$640.00 to fill the tanks...

Of course . . .
there is always the
message that capitalism needs to be reigned in lest it go crazy and
crush the weak and weary.

Well, I should think you'd want them taught "the facts of life". The
final sentence above is pretty much an emperically proven fact, is it
not?

Capitalism is ruthlessly fair. It treats everyone the same, regardless
of race, creed, or political affiliation. It is the ultimate
democracy, and its basic rules are immutable.

It does not suffer fools gladly, however. Folks who ignore what is
happening around them get steam-rolled by events, in a capitalist
system.

I'm up against it every day, in my business. Two days ago, a $60
million (that's not a typo) Marriott Hotel opened up less than 5 miles
away -- and our phone stopped ringing. We went from having a
gangbusters August, to being behind last year, in two days.

The fact that this hotel was built entirely with taxpayer's money, by
the City of Coralville, might surprise you. On the other hand, in a
socialist area like the one I live in, this kind of thing happens all
the time. (The University of Iowa has a government-built-and-owned
hotel, the Iowa House. They also have a government-owned-and-operated
daily newspaper, the Daily Iowan, that I used to compete against in my
previous life.)

The local Sheraton -- itself the beneficiary of almost unbelieveable
tax breaks -- filed suit against the City of Coralville, to stop this
obviously illegal undertaking by a local city government. Incredibly,
the case went all the way to the Iowa Supreme Court, and the courts
ruled that there was no law prohibiting an Iowa city from building a
hotel. So, the case was thrown out, and we are now fighting for our
lives against an additional 285 suites (we have 28) in a market that no
independent business felt was necessary to build.

Is this fair? Will the Marriott kill us? Will we survive the next two
years, between them and the new $80 million dollar casino hotel they're
building just south of town? I have no idea -- but I'll keep swinging
for the fences in the meantime.

That's capitalism -- and I don't want my kids teachers sugar-coating
it. All that will do is weaken them for their upcoming battle, in a
field called "life".
--
Jay Honeck
Owner/Innkeeper
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination