Wake-Up Call Or Vapid Platitudes?
Re "Editor's Page -- A Wake-up Call From Asia," January 2006. It is truly a wake-up call. We need to bring the awareness and reality to the attention of all the people in our surroundings in order to create the sense of urgency. Education, in my opinion, is the most important element of the foundation for the long run if we are to succeed.
Daniel Chen, sales director
Evergreen Packaging Equipment
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Thanks for re-enforcing the notion that developing countries are not going to be satisfied with peripheral work as they have a very sophisticated workforce with a quick learning curve.
Lee Fernandes, chief industrial engineer
Crucible Materials Corp.
Syracuse, N.Y.
This article is more of the same from Ms. Panchak. Specifically: vapid platitudes , snippy admonitions (You'd better wake up.) and vacuous statements of the obvious (No country has a monopoly on innovation.) These trite annoyances are joined together in the space of two sentences, "I believe the U.S. will maintain its leadership of global manufacturing, but there are no guarantees. We're not going to succeed if we are complacent."
Hey, if we were thinking this deeply about our manufacturing challenges, we would already be working taking orders for foreign tourists in the drive-through at some fast food place. How did she get this job, and how does she keep it? I can't believe some innovative thinker and writer from a third world nation hasn't yet taken her job away.
Ron Kirscht, president
Donnelly Custom Manufacturing
Alexandria, Minn.
Evans Needs A History Lesson
Re "Evans On The Economy -- Not So Happy New Year," January 2006. Wait a minute! In November 2005 you were telling us that there was no housing bubble ("Evans On The Economy -- Ignore The Bubble Babble"). Now you discuss it as an established fact. What's the deal?
Bruce Gutzmann, analytical specialist
Dow Chemical
Midland, Mich.
In my opinion there should be more of a historic look at things like interest rates and unemployment. It's fine to compare to recent times, but you also have to put things in perspective by making the reader aware of the macro situation and of where things stand historically, compared with other nations around the world.
Jim Handzel
Minneapolis
