I am a Factory.

Posted by BradA 10 years, 8 months ago to Philosophy
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This is my 1st submission, so I hope I do it right. Saw this link in The Blaze's newsletter today. I could not resist posting a response (below). I'm sure that other have thoughts too.

My respect to Mike Rowe and his values, which I share. However I must respond to "I am a Factory."

I am a producer. I am an entrepreneur. I am a creator. I am the one who built the Factory. It was my ideas along with the willing help of employees that poured the concrete, designed the equipment and brought a profit producing enterprise into existence. Yet today I am vilified. Daily. I am told that I am greedy. That profits are evil. That MY Factory is there only to benefit the "Public good."

And to prove the point, if I am successful, the Public feels morally justified in confiscating more than half of MY profits. These Takers feel no guilt about this theft or about regulating my Factory out of business. After the last election it became abundantly clear that these thieves now make up the majority of this country. They use the government to take what the Producers have created so they can redistribute it those who "need it more." For this reason I am no longer convinced that the United States is worth saving. At least not as it is, walking the path that the majority of its citizens have chosen.

And so, my Factories will remain closed. I choose to contribute as little as I can to a country that sees my efforts as evil. Who am I ? I am John Galt. And there are more of us out there than you could possibly imagine.


SOURCE URL: http://link.theblaze.com/52d442830f365bf272f5209d1fmja.3qx1/UveU4-YQWT-aYDdVDe486


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  • Posted by khalling 10 years, 8 months ago
    I have appreciated Mr.Rowe 's opinions in the past.
    But I 'm not sure I understand the point of the commercial. Walmart sells products as inexpensively as possible. They drive hard bargains with their vendors almost ensuring the manufacturing will happen overseas. Are some products made in the USA? Sure. But most are not and Walmart is well aware of this. It's not just manufacturing costs. It's compliance and labor costs as well. Regulatory burdens are the highest in the world. OSHA and other agencies including state unemployment stop additional hiring. VC funding looks overseas for investments not here. And after all of that they take half of your profit. You can listen to people disparage you all day long. It's when they hog tie you- will you submit?
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    • Posted by Robbie53024 10 years, 8 months ago
      Since I have worked with one of Walmart's major suppliers for the past 4+ yrs, I think that I have some insight on this.
      Contrary to the comments by others, Walmart does not sacrifice quality for cost. They are, however, ruthless on cost reductions. Lucky for me, I help to achieve these cost reductions for my client. Thus, they have continued to maintain shelf space even as Walmart looks to move to their store brands on similar items.
      It is absolutely true that the non-product related costs are killers and often make the difference on non-perishable goods as to whether they are from US manufacturers or off-shore. Luckily we've been working on perishable goods which are more difficult to replace from off-shore sources. That said, there are always new competitors seeking to displace the big boys, thus it is always necessary to stay agile and lean.
      My firm does not merely advise cutting heads, in fact if that is the objective of mgmt. we don't take the contract. We focus on improving efficiency so that the company can either bring back in-house product that is currently outsourced or take on new innovative products to increase overall revenue.
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  • Posted by CircuitGuy 10 years, 8 months ago
    I don't understand if this is a poem or a particular person's experience. I say don't worry about what you're told. If you out there doing stuff, you'll be told you're all kinds of things. Hiding and not producing guarantees the criticism will stop. I want the criticism.

    If you're doing stuff, you'll get _opinions_ about your merits. The contrapositive of this is if you're not getting these _opinions_, you're not out there doing stuff.
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  • Posted by preimert1 10 years, 8 months ago
    Excellent first post, BradA, you got the message. Make Ayn proud.
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    • Posted by 10 years, 8 months ago
      Thanks ! From some of the other comments I was afraid that my message wasn't clear. Walmart has little or nothing to do with the underlying idea. Sure, Walmart can place orders for products they want to sell from whatever source makes them. But factories do not operate themselves. It takes a Producer to create the product. And so long as our government treats the producers of the United States like the enemy, it is only the Dagny's of this world who will rationalize their desire to produce under such inclement conditions.
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  • Posted by $ Abaco 10 years, 8 months ago
    A very good friend of mine from Iran recently told me of a conversation he had with his brother. His brother was an import/export guy in Iran and did pretty well there. When my buddy suggested he do the same here he said (in Farsi) "What, you want me to compete with Walmart?" It made me laugh. Walmart, I realized, is just a conduit that funnels Chinese goods to fat, uneducated Americans. Walmart does a great job of this and I'm not faulting them one bit. I admire them. My dad, while on a business trip in Arkansas back in around 1979 (if I remember correctly) happened to meet Sam Walton at a little, roadside cafe. Sam and his wife were there enjoying a meal, then walked out and drove off in an old pickup truck. At the time, Walton was the richest man in America. But, my dad said he was dressed like some old farmer.
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