Nukes may end up IMBY

It’s no longer NIMBY – “not in my backyard”.  The new and improved source of nuclear energy may just turn out to be IMBY – “in my backyard”.  And with the mini-nuclear units buried underground for the next 20-25 years, perhaps this is the way to go.  It’s clean, it’s relatively cheap, and it’s deadly.  Yes, deadly, says a good friend of mine who happens to be an expert with energy.

Remember Chernobyl?  Anyone?

But, in terms of dollars, the Current Way costs $5 billion to provide electricity for 800,000 homes.

The New Way will cost $50 million to provide electricity for 20,000 homes.

Here’s the math: The New Way costs only 40% that of the current way.  In other words, for every 8 houses, what used to cost $50, now costs $20.

Maybe we’ll figure out a way to make these things nearly failure-proof.  Just maybe. 

What are your thoughts?  Pro-nuclear?

Here’s the full story written by Brian Dumaine of Fortune magazine.  Click the logo below to go to the story.

Taxes are fast approaching!

Top 5 tax tips for 2010:

1. Tax deadline is Monday, April 18.
2. Singles: if your modified adjusted gross income is less than $105k, your maximum investment into a Roth IRA is $5,000.
3. Married: if your MAGI is less than $167k, you can invest $5,000.
4. Traditional IRA (401k) – your max contribution is $16,500.
5. Approximately $1,000 tax savings for every $2,500 contribution into a traditional IRA or Flex Spending Account.

The Perfect Ad (tugging on the elephant)

Chip and Dan Heath, in their book SWITCH, describe the emotional tug as the superior force in our lives and compares that to an elephant being directed by the analytical man sitting atop it.  You can tell the elephant that not wearing a seatbelt is dangerous; that wearing a seatbelt may save your life; and that it is against the law to not wear the belt.  But ultimately, the elephant will do what the elephant wants to do.

No matter how many times I tell my children to buckle up, every time I look into the back seats I see them scurrying to avoid the $1 dollar per infraction fee I have implemented (to no effect) for failure to wear the seatbelt.  Perhaps if I had “tugged” on their emotional beings, rather than their intellectual I might have succeeded. Perhaps this video will do it not only for my family, but for yours as well.  Buckle up!

FORTUNE: Battle-Tested, how a decade of war has created a new generation of elite business leaders

Battle-Tested, how a decade of war has created a new generation of elite business leaders” is a good article and one that is long overdue in recognizing the talents of those who’ve served in the military, however, what the article fails to address are those who go beyond the initial tour and serve an entire career in the military devoting their lives and that of their families to 20 or more years faithful service.  Those doors are not as welcoming.  Yes, Wal-Mart is happy to hire a young 29 year old as a store manager, but when it comes to corporate jobs, corporate america still has little to offer.

What are your thoughts on this?

Do you have any similar experiences?

Investment Firms and What They CANNOT Say on Facebook, Twitter

Brokerages and Fund Companies are often entangled within a web of legal and compliance rules and regulations preventing them from openly saying what they’d like.  And in an effort to prevent illegal or insider trading, brokers and their advertisements must include verbiage detailing phrases any investor has read or seen numerous times such as the mumbo-jumbo at the bottom of this ING ad.

But the question is ”should the same regulations apply within the social-media scene?”

FINRA (the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) seems to think so.

Investment firms can be held liable for what their employees post to their Facebook pages, for what they tweet, and what they blog.

Therefore, it is highly advisable companies set regulations and brief their employees before the company itself finds itself with a large target painted on its backside.  FINRA is looking and it will only be a matter of weeks, maybe days before the Wall Street Journal or CNBC reports on the latest violation of non-compliance or SEC investigations.

AdvisorTweets.com, a Web site that aggregates the tweets of close to 400 U.S.-based financial advisors is a good place to begin your research and begin learning to navigate this landscape.

What are your thoughts on these restrictions?

Caveat emptor? or increased regulations?  What do you think?

“As the crow flies” is not always the best approach

Growing up learning English as a second language, I often wondered why adults didn’t say things as they meant it. Often, it was subtle or nuanced in a way that the ignorant would never pick up on and the smart ones would end up staying up half the night replaying the “real” meaning of what Joe said during last night’s event.

As a young Marine, I was taught to say what I mean, and mean what I say, however, it seems as I approached the senior ranks and now into my second career in the civilian sector, this type of buffered-speak is a required skill.

So, here’s 3 ways to speak up during a meeting that won’t leave everyone in the room thinking you’re an absolute jerk… by Ms Jodi Glickman, founder of the consulting firm Great On The Job.

Speaking up in meetings is easy for some, but for others it can be completely intimidating. If you’re in the latter group, build your confidence with a few useful phrases you can use to interject. Here are three to start:

1. Have we thought about… If you have an idea to add but aren’t overly confident about it, phrase the suggestion as though you are contributing to the conversation, rather than putting a firm stake in the ground.
2. To play devil’s advocate… It can be hard to disagree without sounding like a jerk. Finesse your comments by explaining that you are playing a certain role.
3. This may be a dumb question… You may hesitate to speak up when you don’t know what’s going on in a meeting. Don’t stay lost — ask for clarification. You may help others who are in the same position.

Our Nation’s “tolerance” if not controlled will be our ultimate downfall

Not military might nor economic might will cause our Nation to fall.

It will be our continued proclamation for “tolerance” that will be our ultimate downfall.

We fire school teachers for asking children to cite the pledge of allegiance, yet when public school students are taken to a mosque and proselytized to, nothing, not even the ACLU gets involved.  We spend billions each year on public services for illegal aliens, yet the first word in protest is deemed racist.

The genesis of our great nation was not based upon “tolerance”. It was based upon a belief, an absolute belief that all men are created equal; that all men have a right to certain freedoms; and that all men, not just the PC-minority of the day, but ALL men shall enjoy equal rights.