Thoughts on organized labor, and how unions really seem to be more counterproductive than helpful for workers in our modern economy.
Three Random Photos
Just a few random photos to fill the space as I try to get back into posting more regularly :-). First, the stage setup from before the Conan O’Brien show at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, DC, last week. Second, a Honda Odyssey with an ‘Aston Martin of Tysons’ bumper plate (I thought it was pretty a funny juxtaposition). Finally, our two cats secretly liking each other. Shh, don’t tell anybody.
Revisiting the American Auto Industry
In July 2007, I wrote an epic piece titled Fixing the American Auto Industry. In it, I reviewed the state of affairs at Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors (GM) at the time, how they got where they were, and what I felt they needed to do to get back on track. Reading it today, I stand by the vast majority of what I said. I am also sad to say that my dire predictions have essentially come true:
. . . With imagination and guts, the leadership of these venerable corporations can ensure their survival and even regain a leadership position in the industry. If Apple Computer could come back from the brink of bankruptcy to become the computer, music, and electronics leader it is today, the ‘big three’ can orchestrate a similar turnaround.
But it will not be easy, and for that reason I am not convinced that each of the ‘big three’ will still exist in ten years’ time. If I were to hazard a guess, at least one of them will either slide into bankruptcy or be bought-out by a competitor (if they can find any value in it) within the next decade. But I am very optimistic that at least one of them will survive, and that they will do so by implementing some or all of the recommendations I have made in this document—cutting abusive UAW contracts out of their financial equations, improving product quality and value, and being innovative rather than reactive.
All-in-all, I wasn’t all that surprised when two-thirds of the ‘big three’ went bankrupt (Chrysler and GM). Nor was I surprised that one of the ‘big three’ is still surviving and doing pretty well in the market (Ford). That’s basically what I said would happen; though I was a bit surprised at how quickly things fell apart for Chrysler and GM.
I certainly didn’t predict everything though. Fresh off of ‘going private’ under the leadership of Cerberus Capital Management, I would have expected in 2007 that Chrysler would be in the best position to turn itself around. Less than two years later, Chrysler was a bankrupt shell of a company jointly owned by the United States government and Italian automaker Fiat. I am thoroughly disappointed in Cerberus; they had a great opportunity and missed it. I’m also surprised that Ford was able to survive and, indeed, do very well for itself without breaking the UAW union or eliminating a large portion of their dealerships.
WebOS App/Patch Roll-Call
If you read my in-depth review of the Palm Pre Plus back in February, you know that I love Palm’s WebOS operating system. The phone itself, hardware wise, is fine but nothing incredible . . . but the usability and flexibility of the OS more than makes up for it. I find it far easier to use than the Android-based competition, and it’s both easier and more powerful than Apple’s iPhone OS (now re-christened iOS). Imagine an iPhone without the idiotic limitations and restrictions (and on a better network), and you have Palm’s WebOS. Imagine Android’s openness and flexibility but arranged in a way that you can actually use it, and you have Palm’s WebOS.
However, WebOS does have its limitations and its little usability annoyances. This is where apps and patches come in. With the addition of a handful of excellent apps from the official Palm App Catalog and some patches from the unofficial PreWare universe, your Palm phone can be even more awesome than it was from the factory. Here are the key apps and patches I’m using on my Pre Plus. Most of them will work on any of the other Palm phones too, like the original Pre and the Pixi/Pixi Plus.
Our Dishonorable Society
It occurred to me recently that our society no longer seems to frown upon dishonor; we simply accept it.
We don’t think it wrong or abnormal for somebody to swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth . . . and then lie. We don’t blink an eye when somebody promises to stay with somebody until death . . . and then divorces them. We don’t fight when a company says it’s providing unlimited Internet access and then sets a maximum bandwidth limit. Our politicians and public servants swear an oath to uphold the Constitution and then blatantly disregard its provisions. Heck, they’ll even give you a new civil right—the ‘right’ to health care—and then demand that you take advantage of it. If it were really my ‘right,’ it would be my right to choose whether I want to take advantage of it . . . after all, my right to free speech does not require that I speak!
It seems like we’ve gotten to the point where nobody will make an unequivocal, honest, straightforward statement. Everything comes with diplomatic hedges, fine print, disclaimers, corrections, and exceptions. When a company says ‘unlimited Internet’ or a politician says ‘you have a right to [x],’ you have to research it and make sure that the fine print doesn’t say ‘unlimited isn’t really unlimited’ or ‘it’s not a right, it’s a compulsory mandate.’ We can’t trust hardly a word anybody tells us.
Scott Bradford is a writer and technologist who has been putting his opinions online since 1995. He believes in three inviolable human rights: life, liberty, and property. He is a Catholic Christian who worships the trinitarian God described in the Nicene Creed. Scott is a husband, nerd, pet lover, and AMC/Jeep enthusiast with a B.S. degree in public administration from George Mason University.