robert stovall is managing director and strategist at wood asset management. bob, always great to see you. what is the threat to investors from the fiscal cliff? >> quite a few there, tom. a lot of things happening, or could happen. this fiscal cliff end of the year, with a lot of things likely to happen on the negative side unless congress and the administration change some of the rules. the way things now stand, the tax on dividends and tax on capital gains will rise when the bush tax cuts expire at the end of the year, unless congress steps in and does something and the president signs the bill. in addition to that, you've got the situation out there where the federal government has to move, as i just said, in that direction, and you've got a situation where corporations are going to be facing higher taxes. it's likely that next year we will seek out a new way to-- to increase the total debt allowance that the u.s. can borrow that last time caused a stipulation between the republicans and the democrats. and things of that sort. >> tom: with that environment

and robert stovall is our friday "market monitor." he says investors should watch out for, possible tax increases and government spending cuts next year, and focus on rising dividends. when you think of silicon valley, the term entrepreneur probably comes to mind. but eric schurgenberg thinks this hot bed for technology start-ups should thank uncle sam in part, for its success. eric is editor-in-chief at inc. >> eric schurenberg for nightly business report the secret history of the valley silicon valley. you know the place. it's full of self-made millionaires, people who started great companies in garages and dorm rooms, and who've read atlas shrugged ten times. to them, the most powerful forces in the universe are entrepreneurship and venture capital. government's only role is to get out of the way. so, who was the valley's single most important investor in its formative years? it was uncle sam, not venture capital. the government. my source is entrepreneur and stanford professor steve blank. as the region evolved into the hub of ame