America's Great Lakes Region Crippled by Manufacturing Job Losses

[Aunt Anti-bush]

The U.S. Great Lakes region has lost around 37 percent of all U.S. manufacturing jobs during the past ten years—more than any other region, according to statistics from The Brookings Institute, a Washington D.C.-based think tank.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) disclosed that there were around 18.3 million manufacturing jobs in the U.S. at the end of 1995, which dwindled to around 14.2 million by June 2006.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/news/6-8-13/44911.html

[MadMaddie]

1. Were these jobs outsourced....?

[MichiganVote]

6. Yes

[liberalhistorian]

2. No fucking kidding.

I lived in Cleveland most of my life, but moved to Rapid City, SD, last summer and will NEVER go back! I've had more luck here in one year than in thirty plus years in NE OH. And it's only getting worse there. A lot of friends and family are leaving the state as well.

[Dr.Phool]

8. I've still got a house in West Park (Cleveland)

That I've been trying to give away for over 2 years. No takers. I moved to Florida 4 years ago, and rented it for a year, and all I want, is what I owe on it.

[liberalhistorian]

14. Good luck trying to sell it,

no one can afford even the cheapest houses there. And over a third of inner-city houses are in foreclosure, too.

[Webster Green]

3. As the layed off workers flock to Wal Mart for their cheap Chinese crap...

Sad

[gumby]

4. Grover Norquist's wet dream.

Without manufacturing jobs, there has been no/few unions.
Without unions, the Democrats are de-funded.
Without a funding/activist base, Democrats loose elections.

"Globalization" my ass.

This is Full Out Class Warfare.

[niallmac]

10. Class warfare is still a taboo topic in the political big tent.

It's un american to talk class warfare or it's a cop out by those who just don't
work hard enough say the thought police.

It's the basis of this country's devolution on every front from education, innovation and industry and
the Republicans could not be happier with it all.

[gumby]

11. Word

And I think that's the point of the demonization of Lamont (a very wealth man, btw).

Since "them that be" have worked tirelessly to destroy the middle class, the 'netroots' has sprung up to try and fill the void.

The Lamont victory has unmasked many class warriors for the sub-human subset that they are.

There is a very deadly struggle going on. Many of thousands have already died.

[skids]

5. Like Colbert said...

22 of the U.S.'s astronauts come from Ohio -- what is it about this state that makes people want to leave the planet?

Want to know how to bring the manufacturing jobs back? Don't look to big U.S. companies, they are just full of theives at this point. Do like Rendell did.

[Wheezy]

7. I was a Realtor in west Michigan once...

..the housing market there is crap the past few years.

So many 200-300k homes standing vacant, not selling.

I just can't believe some of those folks think Dick DeVos for governor is going to help things. *shakes head sadly* He's somewhat responsible for some of the manufacturing jobs being moved to other countries.

[Dr.Phool]

9. The whole state of Michigan can become Amway salesmen.

And soon, you'll have nothing but millionaires there.

[Wheezy]

13. Is that how it works? :p

Darn, I had plenty of opportunities to sign up. Coulda, woulda, shoulda. :)

[liberalhistorian]

15. I live in SD now, in a rather prosperous area,

and in nearby Wyoming, they can't get workers for the booming energy industry (oil drilling and coal mining) fast enough. They've actually made several recruiting trips to Michigan, since the unemployment rate is so high there, and have recruited many, many workers from MI. Most of them are making damn good money and benefits, and many say that they're never going back to MI, there's nothing there anymore.

[bleedingheart]

19. Dick DeVos actually outsourced a lot of Amway (Alticor now)

jobs to China.

What does it say about a company when they change their name ...just because the previous name has such a bad rep...

[GoddessOfGuinness]

12. I distinctly remember Dumbyass saying,

"Well we've got to help the manufacturers!" What the hell happened? Could it be that manufacturers weren't the ones who needed help after all?

[TexasLawyer]

16. The manufacturers have been helped tremendously

They're manufacturing in China and Honduras and the Marianna Islands. etc... and bringing their stuff here in containers.

Gutting the labor movement will "help the manufacturers"-- the company owners, that is.

[Zorra]

17. I was comparing several of the same type of item in a store the

other day, and was pleasantly surprised, actually almost shocked, when I noticed that one of them actually said "Made in the USA" on it.

So I bought that one without giving it another thought.

If a department store opened and sold only American made goods there, I wonder how many people, like me, would shop at that store, even if we had to pay more for our purchases.

Given a choice, I boycott companies and products that are not made in the USA. The problem is, I'm almost never given that choice - everything, like you posted, is made in China or India or wherever, etc..

[hedgehog]

18. The worst part is the way extended families are breaking up.

My Dad grew up in the same town as aunts and uncles and cousins and second cousins and third cousins. My kids haven't seen some of their first cousins in years. They don't even remember meeting one of my brothers. We were at one family funeral years ago and I wish we could get all the cousins together again for a happier event. Worrying about Mom and Dad growing old with no family within two hundred miles isn't fun, either.