UAW Pickets American Axle Scab Hiring

I was talking strictly about financial success because we are talking about jobs. Gratz on all your success. And thanks for your service, Airborne. I believe it was the first of the 502nd that I supported while I was in Korea in '88-'89. Luckily, we ducked a LOT less lead than you did. Still, I have to say, that your understanding of economics is severely lacking. All the jobs are not going overseas. For the most part, it's manufacturing jobs that are going overseas. We can despair all we want, but the truth is that those jobs are less desirable than we believe them to be. Also, at the current labor rates, if they did not go overseas, they would get automated our of existence anyway. Would that be bad in your mind? The manufacturing myth is pervasive, but the problem is that people only want those jobs if they can get a non competitive wage for their work while buying their goods at the low, free market rates. I don't care if my old job is still there, I will find another, or open another company, or whatever. There is no limit to what I believe I can do to make money. If I need to learn a new skill, I will. OTOH, If I believed my livelihood depended on stealing from others, I would just as soon starve. The arrangement that UAW has with AA is theft. It is condoned by the state and federal governments, but that does not change that it is theft. The owners of the company are just that. They should not be compelled to do business with an organization just because they say they represent the laborers. They should not be compelled to deal with anyone who does not want to work for what they are offering. We currently have about 5% unemployment in this country, the days of being compelled to out up with slave wages and conditions due to poverty and lack of opportunity are gone. If they come back, THEN we can talk about unions. As it's going, it's the unions that will put us there with their political machinations and donations.(BTW, average wages have continued to rise since Reagan took office. The oft touted "household income" numbers are a sham). Furthermore, if you put tariffs on imports, you are stealing from the consumer in order to give money to the domestic producers. It's still theft. Your 401k is presently taking a huge beating. Why? THEFT. The government is taking all our money and using it to support all sorts of crap, and the bill is coming due in the form of a recession. If they all don't stop with all the tax and spend rhetoric, it will be the 30's all over again. The New Deal did little to help the economy, and a hell of a lot to extend the malaise. We don't need to go through it all again. Protectionism works poorly everytime it is tried. So does legislating economic outcome. It simply won't work for long if at all. One of my best friends is a doctor. He decides how many shifts to work each month. As he has done before, he will reduce his hours to avoid the top brackets because he doesn't think it is worth going to work for the resulting wage. He is not alone. I have several friends who are 2 professional couples where almost all of them now have one spouse at home due to the taxes. These are not people who TAKE jobs, they are people who MAKE jobs. I closed a business a couple years ago due to over regulation and taxes, and I won't open another one because of it. The answers for all the things you are worried about are predetermined by the people who made you believe in the problems. The only attack on the middle class in this country is being orchestrated by the Democratic party and many willing conspirators in the Republican one. This idea you have that there won't be any good jobs left is a sham, and you shouldn't fall for it. Not for one second. Have an Airborne Day!

I remember an article in the WSJ from 1993 that had a line I'll never forget. "Slow dim witted millionaires are not about to fork over their wallets to the IRS" People that stand around with signs bemoaning the fact that times are changing and something must be done to bring back the good old days are going to be there for a long time. Meanwhile the rest of us find a way or make one. IF we insist on hanging on to the past we'll never move past where we are right now. I have seen many couples with dual high earner incomes park one spouse at home to raise the kids because the tax load of AMT was too much. Add to that daycare and the stress of two income households and we see a choice to be made. There are diametrically opposed opinions on what to do next but only time will tell who is right. FDR did prolong the depression, WW2 really ended it and by 1947 we were at least moving in a better direction. the New Deal brought us institutional socialism and never ending government. JFK polished it off by allowing government workers to organize. LBJ made it OK for the government to just throw money at the problem.

Landcrusher Hey, it is always nice to meet a fellow vet. I am sure that whoever you supported they appreciated it very much. I know that we did whether it was artillery support or the occasional hot meal at base camp. The link provided leads to a fairly unbiased discussion of the out sourcing debate. I’ll admit that to some extent it supports your position while admitting that the true depth of the problem is unknown. It is also somewhat dated having been written in 2004. http://www.cfr.org/publication/7749/#4 I don’t really put a lot of stock into “Average wage” and/or “Household income” figures. My sister is a professor of statistics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Damn Kansas). She teachers both undergrad and post grad courses. One thing she has told me several times is that numbers can almost always be spun to support one’s point of view. Similar to the way words are spun. Perhaps in this discussion “per capita income” figures would give a better picture of the “over all” direction of wages in this country. At any rate, have a great day and better tomorrow.

There are lies, damned lies, and statistics