Howard's America

Mar 7th, 2010 @ 09:29 am › Howard
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I never thought I would run for office because the whole idea of dealing with politicians just bores me.

I don’t want to know them.

After spending so much time in Coronado, California though, a sliver of America that is almost perfect but has many of the same problems (real estate, housing) as the rest of America, I would rethink.

It starts with community. Communities are miracles for sure but there needs to be one for significant change to happen. The community needs to be completely supportive (good scenairo) or completely apathetic.

In Howard’s America, there would be no credit cards. We would assume EVERYONE is broke except for those with credit scores above say 700 or 800. We would RESET.

Capital One…broken up (I am short Capital One and seems like I always am). American Express (no position, just torn up cards)…adios.

Best Buy….see ya. I would save Radio Shack, because selling chords, headphones and battteries from a local strip mall is a noble business, but it would accept debit cards or cash only.

If you must use a CREDIT CARD to buy a 46 inch, flat screen television, you can’t have it. There is NOTHING in a Best Buy that this country needs (no position).

Bank of America and Citibank would have their credit card operations taken away. They have lost their priviledge. Chase Manhattan too. Their dumb iPhone app seals that assanine bank.

Banks take deposits in Howard’ America and they lend it to American citizens .Equifax and Transunion no longer have authority over credit ratings, your social graph does.

Just a start. I do think some of these changes are possible by just consuming with responsibility. They do not require any radical Lindzon policies.

Stop spending.

Categories: General

http://www.aiki14.com aiki14

Sage wisdom. We’ve been looking up the coast a little but Coronado sounds good, if you’re gonna be mayor, I think I’ll establish a beachhead there

http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

Yep. Its perfecvtion. Needs a movie theater with 3 choices and we can build it

http://www.victusspiritus.com/ Mark Essel

I can’t speak for other Fredlander’s but I’m confident HowiesWorld and Fredland will share many philosophical borders.

On spending:
I need food, shelter, and the companionship of Michelle (my loving symbiote). Can the net alone satisfy all my other interests?
whew almost forgot pants, these Nike athletic pants are going with me into the brave new world of thrift!

Don’t run for office, you’ll never get anything worthwhile done.
http://www.rossgreenspan.com rossgreenspan

I thought you were Canadian.

http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

lived here 20 years and that overrides everything. Plus i have an average credit score so that makes me more american than YOU

http://www.rossgreenspan.com rossgreenspan

Kidding you, of course. Entrepreneurs belong in politics. I say biggest business opportunity in America is organizing a national third party. And I got credits. JPM has been sending me pre-approved offers for Sapphire card once a week. I’m calling it: Recession over!

http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

more of the nonsense that would stop in howard’s america Credit card companies can charge 30 percent on stuff we dont need, but online poker and forex are bad http://stk.ly/bTzUEj
http://financetrends.blogspot.com Anonymous

Cool post, I think you touch on a lot of things that could be explored in depth (either by yourself or others interested in the same ideas).

I have one question. When you mentioned the “social graph” having authority over one’s credit ratings – what does that mean? Is that like your Klout score on Twitter or something akin to that? :)

Agree that consumption for consumption’s sake is out of control in this country & has a deleterious effect on our society. I remember hearing a Financial Sense interview where a guy described life growing up on his grandparent’s farm in PA back in the 1940s & ’50s. Practically everything was made or grown at home – only a few needed staple items were bought at the store. The level of self-sufficiency among Americans vs. today was a total eye-opener. Will have to dig that one up and share it with you later…

http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

Thinking about a follow on post. first off, I dont want to see all your
liuttle fetishes or spending habits, just the aggregate of your spending.

Your social graph knows you better than any bank and would spot problems
faster than any credit score.
http://steamcatapult.com/ Dave Pinsen

I’m looking forward to hearing the explanation of “social graph” too.

Re consumption, see my comment above. Also note that Americans have already throttled back on consumption and raised their savings rates in the last year or so, so we’re already moving in Howard’s direction to an extent.

http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

We are and its why their are new trenmds starting which is bullish overall

http://steamcatapult.com/ Dave Pinsen

“Stop spending”

One man’s discretionary spending is another man’s livelihood. I’m all for responsibility and people living within their means, but it’s worth bearing that in mind.

http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

of course. it’s really meant to mean, we control things with our sopending
habits. we can make oodles of change by voting more harshly with our
wallets.

http://steamcatapult.com/ Dave Pinsen

That’s a good point, and it’s interesting to compare the situation between spending dollars and investing dollars. Imagine if, instead of you deciding whether to shop at Best Buy or Radio Shack, your paycheck went into a “shopping fund” and they sent you products from both stores, regardless of which one you thought was better.

Now, imagine how different corporate America would look if every American’s equity investing dollars were invested directly in individual stocks, and everyone voted his proxy? Talk about oodles of change…

http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

you are drinking, which is rather cool for a sunday afternoon. i respect
that.

http://steamcatapult.com/ Dave Pinsen

lol.

Jed

Hi Howard – I love your blog and have been thoroughly enjoying your posts – I am just wondering if with this post’s advice to “stop spending”, a product like “The Grip” would have been as successful as it was. Isn’t spending and America’s consumerism what made you successful with this product? Thanks

http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

that was corporate spending on pr and marketing which to me seems less crazy than frivolous spending but i am biased.

by stop spending, I mean that we can change what capital one and amex can dictate to us if as a group we manage our spending better.

dont watch tv, get out and build something and use your credit to build your personal and business brand.

amex cuts me as a long time customer and is now forced to spend hundreds of millions attracting others just like me when a 5 minute call from an exec to all their past top clientelle would have saved them millions in spending and led to millions more in revenue and goodwill.

we all need to vote with our feet and use the social web to vote with our social klout
http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

glad u like the blog as well. thx

http://www.ivanhoff.com ivanhoff

Leverage is just a tool, not a reason for today’s problems. Lack of proper financial education is, but this is changing. People are getting smarter, more cost conscious and are improving their balance sheets. Hopefully once the economy starts growing again, the government will do the same.

Buying on credit means spending your future income today. If you expect future prices to be higher, it makes sense.

http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

transparency is the new alpha. managed accounts and social mediia are the
new hedge fund…hopefully.

education is no doubt the key and transparency will help speed that along.
so will the crash…hopefully. (jury is still out)

I see some good signs, but mostly ouytside financial services which still
suck ass and are generally closed and piss me off.

http://www.aiki14.com aiki14

Sage wisdom. We've been looking up the coast a little but Coronado sounds good, if you're gonna be mayor, I think I'll establish a beachhead there
http://www.victusspiritus.com/ Mark Essel

I can't speak for other Fredlander's but I'm confident HowiesWorld and Fredland will share many philosophical borders.

On spending:
I need food, shelter, and the companionship of Michelle (my loving symbiote). Can the net alone satisfy all my other interests?
whew almost forgot pants, these Nike athletic pants are going with me into the brave new world of thrift!

Don't run for office, you'll never get anything worthwhile done.
http://www.rossgreenspan.com rossgreenspan

I thought you were Canadian.
http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

Yep. Its perfecvtion. Needs a movie theater with 3 choices and we can build it
http://twitter.com/howardlindzon howardlindzon

lived here 20 years and that overrides everything. Plus i have an average credit score so that makes me more american than YOU
http://twitter.com/howardlindzon howardlindzon

more of the nonsense that would stop in howard's america Credit card companies can charge 30 percent on stuff we dont need, but online poker and forex are bad http://stk.ly/bTzUEj
http://financetrends.blogspot.com FinanceTrends

Cool post, I think you touch on a lot of things that could be explored in depth (either by yourself or others interested in the same ideas).

I have one question. When you mentioned the “social graph” having authority over one's credit ratings – what does that mean? Is that like your Klout score on Twitter or something akin to that? :)

Agree that consumption for consumption's sake is out of control in this country & has a deleterious effect on our society. I remember hearing a Financial Sense interview where a guy described life growing up on his grandparent's farm in PA back in the 1940s & '50s. The level of self-sufficiency Americans had vs. today was a total eye-opener. Will have to dig that one up and share it with you later…
http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

Thinking about a follow on post. first off, I dont want to see all your
liuttle fetishes or spending habits, just the aggregate of your spending.

Your social graph knows you better than any bank and would spot problems
faster than any credit score.
http://steamcatapult.com/ Dave Pinsen

“Stop spending”

One man's discretionary spending is another man's livelihood. I'm all for people living within their means, but it's worth bearing that in mind.
http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

of course. it's really meant to mean, we control things with our sopending
habits. we can make oodles of change by voting more harshly with our
wallets.
http://steamcatapult.com/ Dave Pinsen

I'm looking forward to hearing the explanation of “social graph” too.

Re consumption, see my comment above. Also note that Americans have already throttled back on consumption and raised their savings rates in the last year or so, so we're already moving in Howard's direction to an extent.
http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

We are and its why their are new trenmds starting which is bullish overall
http://steamcatapult.com/ Dave Pinsen

That's a good point, and it's interesting to compare the situation between spending dollars and investing dollars. Imagine if, instead of you deciding whether to shop at Best Buy or Radio Shack, your paycheck went into a “shopping fund” and they sent you products from both stores, regardless of which one you thought was better.

Now, imagine how different corporate America would look if every American's equity investing dollars were invested directly in individual stocks, and everyone voted his proxy? Talk about oodles of change…
http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

you are drinking, which is rather cool for a sunday afternoon. i respect
that.
http://www.rossgreenspan.com rossgreenspan

Kidding you, of course. Entrepreneurs belong in politics. I say biggest business opportunity in America is organizing a national third party. And I got credits. JPM has been sending me pre-approved offers for Sapphire card once a week. I'm calling it: Recession over!
http://steamcatapult.com/ Dave Pinsen

lol.
Jed

Hi Howard – I love your blog and have been thoroughly enjoying your posts – I am just wondering if with this post's advice to “stop spending”, a product like “The Grip” would have been as successful as it was. Isn't spending and America's consumerism what made you successful with this product? Thanks
http://twitter.com/howardlindzon howardlindzon

that was corporate spending on pr and marketing which to me seems less crazy than frivolous spending but i am biased.

by stop spending, I mean that we can change what capital one and amex can dictate to us if as a group we manage our spending better.

dont watch tv, get out and build something and use your credit to build your personal and business brand.

amex cuts me as a long time customer and is now forced to spend hundreds of millions attracting others just like me when a 5 minute call from an exec to all their past top clientelle would have saved them millions in spending and led to millions more in revenue and goodwill.

we all need to vote with our feet and use the social web to vote with our social klout
http://twitter.com/howardlindzon howardlindzon

glad u like the blog as well. thx
http://www.ivanhoff.com ivanhoff

Leverage is just a tool, not a reason for today's problems. Lack of proper financial education is, but this is changing. People are getting smarter, more cost conscious and are improving their balance sheets. Hopefully once the economy starts growing again, the government will do the same.

Buying on credit means spending your future income today. If you expect future prices to be higher, it makes sense.
http://www.howardlindzon.com howardlindzon

transparency is the new alpha. managed accounts and social mediia are the
new hedge fund…hopefully.

education is no doubt the key and transparency will help speed that along.
so will the crash…hopefully. (jury is still out)

I see some good signs, but mostly ouytside financial services which still
suck ass and are generally closed and piss me off.
http://www.air-jordan-11.com/ air jordan 11

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Here elaborates the matter not only extensively but also detailly .I support the
write's unique point.It is useful and benefit to your daily life.You can go those
sits to know more relate things.They are strongly recommended by friends.Personally!
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