owes America, Americans, and American industry a major debt. He could -- if thinking clearly -- repay that debt. He could invest his billions in General Motors and other failing American corporations. Once in control, he could hire good managers. (That is, if good managers even exist in the crowd of today's MBA elitist, questionably-skilled 20-somethings.) Good management could take control of companies such as General Motors, clean them out, and force them into profitability in the emerging global economy.

Then, as a reward, these rejuvenated companies could be taken public at fair value. That would provide major profit for those who applied themselves to this effort. But this scheme requires hard work and real brains. Do not hold your breadth waiting in today's self-serving, I-NEED-IT-NOW-psychologically malformed culture.

Buffett has created little compared to Gates. Buffett buys, holds, markets his holdings and monitors the underlying companies. By contrast, Gates saw an opportunity being missed by IBM, invested his career, took risk, and has built an industry-leading company.

It is pathetic for America that the do-gooders pull strings to control Gates' foundation and thus direct much money into black holes of lost peoples. Gates could use his money to build more great American companies. In doing that, he would be creating jobs for millions of Americans skilled and willing to work, help keep American industry viable, and put the do-gooders out of business.