NEWSWEEK Cover: I Got It Bad

In the February 2 issue of Newsweek (on newsstands January 26), "I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)," Newsweek's Fareed Zakaria writes about the challenges President Obama will face in order to fix the economy and restore America's credibility. Plus: Daniel Gross on our "Yes, We Can" president in a "No, We Can't" economy; Somali-Americans recruited for jihad; what makes some people survive; what Obama's presidency means for racial equality; and Newsweek's Oscar Roundtable with six Hollywood stars.(PRNewsFoto/NEWSWEEK) NEW YORK, NY UNITED STATES 01/25/2009

25 Jan 2009 17:04 Africa/Lagos

NEWSWEEK Cover: I Got It Bad

President Obama Needs To Act Quickly and on a Massive Scale To Fix the Economy

"We Have Not Turned the Corner. In Fact, We Can't Even See the Corner Right Now."

NEW YORK, Jan. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- In an essay opening the February 2 Newsweek cover package, "I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)" (on newsstands Monday, January 26), Newsweek International Editor Fareed Zakaria writes that President Barack Obama will have to quickly start planning for a set of more extraordinary measures to pull the United States out of its current, unsustainable economic condition. "The American financial system is effectively broken. Major banks are moving toward insolvency, and credit activity remains extremely weak. As long as the financial sector remains moribund, American consumers and companies -- who collectively make up 80 percent of GDP -- will not have access to credit, and economic activity cannot really resume on any significant scale. We have not turned the corner. In fact, we can't even see the corner right now," he writes.


(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090125/NYSU001 )


"President Obama faces a terrible dilemma. He needs to act quickly and on a massive scale," Zakaria writes. Without large scale action, the financial system will keep bleeding, but the American public believes that we have already spent far too much on bailing out the banks. Zakaria argues that the economic fact is that we have not spent enough. Even worse, "this current crisis has resulted in a deep erosion of American power that we have not fully understood. Even in the depths of the Iraq War, when much of the globe was enraged by George W. Bush's unilateralism, people everywhere believed that the United States had the world's most advanced economy and that its capital markets in particular were the most sophisticated and developed." That system is now seen across the world as a sham, and the attitudes of officials and businessmen range from shock to rage at what they see in the United States.


"When he began his run for the White House, Barack Obama thought he could restore American power and leadership by righting our foreign policy, winding down the Iraq War, closing Guantanamo, ending torture. These are all important policies, and I am glad that he is pursuing them. But right now, the most important way for him to restore America's credibility and influence in the world is to rescue the American model," Zakaria writes.


Also in the cover package, Senior Editor Daniel Gross writes how more and more companies and firms are deciding to forgo the work of restructuring their finances, and instead selling off their inventory and closing. "Rather than soldier on, many operators have opted to simply fold, returning money to investors. Companies, homeowners and money managers willing to quit rather than fight is both a symptom of the nation's deep economic woes and emblematic of the challenge the Obama administration faces," Gross writes. "Our 'Yes, We Can' president is going to have to fix a 'No, We Can't' economy."


(Read cover package at www.Newsweek.com)

Cover: http://www.newsweek.com/id/181407

The Quitter Economy: http://www.newsweek.com/id/181264


Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090125/NYSU001
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN1
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Newsweek

CONTACT: Katherine Barna, +1-212-445-4859, of Newsweek


Web site: http://www.newsweek.msnbc.com/

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Hope is Not a Strategy: A Letter to President Obama

By Benjamin Ola. Akande, dean, School of Business and Technology, Webster University, St. Louis, Mo.

22 Jan 2009 22:16 Africa/Lagos


Hope is Not a Strategy: A Letter to President Obama

ST. LOUIS, Jan. 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a letter by Dr. Benjamin Ola. Akande, dean of the School of Business and Technology at Webster University in St. Louis, Mo.:


(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090122/DC61721)

Dear President Obama,


During the campaign, you offered America hope, and promised to restore a civility and practicality to the nation's highest office so that, together, we could rise to the challenges and opportunities that lay at our doorstep. Now it's time to make some wise choices.


In your acceptance speech on the evening of Nov. 4, 2008, you were pointed in your statement that, "while we breathe, we hope." As President, your greatest challenge will be effectively leading a cabinet of highly qualified and highly opinionated individuals who will undoubtedly have differing ideas on how best to resolve the major issues that we face. Your leadership will be tested early and often and while you have assured Americans that there will be setbacks and false starts, your willingness to make tough choices early on will set the tone for a revival of a shell-shocked economy and a battle-fatigued nation. Yet, the fact remains that hope will not reduce housing foreclosures. Hope does not stop a recession. Hope cannot create jobs. Hope will not prevent catastrophic failures of banks. Hope is not a strategy.


President Obama, I would like to offer you 10 priorities to consider:

1. The Deficit. Don't be concerned about increasing the deficit in the
short term. There is an urgent need to stimulate the economy now--not
at any price, but almost. Your recovery plan must combine tax cuts
and structured spending in areas that foster long-term economic growth,
specifically, energy, healthcare and education. This is one time when
we need to act for today to ensure that tomorrow will be much better.
2. The Auto Industry. I want to urge you to reject the possibility of
extending additional bailout monies to the Big Three. Chapter 11
bankruptcy is the best thing that can happen to these automakers. They
need help quickly, but not in the form of government largesse. This is
a time for displaying "tough love" and not enabling poor performance,
corporate arrogance and unwise decisions. They will thank you in the
long run.
3. The New New Deal. There is urgency to rebuild America's roads and
bridges, but the real opportunity is to anchor your recovery plan on a
renewed energy policy that is timely and targeted. The imperative
should entail a: 1) green bailout for U.S. automakers; 2) green
infrastructure; 3) tax credit for companies to produce alternative
energy; 4) construction program for a new smart electric grid; and 5)
increased investment in mass transit using green technology. The
projects must be shovel-ready to get people back to work immediately.
4. 2009 Homeowner Protection Act. President Obama, now is the opportunity
to change the bankruptcy laws to protect homeowners from the vagaries
of the marketplace. We have expedited Chapter 11 bankruptcy for
businesses to keep them from going under when they run into financial
turbulence, and we should do no less for homeowners. It does no one any
good to force poor and middle-income Americans out of their homes, and
we know that vacant houses destroy even the best neighborhoods. An
expedited homeowner protection plan would allow for the restructuring
of the mortgages of millions of Americans who are under water. Stemming
the flood of foreclosures will reinvigorate the confidence of banks and
provide a shot in the arm for the credit market, putting the economy
back on the right foot.
5. Strengthening Middle Class America. Your administration should push to
expand the earned income tax credit as a relief measure for the middle
class and give Americans making less than $150,000 a $500 tax credit
per person on the first $8,100 in income. This will increase the rate
of spending and the rate of savings by the middle class, which will be
a source of new capital to spur growth.
6. A Health Plan for All. The greatest fear among most Americans is the
possibility of losing their jobs and with the loss of jobs comes the
real possibility of loss of health insurance. President Obama, we need
to have a comprehensive program that provides health insurance to the
unemployed and to the uninsured and it must happen post-haste. For a
nation of our comparative wealth to have any of our citizens go without
heath care is nothing short of criminal.
7. Rewrite Financial Service Laws. One of the key reasons for the current
financial crisis has been weak regulation of the financial services
industry. There needs to be a comprehensive overhaul of enforcement
policies of the Securities Exchange Commission. Require disclosure and
stipulate new accounting requirements.
8. Restructure Bailout. The first $350 billion of the financial market
bailout has done very little to jump-start the economy. The next $350
installment must be directed at assisting homeowners and expanding
consumer credit.
9. Foster a Bipartisan Approach. Divisive politics got us into this mess.
Unifying politics can help get us out of it. The country can no longer
afford to see things in terms of red and blue or black and white. The
enduring solutions will emerge from the gray.
10. Caution to Consumers. President Obama, I urge you to use your
presidential pulpit to speak to Americans, to encourage them to be
cautious and prudent in their spending. While consumer spending is a
key to the economic revival, at times it may be wise to counsel
consumers to--in the words of former St. Louis Fed President Bill
Poole--"Put their foot on the brake way before they get to the stop
sign."


What America needs, more than ever, is your ability to give hope to America through your leadership. May you have the inner strength to move this nation from uncertainty to certainty. I wish you well.


My Best,

Benjamin Ola Akande
Dean, School of Business and Technology
Webster University
St. Louis, MO

Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090122/DC61721
http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Webster University -- Saint Louis Campus

CONTACT: Susan Kerth of Webster University, Office: +1-314-246-8232,
Cell: +1-314-220-9130, susankerth14@webster.edu


Web Site: http://www.webster.edu/


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President Barack Obama Visits White House Press

It was another busy day for the new president. Barack Obama reversed some of his predecessor's anti-terror policies, delivered a pep talk at the State Department, and dropped by the White House briefing room to chat with reporters. (Jan. 22)

Dreams Do Come True

17 Jan 2009 00:10 Africa/Lagos

Dreams Do Come True

ST. LOUIS, Jan. 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a statement by Benjamin Ola. Akande, Dean of Webster University School of Business & Technology:


As a child growing up in Nigeria, I was a dreamer. My parents never dismissed my dreams. They were always encouraging. No matter how outright unbelievable my dreams were, they would assure me that dreams do come true. Dreams provide a glimpse of what the future will look like. I wish I could have recorded all those dreams.


Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream was recorded. It was a dream that was played out in front of thousands of people and like most dreams, no one really knew how it would play out. As the dream was recalled over the years, it became clear that this was a significant and compelling vision of the future. Martin's dream was in the form of a remarkable prose on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Most of us can hear him recite this dream in our subconscious. "I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together." It is a dream that visualizes a future where all those things that seemed impossible and improbable will happen despite overwhelming obstacles.


Barack Obama

The election of Barack Obama was a manifestation of Martin's dream. I would like to believe that Martin Luther King's dream highlighted how difficult it is to make change happen. Martin spoke about how mountains and hills (obstacles) shall be made lower and rough places (institutional changes) will be made straight. The recognition was that monumental changes of this magnitude take considerable time. Indeed, it takes the force of nature to break through the harsh reality of status quo and history.


Dreaming enables us to transcend the present and position us on the balcony for a better view of the future. And, because dreaming offers no restrictions, the greatest dreamers are often characterized as crazy and out of touch with reality. What history has shown us is that you may vilify them, you can criticize them, and you may even assassinate them. But, you can't kill a dreamer's dream. MLK's dream took a long time to come to fruition, with small significant steps and some big setbacks along the way. But on Nov. 4, 2008, the full realization of the great civil rights leader's dream came to pass with the election of a junior senator from Illinois as the first African American President of The United States of America..


Martin Luther King taught us that adversity is a lot easier to overcome than success. And that is the power of dreams. He knew it would happen. He even foresaw that his own demise may keep him from seeing his dream come true. "I've seen the promised land," he said. "I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the Promised Land." Forty-five years later, his vision is still unfolding. But one thing is crystal clear. Dreams do come true.


Source: Webster University School of Business and Technology

CONTACT: Susan Kerth of Webster University, +1-314-246-8232


Web Site: http://www.webster.edu/

Barack Obama Becomes the 44th President of the United States of America!

Barack Obama Becomes the 44th President of the United States of America!

He is the first African American to be elected as the President of America following his election to the presidency in the 56th consecutive quadrennial United States presidential election on Tuesday, November 4, 2008.

Text of President Barack Obama's inaugural address on Tuesday, as prepared for delivery and released by the Presidential Inaugural Committee.

OBAMA: My fellow citizens:

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we the people have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.
So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America — they will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. Those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers ... our found fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment — a moment that will define a generation — it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.
This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:
"Let it be told to the future world ... that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet (it)."

America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you.
God bless you. And God bless the United States of America

.



For a comprehensive report on the historic election of Barack Obama, read the new book Barack Obama and the American Dream by Orikinla Osinachi to be released soon in America.

Growing Optimism That Obama Will Improve US Relations: Global Poll

Barack Obama

20 Jan 2009 01:01 Africa/Lagos

Growing Optimism That Obama Will Improve US Relations: Global Poll

COLLEGE PARK, Md., Jan. 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As President-elect Barack Obama prepares for the Inauguration to be sworn in as the 44th president of the United States, a new 17-nation poll conducted for the BBC World Service finds widespread and growing optimism that his presidency will lead to improved relations between the United States and the rest of the world.


The poll also shows people around the world are looking to President Obama to put highest priority on dealing with the current global financial crisis.


In 15 of the 17 countries polled, majorities think that the election of Barack Obama will lead to improved relations with the rest of the world. On average 67 percent express this upbeat view, while 19 percent think relations will stay the same and just 5 percent that relations will worsen. This is up sharply - by 21 points among tracking countries - from polling done for the BBC World Service six months ago, before Obama was elected


Asked to rate six possible priorities for the Obama Administration, the top priority in all 17 countries polled was the global financial crisis. On average 72 percent said that it should be a top priority.


This was followed by withdrawing US troops from Iraq - with 50 percent saying this should be a top priority - then addressing climate change (46%), improving America's relationship with the respondent's country (46%), brokering peace between Israel and the Palestinians (43%), and supporting the government of Afghanistan against the Taliban (29%).


The results are drawn from a survey of 17,356 adult citizens across 17 countries conducted for the BBC World Service by the international polling firm GlobeScan together with the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) at the University of Maryland. GlobeScan coordinated fieldwork between November 24, 2008 and January 5, 2009.


"Familiarity with Obama seems to be breeding hope," commented Steven Kull, director of the Program on International Policy Attitudes. "But then again," he added, "he is starting from a low baseline, following eight years of an unpopular US president. Maintaining this enthusiasm will be a challenge given the complexities he now faces."


For more information, visit www.WorldPublicOpinion.org.


Source: Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) at the University of Maryland

CONTACT: Steven Kull of the Program on International Policy Attitudes at
the University of Maryland, +1-301-254-7500


Web Site: http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/


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