U.S. Inc.

With the passage of the health care legislation all but assured, it must be concluded that it has been a good year for the CEO of the United States. Although the U.S. is in the red, it has made a number of impressive deals and acquisitions. It has acquired controlling interest in a major automobile manufacturer and secured seats on the boards of others. It is also on the boards of several large banks and investment companies. If things go according to plan, it will soon gain partnership in a great number of hospitals and clinics all over the country and establish the largest health insurance company in the nation. The future looks bright for further expansion and acquisitions.

There will be no dividends for stockholders though. The company did not make a profit this year. Not only did it fail to make a profit this year, the company has failed to make a profit for many years. In fact, it has lost much more money than many had expected and is expected to loose even more in the years ahead. The company does not expect to make a profit anytime soon. This is not an issue of particular concern to the board however, or the stockholders, because the CEO was able to secure operating capital from foreign investors to fund the company's operation and expansion. The CEO has assured the stockholders that revenues will increase and many of the expenditures will be recouped through better and more efficient management and streamlined operation. There is also optimism on the board and among shareholders that the investments made will pay for themselves, if not generate substantial profits, in the years to come after the turmoil and dislocation of those acquisitions subside.

Fortunately for the CEO, neither the board of directors nor the shareholders are at all insistent on making a profit. Indeed, they don't seem to mind one bit if they wind up losing money on the deals. For some odd reason, many of the shareholders do not appreciate that it is their money that is being spent. They are satisfied to believe that what the company owns, they own. And if losing money gets them an interest in the company's operation, even if only symbolically, they are happy to lose it. And since in theory what the company owns they own; the more the company owns, the more they own. To many that is a thing worth more than money: certainly worth more than other people's money,

By most measures, it has been a bad year or so for the company. There is concern that the company faces a loss in its global market shares amidst growing competition world wide. Profits have declined, and expenditures have increased. The company's operations are in the red. There is tension on the board of directors and the CFO is apprehensive about the books. The Legal division is preparing itself for what should prove to be a busy and contentious next few years. There is also concern that politics will play a role in the company's management and its operations might become skewed due to political favoritism and company politics. But this is not a major concern among the board or the shareholders at the moment. Even with all the financial and legal liabilities the company has acquired, the growing red ink on the books, the managerial hurdles that still need to be navigated, and the dissension amongst the board and shareholders, it cannot be denied that the CEO of the Unites States has had a very good year, if somewhat bruising. Whether it was a good year for the United States remains to be seen.