and all these technological advances will lead to a solution to the nuclear waste issue?

we've been hearing that line for fifty plus years.

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"The law, in its majestic equality, forbids the rich as well as the poor to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal bread."

My point is that I'm not all that bright (or ambitious), I'm just willing to get off the couch and do something for myself. The one thing I have noticed about the really successful people that I've known is that they don't waste their time complaining about how they are getting screwed over by the system, they figure out how to change the game or they go find another game that they can win.

So, do you think it is better for those workers in the developing world to be shut out of the global economy because the west wants to protect their unskilled workers from competition? Where would japan be today if the west hadn't done business with them after WW2, with plenty of complaining from americans who didn't want the competition from their labor market. Where would the US be today if they had to depend on the US labor market to manufacture all their consumer goods? Talk about wage inflation, can you imagine what would happen to US wages without outside competition? We would probably be paying $2000 for a Zenith TV set. G

That's a political problem, fortunately I'm not a politician.

Why mostly in China? And even if some were to be built in the US (good thin if it were to happen in my opinion) is that really a "new" technology. I was under the impression that we'd had nuclear energy since "Fermi" got his pile going back in the 20's or so. So you are really saying that you are a parasite on an old technology that is really doing almost nothing for the US at all.

Doubt it. That requires money, you know that stuff that's in real short supply.

International finance has no relevence in and of itself. It means nothing unless it facilitates production. Stuffing around with percentages wether nationally or internationally is nothing new, it's not even relatively modern, it's been around since at least the age of the Bourbons. The figures may have increased, and the langauages may be different and the glitzy LCD screens may give it the impression of a new era but it's still just fiddling around with money. Unless it's producing something it's neither innovatory nor particularly worthwhile.

It's a blast right now, compared to what it was a mere ten years ago. But you know, for the most part, in reality, it's not much different than when the telegraph was invented. All that's happening is that information is being moved around. More is being moved now, most of it worthless, and it's being moved slightly faster, by a matter of a few seconds rather than a few minutes but in fact in the fundamentals what you and I are doing right now is not significantly more revolutionary than what people could do in 1912 with the telegraph.

That's true, medical advances will continue I'm sure. And that will improve quality of life. That won't take the place of the US manufacturing base though. Even if there were enough of those jobs anchored in the US to make a difference.

Therewith I agree, but mere basic research is not going to keep any country in front if it's not able to capitalize on it at a lower technical level.

Just how realistic do you think that is in the US? I'm all for "green energy" but I don't see any of that being able to replace coal. I'd say that's nuclear's job but I doubt that'll happen in our lifetimes.

Car's will evolve all right. But unlike you I DO care where they are bolted together, because without jobs a country becomes a third world craphole. I know of what I speak, because I come from one. So I think your perspective is hopelessly blinkered.

Don't care they're just the irellivent bubblegum of society.

- Peter.

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2021 Chevrolet Spark
Formerly...
2000 GMC Sonoma
1981 240D 4spd stick. 347000 miles. Deceased Feb 14 2021
2002 Kia Rio. Worst crap on four wheels
1981 240D 4spd stick. 389000 miles.
1984 123 200
1979 116 280S
1972 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1971 108 280S

If you're a western worker, yes. If you're a developing worker, no. Why exactly should the west **** its own workers to aid foreign workers?

Japan would probably be worse off, the US would probably be better off.

So what? If eveybody was employed and could afford that TV, would the country not be better off than it's present state?

- Peter.

__________________
2021 Chevrolet Spark
Formerly...
2000 GMC Sonoma
1981 240D 4spd stick. 347000 miles. Deceased Feb 14 2021
2002 Kia Rio. Worst crap on four wheels
1981 240D 4spd stick. 389000 miles.
1984 123 200
1979 116 280S
1972 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1971 108 280S

There seems to be some concern about how nothing is made in the USA anymore. I wonder why?

During the Bush years there was a great effort to stamp out Unions. Even today they are the whipping boy for every problem the US has.

But who is the loudest voice for keeping jobs in the US and who was talking about how all of our jobs are going overseas for years?

Yup. THe Unions.

But Republicans say Unions are Anti-American. So is wanting to keep jobs in the US Anti-American?

When one of your goals is to destroy Unions then you are working to destroy jobs. Now it seems that after years of this type of activity there are fewer jobs in the US and fewer people to buy stuff.

Gee, I wonder how that came about?

Unions can not stop jobs going overseas. Only politicians can do that because politicians create the rules in which companies operate.

- Peter.

__________________
2021 Chevrolet Spark
Formerly...
2000 GMC Sonoma
1981 240D 4spd stick. 347000 miles. Deceased Feb 14 2021
2002 Kia Rio. Worst crap on four wheels
1981 240D 4spd stick. 389000 miles.
1984 123 200
1979 116 280S
1972 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1971 108 280S

We need to learn from the German and French model, they are doing quite well in the global economy.

Were not doing to bad either, but their is a lot of doom and gloom around, which isn't productive.

__________________
2006 CL500
2009 C300 4matic
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Mostly in china because they actually have a national energy policy and over a billion people who are going start using quite a bit more energy within the next generation. They are in the process of building something like 40 units. There are plenty of american and european companies doing their part to improve their trade balance with china, and making plenty of money.

Sorry, I can't teach nuclear engineering 101 over the internet, but a few things have changed in the last 50 years.

I guess I'm a parasite, US nukes only provide about 20% of US electrical energy at the moment. I do think it would be more fun to work on the new designs, but my current expertise is really tied to the older designs. Another reason I would like to be 20 again.

Regarding your other comments, you asked what I would do, so I answered your question. I don't really care if you think those activities are as valuable as working in a manufacturing plant someplace. The point is that I'm optimistic about the future; obviously, you are not. Sorry.

Protectionism has never worked over the long term, and it never will. I think we learned that lesson about 50 years ago. I'm beginning to think you were born 50 years too late.

Whenever things change there will be winners and losers. The US (both political parties) decided several decades ago that they needed to be part of the global economy if they didn't want to be left behind (the correct decision, btw). Apparently, some folks just woke up and discovered this fact.

The biggest failing of the US was to put insufficient emphasis on education during this transition. There will always be a generation that gets hosed by these changes, but education would help reduce the impact. You can't have a public education system churning out people who are only qualified to work in a sector that has disappeared. The US will do fine, they just have to get past some growing pains.

Why do you suppose our jobs have gone to our competitors? Maybe something to do with the fact that a blue collar manufacturing job in the US is something like $60-80k a year, while the average Chinese worker makes about $100 a month.

You mean like the internet? Or the personal computer? Or cloud computing, real-time video chat, on-demand video, social networking, real-time language translation, 3D computer interfaces, affordable solar power, fuel cells, plug-in electric vehicles, fully-automated vehicles, contact-less charging devices...

We either stay on top of the technological ladder and keep developing things the world has never seen before, or we play the losing game of making last-year's gadgets with the highest labor, materials and manufacturing costs in the world.

You really do have to wonder how much longer the American way of society can continue dragging along. Everything seems to be headed downhill. Industry, creativity(music, art, tv, movies, everything), morals, skilled people, energy production, sprawl, pollution, the amount of trash generated every day.....most of what society does today is not sustainable in the long term. Fuel will run out, raw materials will run out, inflation will rise rapidly, wars will break out. Scary.

__________________
-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)

And we'd probably be driving the same garbage cars the US was making back in the 70s and 80s, while the rest of the world left us in the dust.

Yep, education has really failed.

The first thing they should tell the kids when they get to HS is they better study hard because a kid in China is and he wants your job. So they better work hard and be damn good at what they do.

What some of the doom and gloom people fail to realize is that China is losing manufacture jobs at a pretty good clip and its going to increase. They are losing them for the same reason they left this country, its a commodity and will go to the lowest bidder. China is getting to expensive so they are off to the next 3rd world hell hole. Having said that we still manufacture quite a bit in this country, we do the higher end stuff that others don't do so well.

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2006 CL500
2009 C300 4matic
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200