Re: (erielack) ALCO plant farewell

["Paul Brezicki" <doctorpb_@_bellsouth.net>]

Acknowledging that this is off-topic: I've seen this hundreds of times. 
Former industrial facilities demolished to make way for condos, retail, and 
in this case, a marina. Granted, this factory has not been active for over 
40 years, but this scenario begs the question: how long can we keep 
replacing productive activity with consumptive ones? This project (assuming 
it actually happens; the commercial real estate vacancy rate nationwide is 
approximately 20% and growing, and upstate NY is not exactly a growth 
region) will create some short-term construction jobs, but is not going to 
produce an ounce of material that we can sell overseas and thus add to the 
wealth of our nation. We'd rather get rid of those nasty-looking, polluting 
factories and let the Chinese make the stuff to place under the Christmas 
tree, so we can spend the afternoon shopping and then sip wine when we're 
done. Maybe this has something to do with our trillion-dollar deficits, 
state governments cutting back on police and fire services, and our 
(official) 10% unemployment rate? Paraphrasing what you said Rick, we've 
"matured" from an industrial economy to a "service" economy, and now a 
"finance-based" economy, and where has this gotten us? And what's going to 
happen when China, holding a huge chunk of our national debt, pulls the plug 
if we dare to do more than, say, wag our finger at N Korea? Do you get the 
feeling we've been sold a bill of goods and now we're left holding the bag?

Paul B


From: RJFlei_@_aol.com
Subject: Re: (erielack) ALCO plant farewell

Another part of the "old economy" has passed on. Doesn't look  like the
"new economy" is doing much better.

Rick Fleischer
Cortland, OH.
 


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