Happy Thanksgiiving Mike! I'm wondering when this is gonna get moved to the water cooler. Ok, lets start with OSHA. Did you know that their regulations were originally written in 1975? The only one that is still pertinent today is a vaguely written one that says something like once it has been demonstrated that a company can improve a condition, it must maintain it.

Not picking on engineers, lil truck, in fact I've always wanted to drive a train too! In my plant, they are morfing into a "team". When it's done right, it's really supprising how the average hourly workers come up with super inovations on how to improve the production and quality. That's 'cause they're car people. Manufacturing is in their blood, like "bent parts".

That's how I got an engineering job.  I worked as an expermintal assembler (future car builds) for 15 years.  I've done every thing from engine builds to building a car from a body in white.  That means I completely build a car, every nut and bolt.

  I hope GM, Ford and other American car makers can survive and prosper, all I want is to be proud of American Made again, and be paid a fair wage for giving my time and health to the company. I've been talking with dustybadlands, and he made a very good point: the average auto worker isn't so much making "too" much, it's that the rest of us aren't making enough for what we do. It didn't make sense to me until he explained the ratio of cost to earnings thing, example: 30 years ago a candy bar cost 10 cents, a decent hourly wage was $3. Today, same candy bar, $1.00 good hourly wage: $30. Same ratio, so if that were the case, we should all be making more, correct? I still have a problem with $3.00 an hr being a good wage 30 years ago, but that's another story. Something besides the ratio of earnings to cost has changed. I think it's the greed of share holders and corporate elite. Today, it's not the product being made that's the concern of the manufacturers, it's the return to the " shareholders" that's most important. Screw everything else, as long as the shareholders get theirs. Cut corners everywhere you can, as long as the stock price returns  are good. I don't know about anyone else, but I really am tired of having our own government support corporate greed, and use the rest of us like disposable tools. I'm sick of being angry and damned if I'm going to live in fear.  Maybe the Europeans have a couple of good ideas after all, like the whole damn country going on strike until some things change. Isn't anyone else pissed off about the state of our country?

I still think there's a place for the unions, it just needs to be brought back into the realm of reality and common sense, something the whole country seems to be lacking.