When America gave up its position as the producer-in-chief and became the consumer-in-chief, “essential skilled workers” became dirty words in our lexicon.

The cultural shift is fast producing an “industrial tsunami” that threatens our economy and way of life. Ironically enough, we’re facing a crisis shortage of skilled workers at a time of dramatically high unemployment.

We must re-connect this disconnect or face the consequences. America works when Americans are working.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 25 percent of the working population will reach retirement age by 2012, resulting in a potential shortage of nearly 10 million skilled workers. This heightens the price our nation is paying for dismantling so many in-school vocational training programs during the past few decades.

The current shortage already sharply reduces the growth of U.S. gross domestic product, contributing to our overall economic problem. America’s infrastructure is falling apart before our eyes. Municipal water and sewer systems are failing, and more bridges are unsafe to cross. Yet the nationwide shortfall of more than 500,000 welders is causing already-funded repair projects to be canceled or delayed.

Essential skilled workers are heroes. Without them, America grinds to a halt. But there are national security implications to this skilled worker gap, too. The ongoing demand for U.S.-manufactured military parts and hardware — from boots to mother boards — require domestic manufacturing operations. Even now, critical manufacturing has been moved off-shore as a stop-gap measure.

We simply can’t “outsource” our national defense!

Along with Emmy Award-winning producer Craig Haffner and the Foundation for Fair Civil Justice, I am currently in pre-production with a new documentary, “Industrial Tsunami,” whose purpose is to wake up Americans to the shortage of skilled workers that threatens the existence of companies and entire industries.

We must develop short- and long-range solutions to this crisis, starting with expanding vocational training opportunities and restoring dignity and pride in America’s skilled workers.

We will explore the negative media images of skilled workers, as well as current initiatives at the national and local levels to address this crisis.

Equally important, we will promote the concept that essential skilled work is noble, is useful and creates the independent mindset and self-confidence in the individual that has resonated throughout our nation’s history — and can rebuild America with a solid foundation once again.

Milton Friedman speaks from the grave.  His conservative principles are articulated in an interview on an Icelandic TV station.  His ideals are timeless.  He argues that vocal minorities desire to impose their will on the people. These elites have always caused the decline of past civilizations. His predictions on the direction of the US are ominous.

This is a valuable lesson on why conservatives should never rest.  The liberal elites who desire power never, ever rest!

Presented by President Hugo Chávez as an instrument to make shopping for groceries easier, the “Good Life Card” is making various segments of the population wary because they see it as a furtive attempt to introduce a rationing card similar to the one in Cuba.

The measure could easily become a mechanism to control the population, according to civil society groups.

“We see that in short-term this could become a rationing card probably similar to the one used in Cuba,” Roberto León Parilli, president of the National Association of Users and Consumers, told El Nuevo Herald.  ”It would use more advanced technological means [than those used in Cuba], but when they tell you where to buy and what the limits of what you can buy are, they are conditioning your purchases.”

With the setting of the sun this Wednesday night, Jews across the world will begin the observance of the Yomim Noraim (Days of Awe), a ten day period book-ended by the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. This year’s High Holiday period comes at an interesting time for America as the first night of Rosh Hashanah comes a mere fifty-four days before the United States goes to the polls to between two radically different directions, one which emphasizes personal responsibility, the other emphasizes a reliance on government. Only one of those directions is compatible with the true meaning of the High Holidays.

As we celebrate Labor Day, let’s remember what makes this holiday possible in the first place: American workers. For the most part that means small business.

According to federal statistics, small firms (those with fewer than 500 employees):

• Represent some 99 percent of all employer firms.

• Employ more than half of all private-sector employees.

• Pay 44 percent of total U.S. private payroll.

• Have generated 64 percent of net new jobs over the past 15 years.

Well, I understand what you’re saying. The problem is they do know what they’re doing. They’re doing it on purpose. But the party of don’t know conveys what you wanted to convey. Our guys don’t have the guts to be the party of, no, they’re very much afraid of being called the party of no, some of them are. By the way, you’ve reminded me here of the Politico story: “Top Democrats are growing markedly more pessimistic about holding the House, privately conceding that the summertime economic and political recovery they were banking on will not likely materialize by Election Day.” If they really think that then they’re stupider than I thought. Did they really think there is going to be a Summer of Recovery just because Vice President Bite Me said so? They were banking on a summertime economic and political recovery? 

A traditional marriage advocacy organization is concerned about what former Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Ken Mehlman is doing to undermine traditional marriage, now that he has admitted he is a homosexual.

As recently reported on OneNewsNow, Mehlman “outed” himself recently in an interview with The Atlantic magazine where he shared it took him 43 years to get comfortable with that part of his life.

Thousands of Indonesian Muslims are rallying outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta to denounce a Florida church’s plan to burn copies of the Quran on Sept. 11.

The Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Fla., said it will burn the Islamic holy book on the ninth anniversary of the terror attacks. Local officials have denied a permit for the bonfire on the church’s grounds. But the center, which made headlines last year by distributing T-shirts that said “Islam is of the Devil,” insists it will go ahead with the plan.

[Probably not the right thing to do if Christians are trying to reach Muslims with the Gospel. Now if these Muslims can just get as upset about blowing up and beheading people in the name of Islam, we might come to some mutual understanding. -- Gary DeMar]

In a speech  given at the National Endowment for Democracy, on October 6, 2005 President Bush said: “Many Muslim scholars have already publicly condemned terrorism, often citing Chapter 5, Verse 32  of the Koran, which states that killing an innocent human being is like killing all humanity…” He most likely did not read the entire verse  which states: “…whoever kills a person, unless it be for manslaughter or for mischief in the land, it is as though he had killed all men.”

So it is okay according to the Quran to kill anyone who creates “mischief in the land.” It is easy to see how the Taliban can justify killing.  Mischief can be translated to [mean] pretty much anything they want, such as foreigners in their country, even those who are there as aid workers.

[Maybe there are some legitimate reasons to fear Islam, as the author of this article points out. Scary stuff. -- Gary DeMar.]