ANOTHER SIDE TO IMPORTING

WILLIAM PENN FALLIN
Columnist
Douglas, Ga. Enterprise
Natchitoches, La. Times
Camden County, Ga. Courier

ANOTHER SIDE TO IMPORTING

Back in the eighties when I lived in Taiwan and managed the import division of Newell/Rubbermaid we were asked to help put a product together for our Anchor Hocking Division.

A-H made a really nice glass product for the oven, good looking, very serviceable and heatproof. Their problem was how to make it attractive to the shopper. Sitting on a shelf at retail with a price sticker didn’t get it done. They settled on selling it as a package deal, along with a woven wicker basket to protect the dining table and a plastic lid (to keep casserole hot before serving). They asked us to source the following:

Plastic lid that would snap on the cooked dish,

wicker baskets to fit each size dish and

printed carton.

After much searching throughout China, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines we finally found a source in Manila who could provide the baskets. He convinced me he could produce 60 (40 foot) containers (tractor trailer loads) a year. That is a lot of baskets. He also had the best price. Since we had four sizes we had to send him a few samples of each. From those he had wooden molds made around which the weavers would then weave the baskets. We used colored patterns to further enhance the beauty of the basket. To get consistency he had all the wicker strips dyed in Manila. The wicker and the molds were then delivered to women and girls in the mountains of Northern Luzon and surrounding Philippine countryside. They made baskets after they finished their daily housekeeping chores. The baskets were then collected by trucks, running weekly routes to all the weavers.

We bought those baskets for less than $.60 each. The weavers got $.20 for each basket.

Next we found an injection plastic molder in Thailand who could make the lids for the glass casserole dishes. And then we located a printing company in Osaka, Japan who had perfected the finest quality printing on a carton I had ever seen. They could reproduce the photo of a dish of roast beef or of a cherry cobbler that was better than the original photo.

Now came the coordinating. The Americans had to predict how many of each size they could sell in a selling season. From their forecasts we then placed orders for baskets (four sizes), plastic lids (four sizes) and full color printed cartons (four sizes). All that took a lot of set-ups for the printer/carton maker, a lot of wooden mold making (in four sizes) for the weavers and the building of four injection molds for the plastic lids.

Once production was underway we then had to inspect the finished products in Manila, Bangkok and Osaka. No wonder I was traveling all the time.

When you consumers walk into a WalMart, Target or any other retail outlet that carries Anchor Hocking products and see that beautiful carton sitting on their shelf you have no inkling that it contains a wonderful oven proof dish made in Lancaster, Ohio, a basket in which to serve your final creation, (made by a little old lady somewhere in the hills of The Philippines who makes $2.00 a day) a plastic lid you would snap into place to keep the dish hot (made in Thailand) while the whole package is displayed in a beautiful carton printed in Japan.

And so goes the world of imports.

If that final product had to be made in America there would be no basket or if there was one it would cost at least ten times more. The plastic lid would cost about twice what it cost from Thailand and the carton would cost about the same but would not be as beautiful. The retail price of the final product (100% made in America) would be at least twice the price you pay now.

That is but one example of the benefits of importing. When we talk about bringing all those jobs back to America do we ever give full consideration to what it will cost us when we go shopping? It’s something to think about…anyway. There are two sides (and sometimes three) to almost every question.

Baseball is Back

Nobody other than George W. Bush starts off the season by throwing the first pitch…

“PLAYBALL!!”

Tampa Tribune Says, Dear Hillary, Don’t Run

That’s right! Even the left leaning Tampa Tribune editorial gives all the reasons Hillary shouldn’t run for President in 2008. Hillary just recently visited the west central Florida city on a mission of fund raising and Bush bashing. She might have come to the run place to do her incessant Bush bash barrage. Not all Democrats care to listen to that crap all the time and some have even gotten to the point they want leadership and some ideas – something new for the party on the left.

I would have thought the former President first lady would have learned from ALGORE’s trials and tribulations in Florida in 2000, that Floridians are very moderate and could go either way.
The editorial jumps right in, as will I.

If you run for president, chances are good that you’ll secure your party’s nomination. But realistically, how do you think you can win the White House? You are the most polarizing figure in the Democratic Party, and your negatives among likely voters are prohibitively high. Many people simply don’t trust you. You may share your husband’s name, but what people liked about him is not transferable to you.

You are not the person to help define a party that needs to convince voters it can govern from the vital center.

Ooohh! Ouch! Those comments are sure to make her want to run even more. Maybe this editorial is a reverse psychiatric ploy of some kind.

Fair or not, you are identified with the far left, and you are not the person to convince voters that Democrats have ideas for keeping families safe and the country secure.

You are not the one who can assure Americans they will have a chance to get ahead.

You may be a champion for women’s rights and a strong advocate for children, but you are too much the Washington insider to convince voters you would fix a political system that seems remote from everyday life.

And then the writer seems to be her husband Bill. How else could anyone know Hillary as well as this and not be her husband.

Although you apparently work well with your Senate colleagues, your candidacy would remind voters that you are not a consensus builder. Your health care plan failed during your husband’s first term because you were largely tone-deaf. You shut people out, and when things went awry, you blamed the media.

Maybe I took some things out of context…….err, uhhh, no actually I was kind of nice here. You should absolutely go read the entire editorial yourself. Unfortunately for Hillary, “I don’t even know what White Water is” Clinton, it tells it like it is.

*Related Rumors* Is it truth of fiction? Rumor has it that Bill Clinton is looking for interns to work for him. The ad says, “Hands on Experience“.
Tom Remington

Ann Coulter

Here’s the link over to Ann Coulter’s web site if you are interested in reading her latest piece about the Cartoon Jihad. It’s called “Muslim Bites Dog“. A warning about Ann’s story. If the truth offends you, don’t go there.
Also, David Yeagley weighs in on his impressions of Ann. A disclaimer about David’s article – You may have a difficult time following his ebb and flow but well worth the read – really!
Tom Remington

From Russia With Love

A good title for this Valentine’s Day. The only problem with this title is I’m actually speaking about Maryland. That’s the state of Maryland. It has become obvious to me that Maryland has become the Mother Land – Mother Russia if you will.

It is no secret that I am a firm believer in capitalism and free enterprise and I am staunchly against government meddling in just about anything – including the price of oil. So, you can see why I would be upset at the fact that the state of Maryland is making private businesses pay a bigger share of the healthcare costs of its employees.

Did I say private businesses? I just should have come right out and said Wal-Mart because they are the only company in Maryland that is affected by the new law.

The Maryland Legislature decided to pick on corporations that have at least 10,000 employees. Any company with that many employees are now required by law to pay a certain percentage of the healthcare costs of its employees. I think there are five businesses that large in Maryland and only one company that doesn’t already meet the new state requirement – Wal-Mart. Is that a bit odd? Oh, I’m paranoid.
Let’s just all go to work and receive a “chit” that will allow us to go to the store and exchange our earned income credits for some food. Government can take care of our over-regulated utilities and that will be deducted from our earnings.

Since, competition in the marketplace is no longer perceived as being fair, government will control all businesses that manufacture clothing and we will all begin to wear a dark gray uniform with white shirt and black shoes. Afterall, it wouldn’t be fair if someone had the opportunity to dress nicer than someone else.

To finally put an end to this foolishness of the escalating costs of healthcare, government will control all aspects of it. Government has determined that not even doctors are intelligent enough to make decisions on their own and it isn’t fair that hospitals, pharmacuetical companies, and health insurance corporations make money.

McDonalds, Wendys, Burger King and any other fast food restaurant will all offer the exact same menus at the exact same prices. Any extra money taken in by these businesses will be turned over to the federal government and used in case there is another natural disaster like hurricane Katrina. The money will be used to provide permanent housing to anyone whose home gets destroyed.

In case you don’t see where I’m going with this, you’re blind and you need to visit your local social services office and apply for an appointment to get your eyes checked. All appointments are issued on a first come first served basis and the waiting time is approximately 13 months. In the meantime, Wal-Mart has a job for you to do because they are now required by government to provide work to anyone who needs it. Wal-Mart has made way too much money and that isn’t fair. So for punishment, they will do this.

If you weren’t also aware, all employees of K-Mart, Sears, and Home Depot, will have their healthcare paid for by Wal-Mart. It’s only right. Wal-Mart is actively sneeking into people’s homes during the night and forcing them at gunpoint to come to work for them.

Now, because every human in America is so stupid they are incapable of rendering intelligent decisions, you don’t have to decide where you will work (that is those of you who weren’t forced at gunpoint). It doesn’t matter anymore. All jobs pay the same and all benefits are identical. This way it will be fair. There is no need to waste your energy working hard to get ahead. You can now have everything handed to you. You just need to show up at a workplace somewhere.

Say hello to Mother Russia and if you don’t think I’m serious, just keep on keeping on and let the socialists rule. Once they realize they can control every business in this country, we are doomed.
Tom Remington

You Can Kiss Our NSA Spy Program Goodbye

It will now only be a matter of days or perhaps weeks before the secret program put in place by NSA and the Bush admininistration shortly after 9/11, goes down the tubes. President Bush yesterday opted to inform the entire House Intelligence Committee and today will be the Senate Intelligence Committee.

In a recent PBS interview with VP Cheney, he said briefing the entire committees “was not a good way to keep a secret”. I couldn’t agree more. Yet this administration has chosen to do it anyway. With this action I am led now to believe one of two things. Either the Bush administration is weak and buckling to the pressures put on it by the Democrats and a few Republicans, jostling for votes in November, or the program is no longer effective and it doesn’t matter anymore.

Rep. Heather Wilson, (R) NM, in attempting to make a name for herself – I can only assume this is part of a scheme to jockey her position for a political move – by bragging that Bush decided to inform the entire Intelligence Committees because she had proposed an investigation into NSA and the FISA program.

After the four hour briefing by Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and Gen. Michael Hayden, several on the committee came away feeling better about the program and obviously more informed.

Alabama Rep. Bud Cramer said, “It’s a different program than I was beginning to let myself believe.” He also went on to ask a question that I think the answer to is a no-brainer. He said that he didn’t understand why it has taken the Bush administration so long to get to this point of briefing the House Intelligence Committee.

I would answer his question with a question. What would you have done? It was only days after Bush informed 8 key members of Congress about the program that it got leaked to the press. President Bush found out and asked the New York Times to sit on the story so as not to jeopardize the program. Of course, they did until one day before a Senate vote on extending the Patriot Act.

The President informs 8 members of Congress about the program and then a leak is made. Why would anyone in their right mind now call in more Congressional members and tell them too. The ones who are supposed to be able to keep a secret can’t.

To further carry this part of the conversation, one thinking logically would perhaps conclude that the leak came from one of the 8 members of Congress in that briefing. If so who and what should be done about it?

Children when guilty of doing something wrong will always point to someone else and say they did it. Those habits if not corrected as children will carry through into adulthood. I have no evidence to support a claim but Sen. Jay Rockefellar from New York West Virginia, has been the loudest in repeated accusations that the leak had to have come from the executive branch. In other words, Bush’s people. You make the leap.

So, what should be done if they ever find out who leak the program to the press. My opinion is one that is probably in the minority. I believe that no matter who this person is, they should be tried and charged with treason or some other extremely serious charge that carries similar consequences. War is serious business and if you can’t protect the people of this nation because our leaders can’t keep a secret because of political bias, the hammer should come down. Leaking that information is essentially the same as trading secrets with the enemy in wartime or aiding and abetting the enemy.

Either way, as I see it, the program is dead. It is either now defunct and so it doesn’t matter that Bush tells the rest of Congress the details of the plan or soon will be because informing a bunch of politicians in an election year about a program that has stirred up controvesy between political parties, is a bad idea. We will all soon know all the details of how the program worked.
I certainly hope that our intelligence people and the Bush administration can come up with new and better programs to effectively fight the war on terrorism at home and abroad to protect this country from the perversion of radical Islam.

Tom Remington

*edited* – Last night late at night, I realized that I may have listed Jay Rockefellar as being a Senator from New York. This morning I realized that I in fact had. My apologies. – Tom

Ann Coulter on Islam and Cartoons

A priceless gem of Ann Coulter classic sarcasm and synicism. I just hope the peace loving muslems don’t come find her and burn her house down.
Tom Remington

VP Cheney on PBS

I don’t know how many of you had the opportunity to view the interview with Vice President Dick Cheney on the News Hour last night. I watched nearly all of it before being interrupted. As was usually the case with VP Cheney, he was calm, collected, never allowing himself to get caught in a trap by trick questions, etc.

Jim Lehrer spent ample time discussing the wire tapping issue concerning the NSA and FISA. Lehrer pushed hard on certain issues of the program. Two items come to mind that grabbed me as something he pressed for. One was he wanted Cheney to give the viewers a promise that they weren’t being eavesdropped on by this program. The other was Lehrer pushing for details of the program, of which Cheney would have nothing to do with.

Cheney went about promising lawful citizens of this country that they were not being listened in on, unless of course they were talking to a terrorist, and went to pains to explain the details that were being followed to make sure only those conversations or communications were being intercepted by one party out of the country and it was taking place with known terrorists or groups of terrorists.

Cheney went on to explain the process the Bush administration and NSA took before beginning this secret program. He explained that one extremely important element of the program was secrecy – not from the America people for the purpose of spying on them but to ensure the effectiveness of the program. The first thing I learned when working in intelligence, was the fewer people who know, the less chance of someone spilling the beans.
Judges, lawyers from many departments including the Attorney General and anyone whom the administration felt could render legal assistance and be trusted to keep secret the program, were consulted to make sure what was being proposed was legal. Once this once done, then the administration brought in key members of Congress to inform them.

Cheney wanted it made clear that only informing the key members of Congress was nothing knew nor was it unlawful. Most times in matters such as national security, chairs of committees, etc. are the only ones updated and they know what they are told is to stay with them and not passed on. It is part of their responsibility and they are instructed of that when taking that position as a committee chair person. Again, Cheney cited the need for secrecy to make the program work.

He also expressed the change in attitudes by key members of Congress who were informed of the program from the beginning. He stated that no one and he emphasized no one, had any doubts or questions when told about the program, until the leak was made to the press and the New York Times printed the story. After that he said, it became a political nightmare for those wanting to exploit the story for their own politcal gains.

When asked by Lehrer about comments being made by fellow Republicans, namely Arlan Spector and others, Cheney just smiled and said, “They weren’t informed.” In other words they weren’t brought into that room initially and told about the program, how it works and why it is legal. He said if they knew, they would think differently.

Cheney does think that the longer this issue stays in the forefront of Congress, the media and the American people, it is seriously jeopardizing a very effective program. He knows that many members of Congress want a full blown investigation which would ultimately reveal how the program is being run and that would render it useless.

Tom Remington

How is Concealed Carry Not A 2nd Amendment Right?

A Well Regulated Militia, being necessary for the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

That’s a direct quote from the 2nd Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America. Now, despite the fact that it clearly says the citizenry of America have the right to keep and bear arms, this has been in dispute for over a hundred years, because there are people who do not want law abiding American citizens to own firearms. As clear as the anti-gun opposition is, I find it hard to understand how some who, in fact, support the right to keep and bear arms do not believe that the 2nd Amendment gives them the right to carry a concealed weapon.

I have heard many argue against concealed carry’s Constitutionality based on Judicial precedents laid down by anti-gun judges as far back as 1840, however, it is clear to me that any and all rulings against the right of the people to carry concealed weapons are unconstitutional.

In many cases, anti-gun Judges of the past have claimed that the founding fathers never specified Concealed Carry in their writings, and therefore they must not have intended Americans to have the right to carry concealed. On the contrary, I feel that the founders did not specify Concealed Carry in the constitution, not because they were against it, but because they never considered it a separate right from the right to keep and bear arms openly. It should also be noted that all of the anti-gun judgements in courts started happening after the founders had died, and they were not there to object.

The courts have been spitting on the Constitution for over a hundred years, and just because some appointed Justice a hundred years ago said something against our rights does not mean we should keep upholding their bad rulings. The founders specified keeping and bearing arms, and allowing the 2nd Amendment to apply to Concealed Carry is no different than allowing the 1st Amendment to cover pictures. There is no mention of Pictures or photographs in the 1st Amendment, but visual items are now protected by freedom of speech, as a form of expression. How one expresses themselves via the 1st Amendment is protected, just as the way someone chooses to bear arms should be equally protected by the 2nd Amendment. They are exactly the same thing. Neither is specified, but both are implied, and would have been included had the founders had any idea that people would be arguing against them.

I will also point out that it is a slippery slope that we tread, when we start saying the government has a right to decide how we keep and bear arms. Since there is no specifications in the 2nd Amendment as to how one is allowed to carry their weapon, someone could just as easily argue that the government could demand that all firearms have trigger locks on them at all times while carried. It is no different than saying you’re not allowed to carry a weapon under a coat. It is simply the manner in which one is bearing arms, and any government restriction on how we are allowed to carry should be deemed “infringing” on our right to keep and bear arms, and clearly prohibited by the 2nd Amendment. What part of “Shall not be infringed” is unclear?

There is a fine line between a rock-solid Constitution and the “living document” many scholars debate about today, but I do not see classifying concealed carry as a 2nd Amendment right to have anything to do with altering the Constitution. It is a reaffirmation of a right that we were supposed to have from the start, and only defeats certain efforts to turn the Constitution into that living document, and erase our 2nd Amendment rights.

Anti-Gunners are nothing new, and there have been elitists in our Courts, Legislatures, and Congress trying to disarm our citizenry since its founding. As such, laws based on the corrupt precedents set down by anti-gunning legislatures or courts are tainted and no more in the spirit of the Constitution than the original rulings upon which they were founded. There will come a day when we have to concretely define the 2nd Amendment in modern terms, with absolute clarity and provisions to prevent judges from overruling it through Judicial activism. When that day comes, I fully intend to see Concealed Carry specified as covered by the 2nd Amendment.

Will Canada’s New PM Truly Be Conservative?

So, Canada actually did something “right” for a change, and elected the Conservative party into office. This week, so many right-thinking politicians around the world are cheering on Stephen Harper and his Conservatives, but I must ask, how conservative is Mr. Harper?

Talk is cheap, and I have heard both Conservative and Liberal/Socialist plans proposed by Mr. Harper throughout his campaign. Of course, he said what he thought he needed to say in order to get elected, as most politicians do. Therefore, we do not truly know what kind of Prime Minister Harper will be until he is sitting in the big chair, and actually making policy decisions.

I like to keep an open mind, and am hopeful that Harper will prove to be a breath of fresh air for the great, white north. However, knowing the Canadian political system as I do, and Canadian politicians as I do, I am not ready to jump up and down, cheering a Conservative victory; not until we see some Conservative action.

There are a few things that Mr. Harper can do (or try to do) as Prime Minister that will give true Conservatives some peace of mind. First and foremost, he can fight to eliminate Canada’s inefficient, oppressive, and just plain stupid Gun Registration program. There is enough support from the mainstream citizens of Canada to repeal the Hitler-esque Registration and owner licensing laws. Except for a few Marxist nutjob NDP voters, a return to more lax gun laws would get high applause from the voters.

Secondly, Harper needs to strike Canada’s Gay Marriage law. I’m not going to go into a long tirade here about all the negative and disgusting implications to that Liberal/Socialist brainchild. It’s already been discussed to death. It is not the wave of the future, and a majority of Canadian citizens oppose it.

Thirdly, Harper needs to cut taxes, big time. If Americans think they have it bad with the current tax rates, they haven’t talked to a working class Canadian. Taxes in Canada make the highest US tax burden look like a drop in the pot. The Canadian economy is currently propped up by their heavy trade with the United States, but things are not going to keep going so smoothly forever. There is only so much you can take out of people’s pockets before you begin depressing the economy. Some serious tax reforms are needed to assure Canada’s future stability and competitiveness in the global marketplace.

These are three simple things that Stephen Harper needs to take on, things that a majority of his constituents do support. If he truly stands for Conservatism, he will fight for these 3 vital changes. If he goes the limp noodle route, and becomes just another “Liberal-Lite,” he will likely find himself to be a one term Prime Minister, and he’ll deal a crucial blow to Conservatism in Canada, solidifying Socialist-Liberal rule for the future.

Please, Mr. Harper, be a True Conservative!

Puff, Puff, Pass

I recently came across a liberal who was so angry at the fact marijuana was still illegal. “Wake up… we are not living in the stone ages…” she wrote. First off get the word stone out of your mind… Secondly… “What?”

She goes on to explain how marijuana should be legalized here in America because the current laws are not preventing pot smokers from getting their hands on the “shwag”… was the word I think she chose to use this time. “In fact,” she continues, “show me where pot is harmful. Isn’t smoking cigarettes worse, and drinking alcohol? And prohibition didn’t last but how long?”

See here lies the problem with liberal mentality. It all depends on how they feel at the time. For instance this same lady started a debate saying all guns should be banned. Well, according to her smoking shwag argument people were going to get their hands on the stuff anyway. Same with guns… people who want guns can still get them. So just because we can’t prevent people from getting what they want illegally we should now make it legal, except for guns of course?

Can you imagine if marijuana was legal, say for those over the age 18… ?? I think society would become stupid and lay down and die. The only industry that would make a profit would be the “snack food” industry. People would be lining up and buying stock in Twinkies. That is if they had enough ambition to turn off Ren and Stimpy and unlock their doors long enough to do something about it. I can imagine walking in to a job interview and the guy next to me just put out his “dooby” in the ash tray… The boss tells the guy he has the job and I get a little upset.. and the stoned guy turns to me and is like… “oh duuuude, sorry ’bout that, man. You look like a cool dude, you can take the job. No, it’s cool, it’s cool. Wanna take a hit man?”

I think the level of competition that helps drive this nation forward would disappear quickly. And just because we have issues with alcohol substance abuse and guns doesn’t mean we have to ban them. If we go by statistics, there are more people killed while in an automobile than with guns. Do we now ban automobiles? Or according to the liberal… people are gonna drive them anyway so let’s make “everything” legal… that way there are no criminals… der!

I don’t know… people don’t think about what they are saying. It just proves that their [meaning liberals] ideas for making laws depends strictly on how they feel and not necessarily on factual statistics.

Putting the man back together

After catching up on today’s news I am reminded what a mess the world is in.

Spouses lying, cheating, and in some cases killing each other, people with no sense of direction or belonging and no morals……how in the world did we get here?

All of this moral decay is but a symptom of a much bigger dilemma. The human mind and soul was never meant to live separated from God but many of us are doing just that……and by choice.

In 1997 then Oklahoma Congressman J.C. Watts gave the Republican response to President Clinton’s State of the Union Address.

In his response he told a poignant story relating to mankind that needs to be re-told many times over until we fully comprehend.

The story was about a young minister and his young son sharing an afternoon together while the father worked on his sermon.

The boy was being pesky because he was bored and he wanted his father’s attention so in an effort to appease the boy while he continued to work on his sermon he tore a picture of the world from a magazine and tore it into several smaller pieces and instructed the boy to put the world back together.

In just a few minutes, to his father’s surprise, the boy was finished. The father being somewhat astonished asked his young son how he completed the project so quickly.

The boy said, “Dad, what you didn’t know was that on the back of the world was a picture of a man. When I put the man back together the world fell into place.”

Wow! What would happen in our world today if we could put the man back together?

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