Cheap Labor is Dead -- And so is the USA

[flacaltenn]

What has Uncle Flacaltenn been trying to tell you trade isolationists? That the only way to protect America's standard of labor is to make "cheap labor irrelevant?" Think I was just bloviating?

http://www.szcpost.com/2011/08/foxco...n-3-years.html

Foxconn Technology Group held a hip-hop party at the headquarter in Longhua Shenzhen last Friday night, on which Chairman Terry Gou disclosed, Foxconn is making efforts to increase its robot workforce on production line to replace non-technical workers. Foxconn currently has 10000 robots and plans to increase the number to 30000 next year. The company also announced it plans to have one million robots in three years.

The robots that have been put into operation on the production line is “Foxconn Shenzhen No. 1” that is independently developed by the company in 2006.

“On the Foxconn’s flow lines, many simple and repeated works, such as repeated clicks of one button, used to be done by workers. Now these works are all done by robots with high efficiency and controllability,” an insider of Foxconn said.

Foxconn currently has nearly 1.2 million employees, of which over 1 million are from the mainland.

One million robots -- 1.2Mill employees -- you do the math.. Not cheap OVERSEAS robots -- the article says -- but intelligient ones. Meaning that all the experience they have with manufacturing will be inserted into the robots brains.. What were the technologies we needed to pursue? Robotics, artificial intelligience, materials and bioscience? We're gonna lose our only chance to survive economically if we don't ACT NOW!!!!!

Think the Central Politburo is gonna prohibit FoxConn from implementing their evil plan in order to protect CHINESE workers? Think that once they develop the 21st manufacturing skills and processes that AMERICAN workers are gonna be relevent at all?

We were warned.. It is happening.. And we are arguing about the rich and the Tea Party..

We're doomed if we don't wake up and start training and clearing the decks for this to happen to HERE FIRST..

[flacaltenn]

I bumped this so that I could imagine the spit-takes when you guys go for the morning coffee... Have a GREAT morning in what's left of America..

[BlueStreak]

(Chinese hip-hop? Now that's got to be a hoot.)

The whole thing can be fixed by putting "under God" back into the Pledge of Allegiance
or electing people that remind you of your next door neighbor............

Seriously,

You're right, but we would have to pay for all of that education.
And then do all of that educating competently.........

So, it's not going to happen.
It has no support from either side of the aisle.

Dave

[flacaltenn]

Originally Posted by BlueStreak

(Chinese hip-hop? Now that's got to be a hoot.)

The whole thing can be fixed by putting "under God" back into the Pledge of Allegiance
or electing people that remind you of your next door neighbor............

Seriously,

You're right, but we would have to pay for all of that education.
And then do all of that educating competently.........

So, it's not going to happen.
It has no support from either side of the aisle.

Dave

One reform required is to push the teacher's unions out of the way and allow Virtual Education to take off. There is no reason in world why your last 2 years of High School and first 4 years of college shouldn't be individually tailored and self-paced ON-LINE instruction.. Many states are already fighting this battle. Your concern about COSTS would radically diminish. In fact, with quality material on-line, and laboratory facilities available in every metro area, you should be able to get a BS degree for under $10K/year while living at home. On-line instruction could feature MENTORING by the top folks in each field, not a tenured professor looking for someone to take his lectures.

The final years of high school could be tracked for co-op work studies, technical school, or apprenticeships as well as allowing kids to pursue purely academic tracks. Imagine music biz students having one day a week with Paul McCartney as a guest lecturer. Or Steve Jobs doing a section on defining products that sell.

Washington needs to get the hell out of the way.. Fire the GREEN jobs czar and find a JOBS czar who understands how to target the largest sectors of employment.

Get those foreign profits BACK in the US by offering a lower rate for R&D investment with those funds. No skin off the Treasury's back to do that.

And make certain that EVERY critter elected to Congress prefers R&D to subsidizing crap already designed and made. End the mindless subsidies and convert a fraction of that to "innovation subsidies". Rewards even for acheiving certain product goals..

The rest of it will come naturally. We CAN be manufacturing stuff in this country again. The Chinese don't want us to have the opportunity to figure that out. THey figure we are paralyzed arguing with each other about the garage sale of what's left in America.. And they are right...

[bhunter]

Originally Posted by flacaltenn

What has Uncle Flacaltenn been trying to tell you trade isolationists? That the only way to protect America's standard of labor is to make "cheap labor irrelevant?" Think I was just bloviating?

http://www.szcpost.com/2011/08/foxco...n-3-years.html




One million robots -- 1.2Mill employees -- you do the math.. Not cheap OVERSEAS robots -- the article says -- but intelligient ones. Meaning that all the experience they have with manufacturing will be inserted into the robots brains.. What were the technologies we needed to pursue? Robotics, artificial intelligience, materials and bioscience? We're gonna lose our only chance to survive economically if we don't ACT NOW!!!!!

Think the Central Politburo is gonna prohibit FoxConn from implementing their evil plan in order to protect CHINESE workers? Think that once they develop the 21st manufacturing skills and processes that AMERICAN workers are gonna be relevent at all?

We were warned.. It is happening.. And we are arguing about the rich and the Tea Party..

We're doomed if we don't wake up and start training and clearing the decks for this to happen to HERE FIRST..

Despite that I am about to embark on a month of refraining from purchasing PRC goods, I am a free trader and believe in comparative advantage; however, my problem with the Chinese is that they create an unfair playing field. I tend to see both political and health issues on the horizon for the Chinese. The increasing affluence appears to be bringing more traditional Western disease to the Chinese populace. India is another economic power house, but also has some internal problems lurking under the surface.

I concur in your lucid view of winning through innovation, insight, and ideas. There is still a lot of nascent creativity here that needs to be utilized more effectively. Sadly, there will be those that cannot participate in the game because of lack of preparation or simply lack of innate ability,

[merrylander]

Look at it this way, their biggest buyer is Steve Jobs, all the iPhones and iPads are made at Foxcomm. A side benefit will be that the girls working at Foxcomm will no longer be committing suicide jumping from the fifth floor of their dorm.

[finnbow]

Time to buy stock in German robotics companies.

[flacaltenn]

Originally Posted by finnbow

Time to buy stock in German robotics companies.

Hey thanks for the stock tip Larry.. Now I gotta get back to bashing American Corporations for sending all our jobs overseas....

Sheeeshh..

[merrylander]

Ever see a robot go berserker, can do more damage in five minutes than a direct hit.

[BlueStreak]

Originally Posted by merrylander

Ever see a robot go berserker, can do more damage in five minutes than a direct hit.

Yes, I have. Had one with a defective resolver throw it's arm straight out at full speed and knock an enclosure door open striking me in the head once. In retrospect, it had to look comical as hell, me getting punched in the head by a robot. But, it nearly knocked me out and left me with a lump and a headache for about three days.

Luckily, it was just a little guy. An "Adept" tabletop.......Japanese made. If it had been one of the big ABBs, it would have crushed my skull.

Dave