I remember when the "information highway" was in it's infancy, and the country was just exiting the industrial revoloution.
At that time, most goods and services were produced by American workers.
There was a sense of pride in the American work force.
Even Sam Walton himself did a few ads stating Walmart goods were"made for Americans by Americans".
Once the information highway took hold, the devotion to "made in America" dwindled to a trickle.
It was decided (not sure by whome) that America would become the leader in information technology, and the "time" was at hand to let other lesser countries take over industry and manufacture.
True to that point, American industry suddenly vacated the country in favor of countries like China, Malaysia, and India.
Wal mart,in an effort to boost it's profit margin, jumped on the bandwagon, and signaled the end of "made in America for Americans".
The tecnology explosion in America was heard around the world, and soon we were exporting our technological know how to countries like China, and India.
With American industry gone,it left a huge void in the workforce.
Those displaced by the loss of industry struggled to make ends meet, some were re-trained to wallow in the oceans of the new technology.
For those of you old enough to remember, the pride of "made in America" was not something to be taken lightly.
Becausde the goods were made here, prices for those products were in line with the modest profits the companies were making.
Now with the industrial jobs going overseas, the profit margins have skyrocketed.
Greed has overtaken pride, and quality of the products produced.
Along with this huge transition to a technology based populace, the world economy became a reality, as countries intertwined their financial markets into a less that desirable conglomerate.
The proud industrial revolution of America was dead, and in it's wake we are now face with making decisions that not only involve us, but now MUST address the wants and needs of the entire world.
Growing up in the fifties, the biggest thing I had to worry about was what color my new car was going to be.
Today, my concerns are more in line with, I wonder what other countries are plotting to take over this once prosperous country.
With so many other countries tied to our existence, the reality is, companies like walmart, who are now involved on a global scale, with global obligations, don't hold their alligence to the united states soley, as in the past.
Sure, walmart has become greedy in it's quest to elevate it's profit margin, but that can be said of any other company in the world.
We as a nation can only hope that the global strangle hold countries have on one another will ease somewhat in the future.
That is doubtful, as third world countries are begining to flex their muscles.
Bob.
poor shaggy