Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Obama Raises Eyebrows With Executive Order Revising Authority To Nationalize Resources For Defense | Fox News
This reminded me of something I don't get about liberals in general: They gladly wage war on American citizens who are political enemies within their own country, but more than a little gun shy about doing so with foreign enemies who have proven a desire for the destruction of the American people. Nuts!
Obama Raises Eyebrows With Executive Order Revising Authority To Nationalize Resources For Defense | Fox News
Obama Raises Eyebrows With Executive Order Revising Authority To Nationalize Resources For Defense | Fox News
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Bain Film Organizer Stands By Claims Against Romney | Fox News
Here's a quote from the article and the film:
"What Romney and Bain did typically was go in, load companies with debt, take exorbitant management fees so they couldn't survive in the long term."
But isn't that what Obama has been doing for the last 3 years to the whole country?
Bain Film Organizer Stands By Claims Against Romney | Fox News:
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
The Most Popular American Companies in China | Fox Business
The jobs discussed below used to be in America, now they are creating a Chinese middle class that competes for money, energy, everything on the world market. It's driving up prices worldwide, while driving down wages.
So what was that about a "world market" being a good thing?
The Most Popular American Companies in China | Fox Business:
So what was that about a "world market" being a good thing?
The Most Popular American Companies in China | Fox Business:
China’s population in 1960 was 667 million, more than double that of the United States in 2010. China now has 1.34 billion residents. The increase would not matter much to companies if the population was still largely rural and poor, as it was half a century ago. But, in fact, the manufacturing industry that has become the engine of China’s GDP growth also has rapidly built a huge middle class, one made up primarily of factory workers. And this middle class continues to grow.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
From my music Blog: Making Goods in China
I try to not let politics nor religion creep into these pages about
music. Music should be a happy, non-divisive place, and both politics
and religion are often tools used for both . However, something needs to
be said about making musical goods in China...
There are any number of really good arguments of why musical equipment makers shouldn't do this: patriotism, putting Americans to work, we've heard them all. But one I've haven't heard and have been thinking about is how the manufacturers are trading short-term profit for long-term longevity.
When
a company has something produced offshore, they have to specify what
they want made. That often means the American firm has to teach the
Chinese company how to make it, along with any proprietary technology
that company specifically developed and used in manufacturing. Now, the
Chinese are long known for industrial espionage, outright stealing of
American technology. However, by manufacturing American goods using
American technology for an artificially low price, industrial espionage
becomes unnecessary. That technology is handed over to the Chinese (and
other countries as well), and the American manufacturer, in buying the
cheaply-made good, pays for the pleasure of giving away his secrets.
This idea wasn't dreamed up in a vacuum. I spoke with a bass guitar manufacturer who glowingly told me how he straightened out mistakes made on the production line in a Chinese factory. That line made instruments for nearly every major manufacturer in the US.
Eventually, I believe the Chinese manufacturing bubble will burst. American lawmakers and manufacturers seem to be slowly coming to their senses, so more and more things will begin to be made in the USA again. But by then, the horse is out of the barn. The Chinese will have the technology, expertise, and brand new factories with which to make these same goods on their own, without the Americans at all. And then the fun starts...
American manufacturers will see their goods duplicated and sold worldwide for about one-tenth the price they now charge. Only in this scenario, the difference will be that American manufacturers won't see any profit at all, only the theft of their ideas marketed globally. I suspect they'll have one hell of a time surviving.
So, manufacturer, if you're looking for quick profits, make hay while the sun shines. And buyer: know that you're a part of it. If you don't tell the manufacturers, either directly or by voting with your dollar, you're complicit. I recently refused delivery on a bass because it was made in China (the manufacturer's website, which I researched before purchase, said differently). Eventually I bought American.
There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. Never was, never will be.
There are any number of really good arguments of why musical equipment makers shouldn't do this: patriotism, putting Americans to work, we've heard them all. But one I've haven't heard and have been thinking about is how the manufacturers are trading short-term profit for long-term longevity.
When
a company has something produced offshore, they have to specify what
they want made. That often means the American firm has to teach the
Chinese company how to make it, along with any proprietary technology
that company specifically developed and used in manufacturing. Now, the
Chinese are long known for industrial espionage, outright stealing of
American technology. However, by manufacturing American goods using
American technology for an artificially low price, industrial espionage
becomes unnecessary. That technology is handed over to the Chinese (and
other countries as well), and the American manufacturer, in buying the
cheaply-made good, pays for the pleasure of giving away his secrets.This idea wasn't dreamed up in a vacuum. I spoke with a bass guitar manufacturer who glowingly told me how he straightened out mistakes made on the production line in a Chinese factory. That line made instruments for nearly every major manufacturer in the US.
Eventually, I believe the Chinese manufacturing bubble will burst. American lawmakers and manufacturers seem to be slowly coming to their senses, so more and more things will begin to be made in the USA again. But by then, the horse is out of the barn. The Chinese will have the technology, expertise, and brand new factories with which to make these same goods on their own, without the Americans at all. And then the fun starts...
American manufacturers will see their goods duplicated and sold worldwide for about one-tenth the price they now charge. Only in this scenario, the difference will be that American manufacturers won't see any profit at all, only the theft of their ideas marketed globally. I suspect they'll have one hell of a time surviving.
So, manufacturer, if you're looking for quick profits, make hay while the sun shines. And buyer: know that you're a part of it. If you don't tell the manufacturers, either directly or by voting with your dollar, you're complicit. I recently refused delivery on a bass because it was made in China (the manufacturer's website, which I researched before purchase, said differently). Eventually I bought American.
There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. Never was, never will be.
Monday, November 14, 2011
How to Use History
If prior generations of Americans were the one who created this great country, shouldn't we take a hard look at what they did to make it so good, rather than flail in our ignorance? For example, our parents are considered the greatest generation. How did they become that way? Maybe their parents had it right.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Common Sense
Occupy Protests Plagued By Reports Of Sex Attacks, Violent Crime | Fox News
As much as I despise the nonsense flowing from this "protest," I find there is valuable information to be had from it that we can all use. All of it ironic.
You've no doubt heard the ironies about how the Occupiers want to bring down big business, yet they use their products every moment. But there's much more.
The most important irony is the personal culture created within the camps themselves. Most of the Occupiers are some flavor or degree of anarchist, therefore it stands to reason that the camps themselves are without law or regulation. And without any such structure, reports are seeping out of violent attacks, much of it sexual in nature. Rapes seem to be happening more and more often, so much of a problem that the Occupiers have set up a separate area that are "women only." So much for a government-less society.
I am reminded of John Locke and his book Common Sense from the days before America's independence. Locke said that without adequate government "life would be nasty, brutish, and short." The Occupiers are proving that Locke had, indeed, common sense.
As much as I despise the nonsense flowing from this "protest," I find there is valuable information to be had from it that we can all use. All of it ironic.
You've no doubt heard the ironies about how the Occupiers want to bring down big business, yet they use their products every moment. But there's much more.
The most important irony is the personal culture created within the camps themselves. Most of the Occupiers are some flavor or degree of anarchist, therefore it stands to reason that the camps themselves are without law or regulation. And without any such structure, reports are seeping out of violent attacks, much of it sexual in nature. Rapes seem to be happening more and more often, so much of a problem that the Occupiers have set up a separate area that are "women only." So much for a government-less society.
I am reminded of John Locke and his book Common Sense from the days before America's independence. Locke said that without adequate government "life would be nasty, brutish, and short." The Occupiers are proving that Locke had, indeed, common sense.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Occupy: Increasing the Ranks of the Poor in the Name of Equality
The Occupy protests, oh my. They have creative slogans and names for themselves, like "The 99%." I find that very telling.
They call themselves The 99% because they feel as though they are part of and represent 99% of Americans who are not uber-wealthy. I think it means more of what they are after: 99% of everything created, made and earned by the so-called 1%.
If one follows their math, the 1% are at the top of the financial food chain and make the most money - obscene amounts of money. However, the 1% are also the people whose work product are things which enrich our lives, such as iPhones used by the Occupiers, communication networks used by the Occupiers, the internet used by the Occupiers, the clothing worn by the Occupiers, the food eaten by the Occupiers, even the tents occupied by the Occupiers. In short, the 1%, because of their capitalization and the way capitalism works, created everything of value in this country - even everything of necessity. That they made it super-rich is a definitive by-product of all of it.
It's capitalism, baby; were the Occupiers stoned when they covered that in school? And this is where their attack is: not at the rich, but at the heart of capitalism. The Occupiers want it all, not just the things made by the 1%, but all their profits as well. The 1% will be among the poor. We will then have "The 100%," none of whom have anything - no product because the wealthy have no capital with which to produce things, and no wealth because they have nothing to sell. Everyone is equal; there is nothing built, there is nothing to buy. Everyone has nothing.
So the hypocrisy of the left is rich once again. Let's take everything that the rich have, and give it to everyone else, and expect the formerly-rich to continue to make the things that make us happy, then strip them of their profit once again. That's even if they have any remaining capital to create anything. Capitalism is the the goose that laid the golden egg, and will be long dead.
If you did that to my dog - if you took away his bone - you'd have stitches.
As it should be.
They call themselves The 99% because they feel as though they are part of and represent 99% of Americans who are not uber-wealthy. I think it means more of what they are after: 99% of everything created, made and earned by the so-called 1%.
If one follows their math, the 1% are at the top of the financial food chain and make the most money - obscene amounts of money. However, the 1% are also the people whose work product are things which enrich our lives, such as iPhones used by the Occupiers, communication networks used by the Occupiers, the internet used by the Occupiers, the clothing worn by the Occupiers, the food eaten by the Occupiers, even the tents occupied by the Occupiers. In short, the 1%, because of their capitalization and the way capitalism works, created everything of value in this country - even everything of necessity. That they made it super-rich is a definitive by-product of all of it.
It's capitalism, baby; were the Occupiers stoned when they covered that in school? And this is where their attack is: not at the rich, but at the heart of capitalism. The Occupiers want it all, not just the things made by the 1%, but all their profits as well. The 1% will be among the poor. We will then have "The 100%," none of whom have anything - no product because the wealthy have no capital with which to produce things, and no wealth because they have nothing to sell. Everyone is equal; there is nothing built, there is nothing to buy. Everyone has nothing.
So the hypocrisy of the left is rich once again. Let's take everything that the rich have, and give it to everyone else, and expect the formerly-rich to continue to make the things that make us happy, then strip them of their profit once again. That's even if they have any remaining capital to create anything. Capitalism is the the goose that laid the golden egg, and will be long dead.
If you did that to my dog - if you took away his bone - you'd have stitches.
As it should be.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
The Politics of Filmmaking
So I'm watching a documentary on PBS just now. America Beyond the Color Line: Hollywood. A major producer (I didn't catch the name) is being interviewed. It being PBS, of course they pursue a racial angle in which whites and males are bad. Especially, the producer says that a film with black stars will gross half as much as white stars. "Why" Producer says: "I don't know... Hillbillies?" A black star complains that women are not respected and therefore not paid as much. Tell all this to Oprah, who by the way is both black and female, and is the the highest paid person in the industry. And Lucille Ball, Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, and on and on.
It all pissed me off, major.
1st thing: the psychology of film teaches us that watching a film creates a dream-like state; it's the reason we are able to suspend disbelief as much as necessary for a film to work in our minds. But in particular, a film requires the viewer to identify with some aspect of the film, hopefully the lead characters. In our subconscious, it's just not feasible to ask our minds to identify with a character outside of what we look like, and how we behave. Some call this racist, I call it reality; so would Freud.
2nd thing: those hillbillies are the guys who made that producer a billionaire. And he wants to denigrate them? But yes, he denigrates his customers.
Remember this the next time you go to the movies:
1. That the people making the film don't think much of you
2. They are happy to make the thing they think you want, irrespective of what they themselves think; a question of integrity, maybe?
3. They are happy to take your money and complain about you all the way to the bank.
It all pissed me off, major.
1st thing: the psychology of film teaches us that watching a film creates a dream-like state; it's the reason we are able to suspend disbelief as much as necessary for a film to work in our minds. But in particular, a film requires the viewer to identify with some aspect of the film, hopefully the lead characters. In our subconscious, it's just not feasible to ask our minds to identify with a character outside of what we look like, and how we behave. Some call this racist, I call it reality; so would Freud.
2nd thing: those hillbillies are the guys who made that producer a billionaire. And he wants to denigrate them? But yes, he denigrates his customers.
Remember this the next time you go to the movies:
1. That the people making the film don't think much of you
2. They are happy to make the thing they think you want, irrespective of what they themselves think; a question of integrity, maybe?
3. They are happy to take your money and complain about you all the way to the bank.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Why Overseas Manufacture Makes Better Sense
It's because the American government is the enemy of American manufacturing. Read below, and you'll see why it just makes for an easier row to hoe for storied American companies like Gibson Guitars to fire all the American employees and build in India.
According to the Indian government, fingerboard "blanks" -- the wood that will eventually become a guitar's fretboard -- are legal to export.
"Fingerboard is a finished product and not wood in primary form," Vinod Srivastava, India's deputy director-general of foreign trade, stipulated in a letter dated Sept. 16. "The foreign trade policy of the government of India allows free export of such finished products of wood."
The U.S. government disagrees. In its affidavit to search Gibson, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service considers fingerboard blanks to be raw materials, not finished product -- illegal to export from India and, therefore, illegal to import into the United States.
What's more, according to the complaint, the Gibson wood was imported with an incorrect tariff code, which was off by one digit from the correct code. Luthiers Mercantile International, the company that imports the wood for Gibson, claims that was a simple clerical error. The difference in the codes refers to the thickness of the wood -- more than or less than six millimeters in thickness.
Saturday, September 3, 2011
The Freedom of Common Sense
I've posted a few things that are political, but I want to be clear why I do it: It's not to promote one side or the other, but instead to point out how outrageously crazy - a bizarre mix of simultaneously overreaching and ineffective - our government has become. It's like all government programs - the mantra is "grow or die." It just keeps doing things out of control in an order to justify its existence.
So IMO the only way to brings thing back to some form of normalcy is to cut the size of government. This will force them to focus on things that are relatively important (nothing will ever make them efficient, it's not in government's nature).
For example, most of what happens at the DOJ is ideological nonsense; they pick and choose the laws to enforce. So cut their budget and make them defend why they are doing what they want to do. Stop them from suing states that are trying to deal with local issues. Keep them in check by not funding their excesses.
Ergo, cutting taxes = cutting the size and scope of government, which in turn allows the freedom of the common sense of the American people to flourish.
So IMO the only way to brings thing back to some form of normalcy is to cut the size of government. This will force them to focus on things that are relatively important (nothing will ever make them efficient, it's not in government's nature).
For example, most of what happens at the DOJ is ideological nonsense; they pick and choose the laws to enforce. So cut their budget and make them defend why they are doing what they want to do. Stop them from suing states that are trying to deal with local issues. Keep them in check by not funding their excesses.
Ergo, cutting taxes = cutting the size and scope of government, which in turn allows the freedom of the common sense of the American people to flourish.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Repercussions for Rioters
They have asked for help from America (the British government, not the looters); they'd like to know how we handle these things. But it seems to me that they're doing a mighty good job on their own, even better than us. Here in America we have problems from gangs that defy solution, yet the British seem to have come up with one approach that will at least cramp the gangs' style: eviction.
The Brits are arresting everyone with even a suspicion of looting. And now they're developing a series of repercussions that will punish those - and their families, if the looters are found to be minors - convicted of rioting. The first step is to remove them from public housing, and it seems the next step will be to also evict them from private housing, causing them to move elsewhere. The thinking seems to be that if individuals are found to be involved in gang-related activity, then breaking them up and forcing them to move to other locales might disrupt the gang activity too. It's a plausible scenario; make it tougher for the gangs to assemble, and you make it tougher for them to do their gang-related crap.
I sure wish lawmakers in the US had this sense of social duty. But in America we have too many rights - for example, "rights" to public housing, etc, and the politicians and lawmakers here would never have the fortitude (AKA, balls) to take such action. Such is a pity, to cater to the lowest class in favor of the voter. And the voters here seem to know no difference.
BBC News - David Cameron back councils planning to evict rioters:
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