economy crisis // Current TV

Clinton says we can save a trillion $ a year, if only...

Most unreported news of the century...

spoon
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5 months ago
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The Backbone of America - Skilled Workers and Tradesmen

The Backbone of America - Skilled Workers and Tradesmen

We are hearing all the opinions of those who claim to know what it will take to fix the economic state our nation is in. These over-educated, over-paid, well-versed speakers get up and do nothing more than read the words put before them that someone else has written. Chances are that they do not even believe in that which they are reading, but they have been told that those coveted words will make them the stand-out amongst all the others doing the exact same thing.

How many of those running for political offices do you think actually know what it is to go out each day and really have to break a sweat at a manual labor job in order to make a paycheck to paycheck living? As for the speech writers in the background, and the advisors on policy positions, do you honestly believe any of these silver-spooned Ivy-League graduates have a clue what it is to get their hands dirty having to work a skilled trade?

To clarify, a skilled tradesman works in a hands-on environment each day, usually having only a high school education, perhaps a technical degree from a local community college, and has learned his skilled trade(s) through on the job experience. It is the skilled worker, or tradesman that possess the knowledge to build, repair and service the many different items that so many take for granted each day.

It is not the company management that gives the workers the knowledge of how to do their jobs. It is not merely having the tools which allow the worker to perform the task needed. Without the learned knowledge and know-how that the task requires, regardless of the company or the amount of tools, the job will never get done correctly. As well, the amount of classroom education doesn’t mean anything without having that essential hands-on, on the job training in which the actually trade is learned.

Our problem here and now is either; (1) the manufacturing of items once built by skilled workers has been out-sourced to cheap labor countries who are only concerned with the initial appearance and sales, or (2) manufacturing lines have been converted to fast paced robotic assembly lines. In both cases the end result is the same, we have come to expect less durable products with a much shorter life expectancy. The newer made products may look fancier, but they are not worth the packaging that a similar product from 10 years ago was boxed in.

It would seem that with products that break more often that there would be a greater demand for skilled workers to repair this items, however, unless one is willing to wait for weeks or months for repairs to be completely, the production companies would prefer that the consumer would just go buy a replacement instead. Repair prices can often times cost more than the product actually cost to begin with. Parts are sold at a 300% or better markup to discourage repairs, not to even mention the actual service fee for the repair.

We have watched as large corporations have turned us into a throw-away society, caring not about customer satisfaction as much as they are about what their profit margin is at the end of the day. After all, what is the importance of catering so much to customer satisfaction if the demand is so high for a product that the consumer will go purchase another product anyway? Convenience has become the driving force behind the manner in which corporations conduct business. When it is more convenient, and a great deal less headache to just toss out the broken product and go buy another one, why revert back to the ways of old in which a company’s success was based on how well of a product they made?

So, what does the have to do with the skilled workers and tradesmen? No longer are we needed to repair and service products. Instead, we are hearing from those who dictate policies and claim to have the “all-important” knowledge that we need to learn new skills in order to fit into the modern world. We that have poured out blood, sweat and tears over the past decades in order to keep this country running now need to go back to school and learn a new, useable skill.

Many of the skilled jobs that have not been outsourced, such as road building, building construction, oil and gas line workers, etc., these jobs are now going to those that will take a fraction of the pay without benefits that companies use to pay to those of us who are skilled at these jobs. So what if the job has to be redone a few times in what would have been the old life expectancy with skilled workers on the job, either government or insurance companies pick up the cost of having to redo the project multiple times, not the companies making a huge profit by using unskilled laborers.

Even though we, the skilled workers, are a great majority of this country’s population, we do not have a voice in what the real solution should be. That goes to the corporations that find a sell-out politician to stand up on a podium and read the words given to him by the big money lobbyists that prop him/her up. It does not matter that the politician hasn’t a clue as to what they are talking about, just so long as they stick to the script and do not speak “off-the-cuff” to any media outlets.

And even with their grand fix for the new age economy, the skilled workers and craftsmen are still left out in the cold. With state and federal education budgets being slashed into oblivion, we are left with no manner in which to “re-educate” ourselves and be able to support our families at the same time. Instead, we are left with having to settle for extremely low-paying jobs in which now every able-bodied person in the household has to work in order to just be able to pay the basic bills. College for the kids is no longer an option because the college fund was eaten up while trying to find work. Healthcare cost have increased at rates unimaginable and now we have those that wish to cut out any type of government funded safety nets that we have paid into our entire working career.

We are told that our “misfortune” is due to our laziness and unwillingness to work. This coming from some wealthy elitist that cannot even clean their own house after themselves, much less get out and have to earn an honest day’s wages. And as for any who think that backing these wealthy elitist is going to benefit themselves in any way, we will be seeing you down at the bottom with the rest of us, and it will be easy to pick you out. You will be the ones crying the loudest!!!The Backbone of America - Skilled Workers and Tradesmen We are hearing all the... more

Forgotten_Echo
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9 months ago
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2 comments

Repost From February 2009 - "Is The GOP Actively Courting A Depression?"

Was the Civil War a Pyrrhic victory?

mfb1949
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12 months ago
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0 comments

New Obama ad: "Forward"

Edit to ask you guys and gals to spread it far and wide on facebook and anywhere else.... more

KB723 [removed]
added this
1 year ago
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30 comments

Congress Cuts Winter Heating Aid For The Poor While Boosting The Defense Budget

How thoughtful of them.

Luna2na
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1 year ago
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0 comments

Occupy DC / October 2011, March to the Chamber of Commerce

99 percent protest against the 1 percent who want it all.... more

rupert1manband
added this
1 year ago
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0 comments

Police arrest more than 700 protesters on Brooklyn Bridge

The protestors say they were tricked and herded onto the bridge where they were... more

PIANORAMA
added this
1 year ago
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88 comments

The Second Reformation

...It may be about to happen again; however, this time it is not a greedy and... more

Kelly_Balthrop
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1 year ago
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0 comments

WHAT DO AMERICANS REALLY THINK ABOUT THE ECONOMY?

WASHINGTON -- Growing increasingly pessimistic about the prospects for a deal that... more

2hellnwait
added this
1 year ago
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105 comments

What do you think the government should do to fix the economy?

Recent news on the economic recovery isn't positive, and there have been a number... more

sgwhites
added this
1 year ago
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107 comments

April 28, 1981 - Reagan And The Economy And Life On Planet Earth. | Newstalgia

Another day in paradise and maybe you were there. if not, well . . . .next time.

Gordonskene
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2 years ago
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0 comments

Egypt: a discussion on the events on Progressive Radio News

I have been invited to be a guest on Danny Schechter's radio show this afternoon.... more

Aimee_Kligman
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2 years ago
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0 comments

SOCIAL SECURITY : Socialisms Greatest Failure?

* This year, for the first time in more than 20 years, the combined deficit in Social... more

2hellnwait
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2 years ago
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0 comments

The only concrete solution to the economic crises.

While democrats and republicans are concerned with the preservation of the status quo... more

UnitedStatesAlliance
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2 years ago
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0 comments

Government Creates Drought, Damages Economy in California Wine Industry

COALINGA, Calif. — Would France rip out its storied vineyards? Would Juan Valdez... more

2hellnwait
added this
3 years ago
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2 comments

Hypocrite U.S.A--THe FALL OF OUR COUNTRY.

http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/cps-cutbacks-budget-crisis-layoffs-ron-huberman/Co... more

CHAVO9
added this
3 years ago
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0 comments

NOT IN THE U.S. ? WHY.....DuPont Opens Photovoltaic Application Facility in Geneva | Solar Energy News

A new innovative building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) panel system that replaces... more

BUILDUSMAXIMUS
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3 years ago
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0 comments

Russian Analyst: The Decline and Breakup of the U.S.?

This is an article from a year ago that I felt was rather pertinent given the economic... more

MyRealPolitik
added this
3 years ago
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7 comments

Obamonopoly - i.e. Corpse of a Thousand Houses

And to ensure the players continue the game, the Fed prints more money!

akamaial [removed]
added this
3 years ago
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13 comments

Obama touts Wall St. changes on Lehman anniversary

NEW YORK – President Barack Obama sternly warned Wall Street Monday against... more

melesha12
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3 years ago
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