Elder Abuse by Scammers and Family Members [Study]

Elder abuse is something that detracts from our society and it an act should never be normalized or accepted as appropriate. There are those outside our society that do this and we know their motivations. However, some of the biggest abuse is by people within the elder's family. A study conducted at University of Southern California found that 48% of abuse of the elderly was by family and 61.8% was for financial reasons. 

Study: Financial abuse of older adults by family members more common than scams by strangers

I'm saddened that we still do this in our society and we do not enforce protection for elderly and sick as much as we should. Because of this lax enforcement we are encouraging others to engage in these behaviors.  

As a hypothetical example for learning purposes only an elderly person who was diagnosed with cancer and dementia was exploited financially by family members. They kept the illness secret, manipulated them and siphoned off the wealth. The perpetrators also engaged in manipulation and threats of violence against those with questions in order to ensure the issues stayed quiet. This was acceptable because of their close connection with a number of officials who were suppose to enforce these laws but felt compelled to protect their social networks. A timeline of illness, bank accounts and behaviors could easily be constructed but its not considered important because of subjective use of laws. The perpetrators were given a free pass to continue forward with their ill gotten gains. A type of lawlessness!

Because these things still happen and we do not always protect the elderly we should consider the long-term ramifications of not protecting our most vulnerable or having different laws for different people. Some behaviors are shameful and normalized as acceptable depending on who is doing it and who it is against. To me, anyone who intentionally takes advantage of the sick and dying should be held to account. Yet, that wisdom is quickly discounted when things like race and religion skew the decision making process. Moral authority is lost so we should expect others to learn and do the same if we can't enforce our laws against the in-crowd. 

Motis Brands LLC is Setting up Operations in Escanaba: Production, Patents, People and Places

Motis LLC a manufacturer of powersport, medical, recreational, military, and industry is coming to Escanaba and bringing some jobs with it. This is another sign that Escanaba and Gladstone in Delta County Michigan is fast becoming a small rural northern city actively aligning back to the global market. What makes this more exciting from an economic standpoint is that the town has had relatively neutral growth for decades and now is in a major upswing in industrial, recreational, vacation, and nautical investments.

You can learn more about Escanaba HERE  and the Delta County Chamber of Commerce HERE just in case you have your own investment ideas. Likewise, the downtown is in active development so if you have about $100K and want to start an entrepreneurial business that can help aesthetics, locals, vacationers, and with luck exportation of custom products, let them know they may be interested in hearing from you.

Motis to Locate Manufacturing Sector in Escanaba indicates that they will have a total capital investment of $675K and $75K Micro Michigan Business Development Program to produce 9 new local jobs. Keep in mind that may be just the beginning of industrial interest as well as the type of jobs such businesses create if they grow. Treat them well as a local community. These type of businesses are where the bread and butter is (i.e. Billerud was a major win for the area so lets build on it.)

The Micro Michigan Business Development Program helps to draw in new jobs into Michigan. Such grants and programs are something that Escanaba and Gladstone in Delta County can use to draw new investment interest to create net positives. Remember some ideas came forward and that will require new revenue sources. You can learn more about that program HERE.

Motis Brands Webpage

Motis LLC is located in Golden Hill San Diego which is a nice area. I used to take some classes in that part of town. Good Map Looks like SoCal and Escanaba have a potential courting. Almost love at first sight! Both are laid back areas and apparently both San Diego and the U.P. now have surfing. :) Love surfing. I wonder if their executives also hit the waves in PB sometimes. They probably don't hang out in OB but you never know. See ya on the waves dudes and dudettes! 🏄 <<<Always wanted to say that! 😂

Motis also is military veteran supportive and this is something every business in Escanaba and this country should be doing. They even received a Patriot Award! Thanks for being a great company! You can learn more about that award HERE. Local businesses should consider hiring vets and check out the Escanaba Veteran Center.

They also have a LinkedIn Account you can follow if your interested HERE.

You may also find out more about Motis Brands and some of their patents HERE. Patents are important for maintaining leading edge products and outcomes. If it was a publicly traded stock I might have considered investing in it (I'm probably closer to the world's smallest investor but hey I dabble and you got to start somewhere!)

Btw...did you know that local patents improve economic growth. Check out the World Intellectual Property Report 2024

Delta County Commissioners Meeting (04/29/2024): Can trash be as good as cash?

A quick discussion on rail infrastructure and a new landfill. There appears to be some interest in new technology that can reduce/eliminate the need for landfills. Trash is big business in today's world so it is something that can be considered as a revenue source. New technologies help fight climate change. Imagine if we could move to zero landfills someday. Solid Waste Management 2024

We have to wait to see how the discussion unfolds in future meetings. 

April Unemployment Rate 3.9% US: Is there something called the 'ideal' employment rate?

While the jobs added was expected to be a little higher, and the unemployment rate was expected to decline to 3.8%, the world hasn't yet cracked asunder. It could be a sign of stability/homeostasis or even a sign of a small slow down in line with other numbers. These things can change quickly so as we look through the crystal ball of forecasting expect it to be hazy into the near future. 

There is something called efficient unemployment rate that we can discuss. While unemployment is seen as economic waste, there is a place where it does help grease the wheels of job mobility what encourages economic adjustments to environmental factors. The ideal unemployment rate is 3-5% according to a study on Efficient Unemployment. 

"Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 175,000 in April, and the unemployment rate changed little at 3.9 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in health care, in social assistance, and in transportation and warehousing" (Unemployment BEA, May 3, 2024, para 1).

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Fed Reserves Plans to Keep Rate Target at 5.25 to 5.5%

It appears the Fed Reserve felt that the economy is still growing, unemployment is low, and job gains are strong so a rate change is not beneficial. Recently advanced estimates says that GDP was not particularly great so let's see what happens. We should keep that in perspective with other G7 nations. 

Golf Caddy and Walking Fitness

Did you know being a golf caddy can be a pretty vigorous cardio affair? We walked a short course today. While it wasn't being a caddy you can see the point. Golf Caddy Cardio Study Next time someone asks what your doing? You can say your exercising first and second golfing. 

Trust in Military and Some Institutions Decline: It may not be the perception of the military that is the issue.

Trust in the military has declined 60% and that saddens me because our military produced some of the finest people on the planet. They are fair, they treat people well, they raise the standard, they provide opportunities, they teach important values, and the military protects our nation and it's liberties. 

What I think gets mixed up is the political aspects of those outside the military that shadow the important benefits our military provides for society. That can help us learn about co-mingling of different concepts and confounding variables. 

There are two articles and two charts to ponder.

Confidence in U.S. Military Lowest in Over Two Decades

Historically Low Faith in U.S. Institutions Continues

There is a difference between our political views as a nation and the military itself and I would like people to differentiate that. Our military is diverse and it encourages people from any background to be the best they can be. It's a merit system. Politics has its own systems.

Politics can be good or bad but it is often driven by influencers who have a political stake in the game. The youth that join and serve our military have none of that...but they do have belief in our important values and are willing to support that with their lives. They are a cut above the rest. 

We should understand that political leadership influences the perception of our institutions. It could be our military or any other institution in the nation. While political leadership can influence these institutions we should also ensure that we differentiate it with political movements, ideas, and activities.   

Two charts highlight some of the findings of two polls. Like most Americans, I support the Military and Small Business. I wonder what everyone else supports? For that, you have to look at our political activities and how the average American views them. i.e. the stakeholders of such processes.

A few questions you want to ask yourself might be 1.) Is it a decline in trust in the military or is it actually a decline in the perceptions of another institution? 2.) How might perception of the military, political process, and other factors get comingled into polls? 

Further research and investigation will help determine more closely what the factors are and what they are not. The second chart sort of helps put the different institutions in order of trust. Things could have changed since the last time the poll was concluded. It's a good poll for discussion.

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