This is Worth More Than Just "Two Cents"

I received an email from a friend containing information and a perspective on where the U.S. is headed. Some of the points made in the email:

>Get ready for no more Post Office - they are broke.

>Checks: Britain is laying the groundwork to do away with checks by 2018 because businesses, financial institutions are finding that they are too costly to process. Which will no doubt affect the Post Office as there are a number of people who still opt for paying their bills with a postage stamp.

>Newspapers: The younger generation doesn't read them anymore. And for being able to access the news online, get ready to open your wallet. Some major companies and cell phone companies are working to develop models for paid subscription services.

>Books: The author says he never thought he would see the day when we would have a choice: (1) we can now give up a physical book that enables us to turn each page individually and "browse" books online. (2) And, he discovered he could buy albums for half the price without ever leaving his home.

>Lan Line Service: It's getting too expensive and people are paying double. They have a lan line and a cell phone. Many are discontinuing phone service and choosing just their cell phones.

>Music: The author believes that this is really sad as the music industry is "dying a slow death." Not just from illegal downloads but also from greed and corruption and offers up a book to read, "Appetite for Self-Destruction" by Steve Knopper.

>T.V.: More and more people are choosing to access their entertainment through Netflix, etc. and shunning the t.v. channels. The programs have slowly degenerated and he feels that it's "good riddance" to television.

>Things We Own: He is equating solid objects as being a thing of the past as they are now accessible via the computer. For example, when we turn on our computer, our pictures, music, movies and documents are stored in "The Cloud." They are accessible but we cannot hold them physically in our hands. Author goes on to say that he feels uncomfortable with this as your information could all be erased in the fraction of a second. He likes to be able to hold something tangibly in his hands.


>Privacy: What privacy? We are being tracked, tagged and bagged. There is NO privacy anymore. It's a thing of the past.


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Email Author's summation: America is losing its prominence in the world as a great power and the "world's leader." He points to our manufacturing losses, businesses, factories and jobs leaving the country at a record pace. Dell, Inc. has plans to dramatically expand its operations in China and will be closing its plant in Winston-Salem, NC in November. The U.S. trade deficit with China continues to expand. The Ford Motor Co. will be closing a plant in Minnesota because, his words, "it does not fit in with Ford's new 'global' manufacturing theology." The U.S. spends approximately $3.90 on Chinese goods for every $1.00 that the Chinese spend on American goods. The U.S. Census Bureau has reported that we have the highest number ever living in poverty - 43.6 million. He says that we are a nation of consumers now and not producers (like we once were). His words.."any great nation throughout history has been great at making things but if we continue to allow our manufacturing base to erode at the rate it is, will we still be a great nation? We have created the biggest debt ever recorded and what happens when we can't pay it back?"
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soule: I forwarded this email on to friends and family but then got a good smack (excuse please, I met BONK!) :-) on the head from one of the people who read it, to whit:

"I am working my butt off; we're in the middle of a huge snowstorm and I'm expected to be at work on the midnight shift to do my job. Yeah, I'm getting paid but just how do you expect me to deal with all this information you just emailed? So the P.O. sails off into the sunset...I have no control over this. And no longer being able to use checks?? Let's just take a "wait and see" attitude. And if books are going to be a thing of the past, "how come so many towns are building libraries?" And how come my local Music School is filling up with so many new students? As for privacy, I believe you still have some control over this issue and that's why I shy away from Facebook and if you shouted your social security number in the middle of a room full of people, well then you can pretty well be assured of what the result would be. I was at our local coffee shop on Saturday. In the shop were members of the National Guard...white, black, enjoying breakfast. Not one of these young people paid for their meal or tip. When one of them said "thank you," the people in the coffee shop said, "No, we should be thanking you for your service to this country." Some of these young people actually left, in tears. We had some thugs break into a storage bin filled with Toys for Tots. All the toys were stolen. This was quickly picked up by the local media and by 5:00 o'clock there were truck drivers, sanitation workers, nurses, cops, people with good hearts, that re-filled the bin. There are bad, bad, people in this world...but not the whole world. Recently, I was watching "COPS" and it was filmed in Cleveland. One of the cops said, "if they took 10% of the bad away, we'd be out of a job." That means the other 90% are good people. -J - These are my two cents.