Yes, thanks to this global recession perpetrated by Wall Street and China’s rise as a world power, the world has moved to the lowest common denominator. Once we used to laugh at third world countries with their domestic fleet of ancient dilapidated old aircraft, with natives herded into the mains cabin to be seated like sardines in a can and come 2009, Americans will be treated no differently. Yes, we have come a long way from those pre World War Two Pan Am Clipper Class seaplanes where the entire meal was prepared on board and every passenger was waited upon and treated as royalty. Mind you in those days the waiters were called Flight Hostesses. Today we know them as Cabin Attendants!

We will just have to get used to the fact this country is downsizing and downsizing means so many things we took as granted, like the option to fly better than coach class has been taken away from us. I happen to like a 500 horse power V8 under my hood, but if Pelosi gets her way, within five years we will be just like those poor miserable inhabitants of France driving around in Peugeot, Citroen, Renault and Mercedes Benz two seater A Cars or more likely foreign-made electric golf carts. Just like the wealthy women of New York a few years back had to stop wearing their fur coats for fear of being attacked by paint bombers, I suppose I will have to get used to the risk of those loony greenies vandalizing my American-made “gas guzzling” Pontiac G8 as Pelosi, Barney Frank and their smoked salmon socialist buddies outlaw what was part of my American dream; to be able to drive a car with some grunt!

It amazes me how Washington can ride roughshod over the world when it comes to taking on Iraq or demanding Europe sees there way when it comes to world affairs, but when it comes to looking after the American worker, it joins and heads the clique that have rammed globalization down our throats. Dirtbags like Scott of Wal-Mart, Exxon’s CEO Tillerson, all the fallen gurus of Wall Street and now this traitor, Owens of Caterpillar have convinced successive governments that America must take the lead in allowing American industry to be destroyed in the name of globalization. You see these guys make money out of plying this sales pitch. Caterpillar now has factories in China and other parts of the world taking advantage of juggling money and cheaper labor.

America and most of Western Europe followed Wall Street’s sermon that greatness will come from Globalization and all apart from Germany and France allowed local industry to fall prey to cheap imports. All the countries gaining from this new “philosophy” were mongrels that had huge protective layers over their own economies and still do to this day. Instead of addressing head on this practice of protectionism, an “oh well, we’ll negotiate or better still, join them” mentality took over. The answer for the past twenty years America has been exporting jobs by the millions every year.

When it comes to export, my belief is let the efficiencies of the manufacturer, the quality of his product, and the marketplace dictate the value of his products, not government subsidies. Boeing has to contend with the French government financing sales of its Airbus aircraft and it has now got to the point where the Defense Department is “outsourcing” by placing a $multi-billion tanker aircraft order with the French. Congress has accepted Pentagon’s reasons and instead of tens of thousands of Seattle workers enjoying steady work for the next twenty years, they are now out of work. Sure it is not a perfect world, but for a country that most of the world either tolerates or despises, I cannot for the life of me work out what America has gained from giving in ad finitum to destroying its own work force.
Now back to why I think Owens is a scumbag. His argument with regards to the buy America stimulus package is that Caterpillar will be retaliated against by the very nations who enjoy one way trade with America and who now house what was once our workforce. I say to Owens; move to China and take your Caterpillar with you. You were one of the first D.J. Industrial Index companies to bust the unions in your Illinois plants to then take advantage of cheap American labor and it is still not good enough for you. After fighting unnecessary and unpopular wars, you are telling us we should fear retaliation! Man, we have nothing to lose anymore. We are fighting for our very survival and I have no conscience when I declare let’s now look after America first.

To add to the hypocrisy of this man, $hundreds of billions are being poured into infrastructure; building roads, bridges, government buildings and schools. What sort of equipment will be in immediate short supply? Earthmoving and related machinery. Who makes these products in the greatest numbers? Why Caterpillar of course. I suggest to President Obama that this ingrate’s company should be by-passed and maybe their Japanese competitor, Komatsu should get the nod. The Japanese economy could do need some help! This will fit in with Owen’s thinking, won’t it? Sure!