Right or wrong, this is awe-inspiring and should be captured in one of those cross-stitch samplers.

 

fishfryer,

I agree with your ideas, and it's a shame the way things are headed, but it is what it is. I've given up pissing in the wind, as most people dismiss any negativity towards this country as being "pessimistic." The reality is the world is full of hypocrites, and a true "free market" doesn't exist anywhere in the world. US agriculture is subsidized, which allows us to produce and sell crops for less than many foreign competitors. You hear China cry about this from time to time, but yet we (being the sheeple and the politicians) constantly cry about their "manipulated" currency? If we don't want it to be manipulated, then we simply have to setup the conditions for them not being able to manipulate it. That's the simple solution. China of course has heavy tariffs on foreign imports (as does every country on some imports), and we cry "manipulation" as well. GM got a bailout (which I was against), yet the Korean car mfrs are all government subsidized/run businesses (kia/hyundai).

Looking forward, I think it will be interesting to see how things shape up. One thing is clear, we don't need more people on this rock, as mechanization continues and manual labor becomes less necessary. I share Mr. EG's sentiment regarding "change or die," but our shift to mainly a "service economy" has shifted a bit too far imo.

Talking about lawyers vs. blue collar workers.. Let's not even talk about the financial sector. We've gotten to the point where finance drives a LARGE % of GDP.. which is completely asinine. If you want to talk about a largely negative profession that just skims off the top of everything, it's finance.

 

I'm generally staying out of this but I have a question about the lawyer to engineer ratio. Was that lawyers to PEs (ie Professional Engineer) or lawyers to practicing engineers? It shouldn't surprise anyone when I say I'm in engineering. Over the years I've worked with many engineers including those designing robotics and surgical tools. Almost none were PEs. I know a guy who has designed race cars for 40 years and built perhaps 200 or so cars over that time. He doesn't even have an engineering degree. About the only people who need a PE degree are civil engineers because they, like doctors and lawyers, often offer an opinion that can't be practically tested. Anyway, if the number is PEs it's likely vastly under estimating things since you can legally practice engineering with out a license. The same is reportedly not true when it comes to the law.

 

Interesting info. Yes, that is just the number of professional engineers that are licensed in Texas. I didn't realize that there was a distinction. Good point.