Having your fiscal house in order and having a more manageable macro-economic future is going to be very useful in creating growth.

It all looks American because America, the country that invented mass capitalism and consumerism, got there first. the impact of mass capitalism is now universal.

California has often led the country, indeed the world, in the technology, consumption, trends, lifestyles, and of course, mass entertainment. It is where the car found its earliest and fullest expression, where suburbs blossomed, where going to gym replaced going to church, where forces that lead so many to assume that direct democracy is the wave of the future - declining political parties, telecommuting, new technology, the internet generation 0 are all most well developed in this vast land.

There is very strong historical data that suggest the way societies grow is by making large, long-term investments.

American influence is not what it used to be.

If envy were the cause of terrorism, Beverly Hills [and] Fifth Avenue ... would have become targets long ago.

There is no way to turn off this global economy, nor should one try. Every previous expansion of global capitalism has led to greater prosperity across the world.