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Gifts for all occasions in the Galleria! Subscribe to the "What is the Deal?" mailing list. The "What is the Deal?" Deal-of-the-week: Last-Minute Vegas Getaways April 11, 2004 What is the Deal with Jobs? By Jan A. Larson Back in 2002, I was working for a small, venture-funded, startup company that needed additional funding in order to complete development of our first product and to bring that product to market. Unfortunately, the company was unable to obtain that funding and was forced to close the doors, putting about 40 people out of work. I was fortunate that another startup company was looking for someone with my skills and was out of work less than a week, but others spent months finding employment. Last week, I was laid off from that company, along with eight others. Should we blame George W. Bush for our plight? Where are John Kerry's 10 million jobs when you need one? No, the President is not responsible. Our situation resulted from a simple consequence of capitalism. The company's major customer has slipped the schedule for purchase of products and that has resulted in the "burn rate" of the company's cash exceeding the growth of revenue. This, in turn, affects the monthly cash flow, which could ultimately affects the long-term viability of the company. As most of us were working on the next-generation product, we were simply caught up in a numbers game, nothing more. The difference between now and 2002, however, is that there are a lot of opportunities available for most of the nine people affected. Within two days of receiving the bad news, I had received interest from six firms regarding my services. Three of these companies are venture-funded startups, one is a startup funded by a single, wealthy individual and two are publicly traded. I would be very hard pressed to believe John Kerry's claim that the President's handling of the economy has been a failure. Of the three venture-funded companies, each has recently received, or soon will receive, eight figure venture investments. These investments don't come from the "middle class." These types of investments are made by the "wealthy." Venture firms collect investment capital from various sources including individuals that have the means to pony up seven figure investments. These individuals do not offer up that much cash without an expectation that it will grow significantly. A large percentage of venture-funded firms do not succeed, as did the company I worked for in 2002. All of the money invested was lost. To be induced to try again, venture firms must see a reason to put multi-million dollar investments at risk. They don't do that when they can make a better return by leaving their cash in the bank or under their pillows. The President's economic policies have left the recession behind and venture capital, a significant generator of high-quality jobs, is starting to flow. John Kerry's plan to raise taxes on the "rich" would stifle such investments by increasing taxes on those that make venture funding work and other small-business owners. Don't let Kerry's smoke and mirrors economics fool you. His tax plan is a recipe for unemployment. As for me, I won't count my chickens before they hatch, but at this point, I must say that I'm glad the President understands economics and how jobs are created. Thanks to the President, I will be going to interviews next week. Kerry would rather I go to the unemployment office. -- Send feedback to the author. The "What is the Deal?" column will appears weekly on the Pie of Knowledge website. Guest submissions are welcome and encouraged. To submit an article to "What is the Deal?" click here. To subscribe to the "What is the Deal?" mailing list and receive early notification when a new column is available, click here. The Pie of Knowledge will never, ever divulge email addresses to any third party for any reason unless so ordered by a court of law. Contributions to the Pie of Knowledge are greatly appreciated. 
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