Ford Edison plant, Sad!!

Mr. Lackawanna, a peaceful resolution of disputes is certainly to be desired. Let's say that the USA hasn't exactly set a good example in this area. And I can't even blame only the Republicans. War measures pass Congress unanimously, and the Clinton administration bombed the only pharmaceutical plant in Somalia, falsely accusing it of making bio weapons. Even after seeing their mistake, they would not provide aid to have the plant rebuilt.
Unfortunately, part of China's progress seems to be that it is phasing out steam, thus adding to the world's oil demand.

20 years ago the same discussion would have focused on Japan taking all "our" jobs. Now some Japanese products are made here.

The Europeans had the same discussion about Americans taking all "their" jobs 100 years ago when our industrial output was at its highest.

Industry will continue to shift to locations with the cheapest wages. It left New England years ago for that exact reason. It has always been the that way.

Remember though the US continues to have the financial resources to continue research and development of new products and new ways to make such products. I seriously doubt any other country comes close to the $$ the US spends on R&D.

The relationship between China and the US will continue to prosper, as Lackawanna said they need our consumers and dollars as much as we "need" their products. If a US company is making a product overseas and selling it here the additonal profit comes back to the owner, employees, and shareholders of that company. A portion of the retail price goes to wages, but most goes toward manufacturer, retailer, etc.

And please the digs against Walmart and the other big box retail businesses is getting old. The Walton family would not be some of the richest people in the world if it wasn't for the US consumers wanting to pay the cheapest prices possible. Don't the trucking, construction and rail industries benefit from Walmart? What about the small guy that plows the parking lot, or cuts their grass, doesn't he benefit? Don't the property taxes paid by Walmart offset taxes you may have to otherwise pay? Aren't you happy as a shareholder that you stock price went up? Not everything about Walmart and the others is bad.

I wouldn't doubt you will see at least one big box retailer at the former Ford site in Edison.

One additional note about the Sheraton in Mahwah. More than half the building is comprised of office space. At one time they had approval to build even more office / industrial space at the site, but it has yet to happen. There is a small power plant there too, that generates the power for the Sheraton and possibly the Sharp facility, excess is sold off to the power grid.

Chris

Wal-mart and others like it actually cost taxpayers money. They pay so little that their employees are often eligible for welfare, food stamps and Medicaid. So the taxpayers subsidize their starvation wages. At the same time they destroy smaller businesses that pay better wages. These businesses paid more taxes per employee than Walmart. As smaller stores close, people have no choice but to drive long distances to big-box stores, and to spend more time shopping--e.g., if you need 2 bolts, instead of running into your town hardware store and running out in 2 minutes you drive 20 minutes each way to Home Depot, spend 20 minutes finding the bolts, spend another 20 minutes on the checkout line. Oh yes, the bolts were 3 cents cheaper.

With China's lax environmental laws you can have steam trains and all these factores go nuts out there and messign up the works at the cost of people's health. If GE or Nike opens plans out there and let's say Athearn goes there and pollutes their environment they can do it and not pay a damn fine and lower wages there by 90% comapred to what the US workers were making plsu no unions there BUT if they do it here they'll be in so much heat. What is this country supposed to do? Lower our wages to $10,000 a year and screw up our environment just to keep our jobs. I'd like to see anyone livign in places like NY,NJ,CT or even PA with $10 grand a year with a family of 3 and have a roof over their heads. I'd like to see the wealthy 1% try to live the lives of those in Edison, Fairfield, Paterson, Harrison, Newark and Mahwah under the conditions of the working class and then explain to us the "benifits" of exporting jobs overseas.

Don't even get me started about the US Army merchandise. The luggages, T shirts and the household goods that you find at the stores are all made in China. A guy came to Ft sill to my battery to sell stuff like this, T Shirts, lap top comupter bags, luggages, plates, coins and videos/DVDs along with books and jackets an all of the stuff that I looked at had a made in China label. That disgusted me more then anything and now I hear the presidential chopper when retired in a few years it'll be replaced not by a chopper from Boeing or Lockheed Martin but by an avation firm in Europe.

As far as regular Army uniforms go, I can't confirm that but if that does turn out to be true some how I wouldn't be surprised.

Without entering the political part of this thread, let me say that back when I was with Conrail I worked many nights servicing the Ford Plant and met many great people whos lives revolved around that plant. It really is a shame.......