Prediction for 2009...

[Tubetwang]

in the next few years, North American business men will bring back production and manufacturing where it belongs...in North America...

Major Twang

[drhulsey]

Bravo, Karnak

[dartanion]

It won't be long before the US is THE source for cheap labor....

[selloutrr]

If they bring back jobs to north america the consumer has to be willing to pay more for the same product. Just a reminder American's have a very inflated idea of self worth, yet very tight wallets... the two don't often go hand in hand. If we can stop making everything desposable and start making things to last then craftsmanship will matter again. But as it stands in this use once and throw out economy cheaper is better. just a thought the average car manufactured today is only expected to last 7-10 years max. When America was earning it's name that same car company was making a car that can still drive today 50 years later. Greed is going to be the hardest part to overcome because the profit margin will be very low as the need to keep buying will no longer exist.
Cheap labor is a thought but unions have ruined most everything they have touched, wanting more but providing less and striking when they are called on productivity. It would take a nation wide restucture, and drug test to weed out the weak and start putting pride back into the work force. I'm not against union employment but i do feel they have abused the companies they are employed by and some members aren't always qualified for there job discriptions.

I agree we do need a change that is for sure! anyone remember how to barter?

[M Fowler]

I am not sure who my new boss President Obama was referring to when he said spread the wealth around but large corporations are netting huge profits and have been so for years. It time they invest in America.

We have very little manufacturing in steel industry and rely way too much on China. Copper is controlled by Mexico and South American mines and when you read about strikes then the price goes up. Right now copper is at an all time record low. (my wife is an expert in metals wire industry).

Also, we have been selling way to many lands and business to foreign resources this has to stop.

Thanks for listening.

Mark

[Structo]

Also, we have been selling way to many lands and business to foreign resources this has to stop.

Thanks for listening.

Mark

That's for sure!

Not many other countries allow foreigners to buy real estate.

[gahult]

selloutrr wrote:

the average car manufactured today is only expected to last 7-10 years max

Wish someone would have told that to the b*tch that made my 2002 Staturn "desposable".

Gary

[Cygnus X1]

I am not sure who my new boss President Obama was referring to when he said spread the wealth around but large corporations are netting huge profits and have been so for years. It time they invest in America.

We have very little manufacturing in steel industry and rely way too much on China. Copper is controlled by Mexico and South American mines and when you read about strikes then the price goes up. Right now copper is at an all time record low. (my wife is an expert in metals wire industry).

Also, we have been selling way to many lands and business to foreign resources this has to stop.

Thanks for listening.

Mark

Non union structural steel has been doing ok.
Faltering lately like nearly everyone else, but it is a very cyclical business.

[selloutrr]

you owe your life to the crumple zones that was a wicked wreck, but could have been way worse! Saturns and Volvo's are probably the two safest vehicles when you take tonage out of the equation, both are designed to be a total when involved in an accident. It's kind of a blessing the last thing you want is the insurance to make you fix a car with a bent frame. I'm glad you're ok.

[skyboltone]

Sellouter, I hate to pick a fight but you got some old information, or worse are making it up. I've been pissing to get a job for 20 years. So have truckers, anyone involved in aircraft construction or repair, and though I'm not sure I imagine that autoworkers have too. The UNION kind, not the rat shops. I have a general question; how many of you have random piss tests as a condition of employment? I simply have not worked with ANY fucked up construction worker in 20 years plus.

Ever heard of the three martini lunch? That's on the management side. Those guys get a by. Of course they wouldn't act irresponsibly. Do teachers submit to testing? Do congressmen and employees of regulatory agencies submit to testing? Cops and Fireman do, I'm not sure about medical workers.

If <snip>Cheap labor is a thought but unions have ruined most everything they have touched, wanting more but providing less and striking when they are called on productivity. It would take a nation wide restucture, and drug test to weed out the weak and start putting pride back into the work force. I'm not against union employment but i do feel they have abused the companies they are employed by and some members aren't always qualified for there job discriptions.

Manufacturers use the cheapest parts possible. If they find two switches that fit the application, one is $.45 and the other is $1.03, they take the cheap one. Every time. That my friend is not a function of labor. We just put the stuff in. As ordered. There is not one manufactured item you can name where labor as a percentage of end cost has not gone down in the last 50 years. American labor is the most productive per work hour and it could be cheaper. Did you know that insurance companys put manufacturers on a warning, then suspended list if their accident averages per work hour exceed pre set limits? They don't do that in Singapore or China. Fuckem, let the bastards bleed and die, that's the rule with overseas labor. It's already been mentioned but I will repeat it in terms that everyone can understand.

WANT LESS

That's the answer. And Americans, for all our faults proved it works when gas when to $4.89/gal. We just drove less. Oil dropped. Want less, drive less. The energy issue could be solved. Easily. T Boone Pickens outlined the perfect plan but you know what. Nothing will happen. Too many greenies and too many martinis that's why. If a politician's lips are moving he's lieing! Don't blame the working guy for the nation's problems. You know how much debt I got as a percentage of yearly income. Total non mortgage debt = ZERO. Total debt to yearly income = 1.45 to 1. And that's going down. Save and invest. Work hard at what you do well, and take resposibility for your own nest.

As for the financial chrisis, 40:1 leverage. That's not just insane that's criminal. Who let that happen. Oh, I know, union labor. You know what the new leverage product is? They are called ETFs and ETNs. These are currently leveraged at 2 or 3 to one but goin up. The product is only months old but are trading like gangbusters. Short or Long, either way. It's a basket of stocks or corporate bonds traded like stocks. Something for nothin'. How's that go? That ain't workin', money for nothin' and the chicks for free.

I'm Ok now. No harm meant. Try rice and beans. It's good for you. Keeps you loose and comfortable.

Dan

[drhulsey]

..., I'm not sure about medical workers...

Hospitals have different policies about drug testing employees. Some do routine testing, others random testing. Doctors who are employees would be subject to the same thing. Doctors who are independent practitioners, like me, could be asked to submit to testing if their behavior, performance, etc., showed worrisome changes. The only thing I have ever pissed for was to see which way the wind was blowing.

large corporations are netting huge profits and have been so for years. It time they invest in America.

Don't forget they do invest in America by providing jobs and profits to the stock holders, many of whom are not high rollers.

I'm not against union employment but i do feel they have abused the companies they are employed by

Don't forget how abusive management was before there were unions Neither side has a lock on the Golden Rule
Take the Middle Way, Grasshopper

[gahult]

That's Ok if you're not down wind doc.


Gary

[selloutrr]

I wasn't trying to upset union guys, if you work hard and it works for you props and i agree that unions came about out of need. but I feel in my experience in dealing with them and from stories of friends in unions (possibly hyped up to sound better then they really are, so i must take them with a grain of salt, doing double shifts, clocking in then walking threw and going to the van to sleep get up get something to eat, clock out. Clock in again in overtime and go to the bar. That's how my Chev. SS got made. Makes me proud . Now that the hand has turned and for the most part they demonstrate a how little can i work and still get paid attitude. I've seen a local union loose 75% when asked to drug test. One huge problem that you pointed out is the cost of insurance, we as a society somehow became sue happy, it's almost impossible to be a doctor now days. the sad part is the same people that sue are often the ones that then complain about not being able to afford the proper treatment, there are times when a doctor makes a mistake and those claims can be warranted, but most of the time it's a natural risk of being alive. I grew up in the medical field my father was a ER/Family practice M.D. and my mother was a lab tech. as a nation at some point we all need to step back and let people play with fireworks, ride bikes with out helmets, and play outside, remember what fresh air was like? Yes they will get hurt some may even die but death is natural. when you give someone a heart transplant and they die on the table, it's called a risk of the procedure. you hope it doesn't happen but it is a very real possibility. then that family sues the doctor and his rates go up, then your bills go up, u lower your coverage and you get sick and what you need isn't covered under what you have. it's a wicked cycle. everyone needs to start over and play fair managament just manage. workers work. doctor's cure and patients try to get better. insurance become affordable. I'm not sure free health care is the way to go even though everyone gets it. It's not very good lots of little things we have are taken for granted that aren't included. Honestly I think we are so deep in shit it'll all have to crumble before we can rebuild it, I just hope we are smarter next time if we are given another chance.

I guess i needed to explain that when doctors sign on to except an insurance company they are providing services at a predetermined rate. and the insurance company adjusts the bill so what the procedure costs is not what you pay as a client. but the cost of insuring yourself as a doctor has become so expensive that the profit margin is very low. So the guys that used to become doctors are becoming other things and not going to medical school. That means the smart guys might not be the ones working on you soon... the good news you get to sue... see the cycle. I know a lot of amazing doctors but they are getting the squeeze and sprinting to retire, they will be missed.

I'm sorry I offended you.

I hope for 2009 the last 8 years are forgotten and we can rebuild some credit in the eyes of other countries. and start to rebuild ours.

[skyboltone]

The only thing I have ever pissed for was to see which way the wind was blowing.

On the North Slope, the wind blows from all directions at once. I don't know how or why; must be part of Chaos Theory but you stand on a flat plain that goes on for hundreds of miles in every direction without so much as a pile of Caribou turds to disturb the wind and it swirls like mad. Anyway, you step out of the truck every couple of hours or so, especially in the morning, to get rid of some moisture and try aiming Mr Happy so it doesn't blow back on you. First of all, he doesn't even want to come out but immediately you start dancing around trying to find the right direction. Ain't possible when the wind blows hard enough to create visiblility below 100 yards. About 40 knots. Just thought you'ld all like to know that. It's the kind of thing you Cliff's out there (like me) might want to use while nursing a beer at the end of the bar. Oh, and I don't care how cold it gets it doesn't freeze before it hits the ground. At least not from my height and length. Tested at -63. Just think, at that temperature it's gotta warm up 95 degrees just to get to freezing.

[Structo]

I'm in a construction union.

We have mandatory drug screens every 6 months or so and you can be random tested anytime.
Or if your behavior at work warrants one they will test you.
Some of the bigger international general contractors have a mandatory drug screen before you can step foot on a job site regardless of when you last tested for your own company.

Sure there are guys that cheat by using other peoples urine or fake pee.
But the drug screening businesses are usually only a step behind the latest method of cheating.

I think in a dangerous job such as I'm in, it's a good thing. Even the owners of the companies have to pee in a cup.

But, one of the things I have a problem with is, say you smoke a joint on the weekend or after work. You have now polluted your system for up to 30 days depending on the strength of the pot you smoked and how often you did it.
You are not high at work and do not do it at work just as most guys would not drink on the job (although there is always exceptions).

I fear a guy with a mighty hangover than just about anything else at work.
Particularly if he is operating heavy equipment or even the job site forklift.
I've seen it time and time again the way guys with a drinking problem are totally out of it for the first half if not the whole day after a binge.

Anyway, my point in this is job safety is paramount and whats fair for construction workers should also apply to the people who make the laws and regulations.
I wonder how many congressmen are screened randomly for drug use?