The manufacturing leaving our country is weakening our position on the world stage and is steadily putting our quality of life and standard of living on the decline. The government has made the path too easy to take production offshore and consequently take our jobs away.
Companies use the excuse of unions and blame them for manufacturing's demise, but this is totally wrong. Simply because key owners and executives do not want to stand and tell the truth to unions about the reality of the need to make a profit, they find it easier to cut and run, and not fight and tell the truth. I am neither taking a union or nonunion side on this matter, but the current methods are just excuses to not confront the problems head on. They take our goods offshore to countries living under communist rule that have people living in servitude and squalor. Then, they tell us that we are not competitive because we are not able to compete with these slave labor rates.
What was a great mistake with slavery in this country almost 200 years ago, our top echelon is buying from in China and such countries. Then, they peddle this in our country through so many channels, Wal-Mart being one of the biggest. We must face the reality of controlling costs but not living a lie and saying our people are not competitive. The playing field is not level.
Roger Justice
Olathe, Kan.
