Prohibition in the United States was repealed, thanks to ratification of the 21st Amendment, on December 5, 1933. Raise a glass in tribute. (Just make sure you don’t go all the way to Step 9 and blow your brains out.)
One out of every 10 people in America is employed in a service that is related to the U.S. auto industry.
That’s a statistic from the Center for Automotive Research, via GM Facts and Fiction. It’s actually plausible; there are factories around the nation, not just in Detroit, that are somehow related to putting a car together. (I will note, though, it’s not clear how many of those sub-suppliers also work for Honda, Toyota, BMW, or “foreign” companies with US operations.)
The “Big Three” will never simply vanish — they (and the extended support structure of dealerships, suppliers, mechanics, etc.) are simply too large and too integral to the country’s manufacturing landscape. The job loss, health care loss, and tax income loss would be spread over the course of a few years. And it’s also worth noting that, to a large extent, the American Auto Maker crisis is largely of its own making; the recession is simply pinching them harder and sooner than expected.
I’m not against bailing out the auto industry, because the ripple effect around the country would be incredibly bad. At the same time, I haven’t decided if I’m in favor enough to write to my elected officials about it. (Yes, Visteon, when you fire loyal employees, they’ll hold a grudge and not help YOU out when the time comes. Payback’s a bitch, ain’t it.) But I am in favor, just enough, to mention it here. The issue is worth awareness and discussion and thought. And perhaps a large dose of nervous worrying as well.
If it is decided that they deserve a second chance, then the automakers need to be held to a much higher standard than they currently are. It would be inspiring to see them remade into an industry that is a leader in sustainable design and manufacturing, rather than grudgingly hoping global warming is a passing fad. But given the firmly entrenched old-style industry and infrastructure they have, I’m not holding out much hope.
Now that the Socialists have won the White House, what can we expect for our nation’s future? Dishwashers for everybody!
Allowing five to a family, there are fifteen million families in this country; and at least ten million of these live separately, the domestic drudge being either the wife or a wage slave. Now set aside the modern system of pneumatic house-cleaning, and the economies of co-operative cooking; and consider one single item, the washing of dishes. Surely it is moderate to say that the dishwashing for a family of five takes half an hour a day; with ten hours as a day’s work, it takes, therefore, half a million able-bodied persons—mostly women to do the dishwashing of the country. And note that [dishwashing] is most filthy and deadening and brutalizing work; that it is a cause of anemia, nervousness, ugliness, and ill-temper; of prostitution, suicide, and insanity; of drunken husbands and degenerate children—for all of which things the community has naturally to pay. And now consider that in each of my little free communities there would be a machine which would wash and dry the dishes, and do it, not merely to the eye and the touch, but scientifically—sterilizing them—and do it at a saving of all the drudgery and nine-tenths of the time!
– The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
The rise of Bad Commies in USSR put an end to Dr. Schliemann’s vision of saving the world (or the USA, at least) from the evils of dishwashing. Luckily, the Capitalists would invent dishwashers anyway. (Or maybe they’re socialist dishwashers in a cunning disguise. That would explain the GRRRNNGTTTZZZ noise mine is making.)
Unless you’re familiar with Steven Colbert’s semi-regular Threatdown, you might not appreciate the blog post title. Either way, this vaguely threatening commercial as much is still worth watching.
I’m not entirely sure what to make of the last clause. “If they do exist?” Are we supposed to be scared of the bear, or are we supposed to be hallucinating the bear, or is this bear just a cunning disguise to distract me from the socialist bear standing behind my couch waiting to eat me as soon as I turn off the TV?
I lived most of my life after the Berlin wall was down and communism became simply a place which makes really inexpensive plastic stuff. I thought I could laugh at lurking bears. But, some people still think the woods are full of bears.
It takes my entire month’s ration to make two pots of sweet tea?!? That’s horrible! And how will I possibly make cookies to go with my sweet tea? To hell with England, France, and Italy!
Then I realized, I would actually get eight pounds of sugar a month (four person household), which is only a bit less than what I use normally. I’d still have to cut back on the tea, though, and since it’s one of the few things I’ve truly enjoyed about South Carolina… well, Federal Government, we might have a problem.
I’ve occasionally toyed with the idea of growing my own vegetables. Rather like the Victory Garden idea, the concept of saving money (free vegetables in backyard) and fuel (less trips to the store) appeals to me.
Unfortunately, I kill plants. I have a very un-green thumb, despite having the best of intentions and trying to care for them. Either I overwater, or I plant the seeds wrong, or a cat eats it, or it just decides it’s a good day to die — I usually have no idea what’s gone wrong. So if World War II had relied on my Victory Garden, the Allied Forces would have failed miserably.
I think I’m going to settle for buying excess from the farmers’ market and canning it, I just need to get a pressure canner and those run about $300. So, uh, it’ll be a while…
Did you know that “car club” back in World War II meant “carpool”? At first I thought they were encouraging people to join AAA, and while I think that’s a good idea, I didn’t understand (1) why paying AAA for membership required extensive effort, and (2) how it saved fuel. It’s easy, but not really a gas-saving choice. Anyway, it’s carpooling. And this was just one of many recommendations made by the government during the troubled years of World War II; rationing and conservation were hot topics.
What with gas getting pricier (as I’m sure you’ve heard), there is a gradual return towards government-based endorsement of fuel conservation. One effort I recently saw is EcoDrivingUSA.com, a cute website which details little things you can do to reduce your fuel usage, thereby saving your planet AND your pocketbook — win-win! If nothing else, you can enjoy a brief video of the TerminatorGovernator Gov. Schwarzenneger discussing conservation.
Overall, the site is much more feel-good than a poster with a wounded soldier, and that’s probably a good thing for the modern audience. The reaction to trying to scare people into environmentalism — for example, describing flooded cities from melting icecaps — is pretty underwhelmed. There are arguments about the validity of scientific evidence, arguments about how it’s all just partisan politics, arguments about fearmongering, and arguments about whether we should be arguing. But when you say, “OK, fine, forget all that. What’s the problem with saving money, by buying less gas, by USING less gas?” it’s hard for someone to argue without looking like a raging asshole who has money to burn. Average Joe Factory Worker (back when I worked in the factory and talked to him regularly) was always pro-conservation when I ignored icebergs and made him think about his wallet instead.
That’s kinda sad, because I’d like Average Joe to care about polar bears, but I’ll settle for me loving polar bears and getting him to save them inadvertently.
On a commercial scale, gelatin is made from by-products of the meat and leather industry, mainly pork skins, pork and cattle bones, or split cattle hides. –Wikipedia
While this is still true today, I can totally understand why Knox changed their packaging from this (circa 1961)
to this (circa last week)
Which would you rather buy, a box with a cow on it, or a box with tasty deserts on it? Duh.
As a bonus, I love the “Still only 5 calories and 0g carbs” note.
Ethel: Gladys, dear, won’t you have some unflavored gelatin? Gladys: Oh, no, Ethel, I’m watching my figure. No unflavored gelatin for me today! Ethel: Oh, but Gladys, it’s still only 5 calories per serving. Come on, darling, live a little! Gladys: Oh, Ethel, really? Only 5 calories per serving? No wonder Knox is the best-selling unflavored gelatin available! Ethel: Oh, Gladys! Gladys: Oh, Ethel!
They weren’t worried about those 5 calories on the 1961 box. I don’t know whether the Good Old Days wins there or not…
Feeling nostalgic? Well, The Responsibilities of American Citizenship will help you remember just how incredibly exciting you found civics class in high school! It’s part of the “American Adventure Series”, which must just be jam-packed with exciting action… or at least, fascinating information.
The instructor, Dr. Clifton Ganus Jr., was a professor at (and later president of) Harding University, a Christian university.
The Harding American Studies Institute is designed to… promote “a complete understanding of the institutions, values, and ideas of liberty and democracy.” In doing so, the ASI exhibits a generally conservative political stance, focused on going “back to the fundamental values that made this country great.” — Wikipedia
This film was produced as part of their educational mission.
Dr. Ganus reminds his students that forces in society are at work, gradually destroying the pillars of our nation’s value. (You’ll notice that FUNDAMENTAL BELIEF IN GOD is at the foot of these pillars.) America is the number one target of socialists, and socialist forces among us are working to establish a worldwide dictatorship.
Oh dear. What can we do?
Well, it’s important that everyone learn as much as they can about why our nation is so wonderful, what makes it so, and how we can keep it that way. There’s a quick run-through of our Obligations of Citizenship…
Understand What Makes America Tick
Understand Tactics of Communism — its basic, godless philosophy, and so on
Understand Disguises of Socialism — these aren’t just disguises, they’re cunning disguises
Understand Propaganda Techniques (of communism and socialism, of course; capitalist propaganda is A-OK)
Take Interest in Education — not learning anything yourself, mind you, but finding out what’s being taught in your schools (in other words, are your neighborhood children learning Godless Socialist Propaganda.. perhaps cunningly disguised?)
Become Active in Government
Strive for Spiritual Growth
Dedicate Part of Every Day to Citizenship
Now, on one level, this film is funny. You never know what new prop Dr. Ganus will pull out to illustrate his point — a globe, a bunch of flags, a troop of boy scouts frying some eggs — and he kept managing to surprise me with his creativity. Looking deeper, however, the discussion emphasizes eternal vigilance against a very vaguely defined “enemy”, not to mention defining religion as the fundamental difference between the American way of life and the Godless Commie Bastards way of life. Paranoia runs rampant as students are encouraged to watch for socialism; the enemy is “cunningly disguised” so there isn’t much one can do except be suspicious of everything. When a full four of your eight “Obligations of Citizenship” consist of watching out for THE ENEMY, something’s just not quite right.
The Berlin Wall may be down, but much of the 1955 rhetoric is still present in American society, albeit with a different enemy to replace “socialists.” While I’m certainly not per se opposed to religion, this film helps make an excellent argument for keeping it separated from government. It should certainly not — and, legally, can not — be included as an obligation of citizenship. Historically, being convinced the country has a divine mandate to do something has always led to trouble.
Drawing comparisons to modern paranoid incitement and propaganda are left as an exercise to the curious reader. It shouldn’t be all that hard.
The World War II creation of the Office of Price Administration was responsible for limiting prices and rationing scare supplies. With a subject like that, it’s no surprise warnings about it could come across as a bit preachy.
Ah-ha, thinks the government, we have a way to keep their attention: A MOVIE! Watch Black Marketing to see the thrilling results of an investigation by Price Administration Investigators… a trial!
