Junior sat diagonally across the kitchen table from his father. Looking up, he saw a worn sun beaten image with a thin smile that lay pasted on his fathers face. A face that was a little bit wrinkled from the strain of time. Dad, where have all the jobs gone asked the young man of 16 years. Dad heard the words clearly.
His father had labored at Coatings Factory until the age of 58. A Ma and Pa shop typical of so many small factories that actually flourished for his entire working career. Then, as swiftly, and with such finality as the slash of a sword, he was jobless, cut from the work force. One of the hundreds of thousands of American workers virtually upended as they approached retirement.
The coatings factory was a very specialized operation. An ingenious process of depositing a thin film of aluminum onto parts, for decorative and reflective properties. Like the inside reflector bezel inside your common flashlight. The entire crew was proud of their six coating chambers. Large green vacuum chambers, with the STOKES emblem embossed on each one. These behemoths were at the top of the food chain, the jumbo 84 inch diameter chambers gobbled up a horrific volume of parts per batch compared to their smaller brothers of the 72, 60, and even the smallest 48 inch diameter chambers that preceded them.
Now, after years of running production at the plant, the machines are idle. The men and women sent home, the jobs gone. Across the pond, in third world developing countries, the hammering pound of the Stokes 912's is still heard. For the last 40 years, these vacuum metallizer machines have been purchased, and relocated to various foreign countries. Very few metallizers still reside in the United States.
Two Hundred years ago, the founding fathers worked on the constitution that would forge this country into one great nation. Arguments were voiced, compromises were made, and a document was written that would stand the test of time. We are reminded that leadership is a choice, not a position. Courage to speak up, courage to be proactive, courage to be recognized, has driven men into powerful positions over the years.
Powerful positions that now generate misguided and abusive policies. It seems that the political will is now missing from the equation to do what is needed. But more importantly, not only is the will missing, but the basic understanding of what is needed to solve the problem escapes them.
1. Have we as a people, come to accept that everything that we use and consume should be manufactured off shore?
2. Have we voted in 535 decision makers in congress that nurture and perpetuate this mantra for our own greater good?
3. Have we become so manipulated as to even fight to maintain these outsourcing practices?
Ladies and gentleman, it's a broken formula.
The questions are simple:
1. Should we produce our own sustainable energy supplies?
2. Should we produce our own sustainable food supplies?
3. Should we produce our own sustainable consumables?
The boy's father can still be found at his kitchen table each morning. With coffee in hand, he feels the warmth as it penetrates tired hands. The thin smile is still there, but it's painted on upside down. A permanent frown is now the dominate feature. Still jobless, with reserves nearly exhausted, he wonders how he ended up this way. When his job was lost, he literally felt cut off at the knees. Everything had lead up to that one event, and after it took place, everything after it was a consequence of it.
I'm so sorry that this story does not have a happy ending. My greatest fear for this nation is that a kiss from the prince will not wake her.
His father had labored at Coatings Factory until the age of 58. A Ma and Pa shop typical of so many small factories that actually flourished for his entire working career. Then, as swiftly, and with such finality as the slash of a sword, he was jobless, cut from the work force. One of the hundreds of thousands of American workers virtually upended as they approached retirement.
The coatings factory was a very specialized operation. An ingenious process of depositing a thin film of aluminum onto parts, for decorative and reflective properties. Like the inside reflector bezel inside your common flashlight. The entire crew was proud of their six coating chambers. Large green vacuum chambers, with the STOKES emblem embossed on each one. These behemoths were at the top of the food chain, the jumbo 84 inch diameter chambers gobbled up a horrific volume of parts per batch compared to their smaller brothers of the 72, 60, and even the smallest 48 inch diameter chambers that preceded them.
Now, after years of running production at the plant, the machines are idle. The men and women sent home, the jobs gone. Across the pond, in third world developing countries, the hammering pound of the Stokes 912's is still heard. For the last 40 years, these vacuum metallizer machines have been purchased, and relocated to various foreign countries. Very few metallizers still reside in the United States.
Two Hundred years ago, the founding fathers worked on the constitution that would forge this country into one great nation. Arguments were voiced, compromises were made, and a document was written that would stand the test of time. We are reminded that leadership is a choice, not a position. Courage to speak up, courage to be proactive, courage to be recognized, has driven men into powerful positions over the years.
Powerful positions that now generate misguided and abusive policies. It seems that the political will is now missing from the equation to do what is needed. But more importantly, not only is the will missing, but the basic understanding of what is needed to solve the problem escapes them.
1. Have we as a people, come to accept that everything that we use and consume should be manufactured off shore?
2. Have we voted in 535 decision makers in congress that nurture and perpetuate this mantra for our own greater good?
3. Have we become so manipulated as to even fight to maintain these outsourcing practices?
Ladies and gentleman, it's a broken formula.
The questions are simple:
1. Should we produce our own sustainable energy supplies?
2. Should we produce our own sustainable food supplies?
3. Should we produce our own sustainable consumables?
The boy's father can still be found at his kitchen table each morning. With coffee in hand, he feels the warmth as it penetrates tired hands. The thin smile is still there, but it's painted on upside down. A permanent frown is now the dominate feature. Still jobless, with reserves nearly exhausted, he wonders how he ended up this way. When his job was lost, he literally felt cut off at the knees. Everything had lead up to that one event, and after it took place, everything after it was a consequence of it.
I'm so sorry that this story does not have a happy ending. My greatest fear for this nation is that a kiss from the prince will not wake her.
SHARE
