This blogger has decided to endorse Barrack Obama for President.

Its simple…if it talks like a Republican, looks like a Republican, dresses like a Republican, walks like a Republican – it must be a Republican and we all know what they did the last 8 years.

So far, Obama has done nothing wrong to not warrant consideration.

My other beef is Sarah Palin is one heartbeat away from becoming the next President; how many 72 year olds can stand up to the rigors and pressures of being one especially with the economy in its worse downturn since the Great Depression. And I don’t think being a hockey mom and governor of Alaska is enough experience to stand up to the other leaders of the world. Even the largest newspaper of her home state endorsed Obama.

Joe Biden hands-down has more experience and is better capable of stepping in should anything happen to Obama. And, I like the idea that Obama can focus on cleaning up the mess Bush is leaving behind here at home while Biden can use his foreign policy experience to restore our credibility around the world.

We all know what bipartisanship stands for – governmental gridlock and indecision. This is truly the one election where we have a chance for all of the decisionmakers to come in on the same boat. And the only person who is well qualified to lead them is Obama. They don’t call McCain a maverick for nothing!

Barrack Obama represents a fresh face with a grassroots background. Here is a guy who rolls his sleeves up and mingles with the crowd. When I say he has done nothing wrong to not warrant consideration, I mean this is one politician who isn’t really promising much but is conveying the message that he will try his darn hardest to restore America’s middle class roots. And Barrack Obama isn’t owned by 1% of the population either.

So for the above reasons, I am voting for Barrack Obama for President of the United States in 2008.

Normally, I would be writing about a race or my adventures being fully bionic. I have garnered quite an impressive audience ever since I started this blog a year and half ago. Its amazing how fast time has flown. Lately, I have been hard pressed to find topics to write about, within the realm of what I have been writing about.

I want to write more. I want to unleash those creative juices. I want to share what is really on my mind. I want to keep my current audience craving for more from Welcome to Sam Spritzer’s Web Site. I want to bring in new people; people whose interests are besides CIs and running.

So, I’ve decided to start a category called Talk is Cheap. Now I must warn you, my mother did not raise me to write trashy, cheapened, “you’re gonna get in trouble” articles. I am even going to risk a few comments from mom admonishing me for writing such filth. Sorry mom!

Over the next coming days, I’ll be saying my piece…whatever tickles my fancy. So, lets see how it goes. Maybe I’ll finally become rich and famous, who knows. If you have a topic you would like to hear my completely unbiased opinion on, drop me a note.

This morning, I braved a snowstorm to drive to a scheduled appointment at Basil Ford in Cheektowaga. I made the appointment on-line and received a confirming email.

Description
20000 mile Maintenance Bundle
• Rotate and inspect tires; check wheel end play and turning noise
• Perform multi-point inspection
• Change engine oil and replace oil filter (up to 5 quarts of oil)
Additional Comments
PLEASE CONTACT BY EMAIL ONLY…THANK YOU.
Front brakes are pulsating AGAIN after having being serviced at 12778 miles. Brakes are grabbing when wet and cold. Feels like rear brakes are locking when sitting for a long time in wet cold weather.

When I got to the dealer, my name was not on the list of “scheduled” appointments. Why? According to the service advisor…”sometimes the satellite doesn’t send us the information”. But the email I received in return tells me the appointment was confirmed (in nice large green letters). Notice to Chuck Basil….some of us are much more computer literate than your service advisors. You don’t need a satellite uplink to get service appointments. You might want to talk to my friend Greg who has a really cool idea for automotive customer service.

After sitting in the waiting room for hhmmmm…..and hour or so, my truck was ready. Yup, the tires were rotated…the oil looks fresh so it was probably changed…as for the other items, I’ll have to trust they did what they did….”Replace EFI Pressurized Fuel Canister” and “Replace Air Filter”. But the brakes……..

“Nothing wrong with them.” Oh wait…”we live in an area where there is lots of moisture and salt.” “You must have hit the brakes hard…and caused a hot spot.” “Once the damage starts, that’s it.” “I’ve had vehicles with 10,000 miles that need brake jobs.” “If you want to replace the rotors, it will be $399.”

Chuck…get your act together. You are the first line of contact. You’re responsible for the actions of your service advisors. Let me explain something to you Chuck…I have been driving for 36 years. I take care of my vehicles. I used to pay 29 cents a gallon for gas. But there is no way in heck the rotors should be warped to a point where they are pulsating at 18,533 miles especially considering half of my driving is on the highway and I brake more with the clutch instead. And my wife’s Maxima gets more abuse on the road with mostly local driving, although more tender loving care in the driveway and after 24,000 miles the brakes are as smooth as her legs.

AND, ESPECIALLY since you serviced then on 06/2007 at 12,778 miles for the very same reason, FREE OF CHARGE. The bottom line is…the rotors are defective! Your service advisor decided it was easier to tell me that the “warranty ran out….its one year or 18,000 miles, whichever comes first.” Or maybe there was a “bottom-line” incentive.

Rather than “care about the customer”, your service advisor sent me on my way without even SUGGESTING recourse. Maybe there is a problem…maybe we should touch base with Ford to see if there is a problem that needs addressing. But your service advisor didn’t do that. Instead, the service advisor sent me on my way, back into the snowstorm we’re having, pondering what to do the next time the brakes start to pulsate.

Chuck…sorry dude, you just lost a customer…

“Six Sigma”? Is this a college frat? Is there a letter missing here? Why six and not seven or five or some other number? What in the world is “Six Sigma???”

Ok…I have been exposed to Six Sigma at some point of my professional career. Six Sigma was developed in the 1980s by Motorola as a data-driven approach to identifying mistakes and inefficiencies and eliminating them. Data driven!!! AHHHHHH!!! That is what I work with! And it does work but there is one catch.

Quoting from the Buffalo News…
Six Sigma is a methodology like many other business theories in that it focuses on problem solving, but Six Sigma is different in its use of statistical methodology and the “Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control” process known as DMAIC.

“It’s all about process process process like real estate is location location location,” says Tim Leyh, Director of Business Development at the U.B. Center for Industrial Effectiveness where they train people in Six Sigma principles.

“process process process” Another AHHHHHHHH!!!! Business Processes and improving them is another thing I work with. And believe me, that works too! After all, it does put $$$ back into the workers pockets assuming the employer is going to take the savings from the business process improvements and give the workers more money (translation-reward for being MORE efficient!).

Newly elected County Executive, Chris Collins plans to use the principles of Six Sigma as a guiding force behind his attempts to reform county government. Collins is a very successful businessman who will bring a breath of fresh to the halls of the Rath Building (does the name Mike Bloomberg ring a bell??) unlike the career politicians whose holy grail is spelled P-A-T-R-O-N-A-G-E.

Collins will face an uphill struggle because Six Sigma requires total commitment and open/honest communications, something that is unheard of downtown. Between the government, the Control Board and the unions that in itself is going to be the challenge Collins will have to first overcome particularly because of the various wage freezes that are in effect. As a result, those that he will be looking to for the commitment, don’t really have any vested interest since they aren’t getting anything…..yet. Broken promises = broken commitments.

While I applaud Collins’ efforts to change the status quo, I must do it with caution. Without that TOTAL commitment and without OPEN/HONEST communications, Six Sigma might as well be the name of some local punk rock club on Chippewa.