Land and Water

CHANGING
OF THE GUARD

by Kenneth M. Rasch, President Land and Water

We’ve got a new president. A new congress. There will be new laws. New programs. How about some new reporting? Wouldn’t it be great if we could start this great new year of 2009 with positive reporting of what we are bombarded with as “news.” They say that is our right to now – well, we don’t need to know about every bad thing that is going on in our busy world. Bad news feeds on self – is it any wonder consumer confidence is so low? Don’t we also have a right to know about the good things in life?

While attending conventions recently,I made note of visiting with a number of contractors who reported that they were doing quite well. Some said they were planning to even start a new business, along with plans to update some of their machines. Equipment dealers also told me of their plans to expand their businesses. Don’t they know that we are in a recession? But then, I guess they are not (in a recession).

I heard a report the other day that IBM showed an impressive 4th quarter profit and promising 2009 outlook despite what was happening with many of their competitors. That story didn’t make the headlines. It didn’t even make it to many of the news programs. There are many positive things going on in our industry and with our economy. Look for positive news. Let’s change our way of thinking this year. Positive thinking produces positive results! And let’s make 2009 a great year!