AN ACTUAL DECIDER, AND HE LIVES IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD - AT 6:01 P.M. ET:  Silvio Canto Jr., on whose radio show I often appear, alerts us to the president of Mexico, Felipe Calderon, who's showing the president of the United States a thing or two about making decisions:

Can President Calderon give President Obama some lessons in leadership and decision-making?

Isn't it nice to have a president who makes decisions?

It's a clear contrast to having one who votes present!

At the very least, could President Calderon teach a lesson about the excesses of public sector labor unions?

Silvio quotes the Wall Street Journal's Mary Anastasia O'Grady:

"Eight days ago, just after midnight on a Sunday morning, Mexican President Felipe Calderón instructed federal police to take over the operations of the state-owned electricity monopoly, Luz y Fuerza del Centro (LyFC), which serves Mexico City and parts of surrounding states. The company's assets will stay in the hands of the government but will now be run by the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), a national state-owned utility and the major supplier of LyFC's energy.

"The net effect of the move is to dethrone 42,000 members of the Mexican Union of Electricians, which had won benefits over the decades to make Big Three auto workers in Detroit blush. When the liquidation is complete, it is expected that the company will employ about 8,000. To appreciate the magnitude of Mr. Calderón's decision, think of Ronald Reagan's firing of the air traffic controllers—only bigger. As one internationally renowned Mexican economist remarked on Sunday, it is 'the most important act of government in 20 years.'...

"...LyFC losses were mounting because the union's productivity is a fraction of that of CFE and because the company balance sheet has been hemorrhaging due to technical problems as well as electricity theft.  Its costs were twice its revenues..."

Silvio continues:

In other words, LyFC was not in the power business.

Instead, it was another failure looking for a subsidy from the people who pay taxes!

We congratulate President Calderon for being decisive!

Beyond Mexican domestic policy, the LyFC story is another little window into what happens when the state takes over something that should be private and operating in the free market.

Yes, take a good look at LyFC in Mexico.

Yes, this is what happens when the state runs something.

As Ms. O'Grady writes, "There's a lesson here somewhere for Mr. Obama."  The problem is, Mr. Obama hasn't learned many lessons very well.  And, as for his decisiveness, do we laugh now, or cry later?

October 19, 2009