[Ron H.]

That is possibly true but one point can be easily made and that is America 45+ years ago lead the world in education, training and production and today the last time I looked we are way down the ranking list. As a nation our world ranking is slipping continuously and it is only getting worse. The US no longer turns out the properly trained labor force it would need to reclaim its once vaulted position of manufacturing capital of the world that we once enjoyed.

Our economy cannot survive on service sectors jobs alone. Without someone actually making something then what is there to repair or to service and to sell to other nations?! We have become one of the worlds largest debtor nations in just over 4 decades and it isn't getting any better any time soon. What a shame.

[central_va]

That is what Free Trade™ will do for a country like ours. Ruin it.

[muawiyah]

Production?

We're still the #1 producer in the world. What we don't have are labor intensive industries. That's simply because we are currently the world's leader in mechanization, automation, computerization, and robotics as those processes are realized in the installed base.

Even white collar workers have been left unemployed by computerization.

[Beagle8U]

A big part of the reason we have trouble making things in this country is the lack of enough math taught in schools, and the lack of skilled tool and die makers to keep Mfg plants running.

You can't train T+D makers that don't have advanced math skills, and even then it takes a long time. You can't run a Mfg plant without someone there that can quickly make parts to repair tooling, and there are damn few of them out there.

What we have today are tool sharpeners and parts changers with Journeymen T+D cards. Most of them couldn't ‘Make’ a die with a gun to their head.

With JIT Mfg of today you can't wait to send everything out to a specialty T+D shop to have parts made, and you can't afford to have spare parts for everything that might break.

We are screwed until that changes.