A post by Maynard.

This report caught my eye:

Can federal bureaucrats tell a private company where to build a factory?

Members of President Obama’s National Labor Relations Board think they can. In a decision that even the New York Times is describing as “highly unusual for the federal government,” Lafe Solomon, who was appointed to the board by Obama, filed a complaint on behalf of the NLRB on Wednesday seeking to force the Boeing Co. to build an assembly line in Washington state instead of South Carolina. The NLRB action stems from Boeing’s October 2009 decision to build a new factory for its new 787 Dreamliner airplane near Charleston, S.C. Boeing first sought to build the new plant near its existing facility in Puget Sound, but negotiations with the International Association of Machinists broke down when the union refused to agree to a long-term no-strike clause. The IAM had struck four times since 1989, costing Boeing at least $1.8 billion in revenue.

That’s when Boeing chose South Carolina, a right-to-work state where, unlike Washington, workers are not forced to join unions…

Have we really sunk to that level of totalitarianism? Or is this article merely a bit of hysterical spin?

I did a Google news search on keywords “NLRB” and “Boeing” to see the spectrum of reports and editorials. Yes, it’s true.

Here’s the New York Times report, which is not likely to overstate the fascistic aspects; hence the use of the neutral term “highly unusual” as an expression of surprise at the unprecedented avarice of Obama’s people.

Labor Board Tells Boeing New Factory Breaks Law

In what may be the strongest signal yet of the new pro-labor orientation of the National Labor Relations Board under President Obama, the agency filed a complaint Wednesday seeking to force Boeing to bring an airplane production line back to its unionized facilities in Washington State instead of moving the work to a nonunion plant in South Carolina…

Aside from whatever legal and moral and Constitutional questions this sort of action raises, there’s the fundamental problem that this sort of thing is, in the long term, a killer of jobs and destroyer of wealth. Boeing is not the only aircraft manufacturer in the world. Must the nation follow Detroit into the pit as customers look to foreign brands, and productive businesses flee not only the states but the country?

Did I mention that Atlas Shrugged is now in theaters? But why bother to see the movie when we’re now living in it?

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11 Comments | Leave a comment
  1. dennisl59 says:

    When I read Atlas Shrugged, I decided that this was worth saving to a file for the day that I hoped would never come. But the day is here.

    DIRECTIVE NUMBER 10-289:

    POINT 1: All workers, wage earners, and employees of any kind whatsoever shall henceforth be attached to their jobs, and shall not leave nor be dismissed nor change employment, under penalty of a term in jail. The penalty shall be determined by the Unification Board, such Board to be appointed by the Bureau of Economic Planning and National Resources. All persons reaching the age of twenty-one shall report to the Unification Board, which shall assign them to where, in its opinion, their services will best serve the interests of the nation.

    POINT2: All industrial, commercial, manufacturing and business establishments of any nature whatsoever shall henceforth remain in operation, and the owners of such establishments shall not quit nor leave nor retire, nor close, sell or transfer their business, under penalty of the nationalization of their establishment and of any and all of their property.

    POINT3: All patents and copyrights, pertaining to any devices, inventions, formulas, processes and works of any nature whatsoever, shall be turned over to the nation as a patriotic emergency gift by means of Gift Certificates to be assigned voluntarily by the owners of all such patents and copyrights. The Unification Board shall then license the use of such patents and copyrights to all applicants, equally and without discrimination, for the purpose of eliminating monopolistic practices, discarding obsolete products and making the best available to the whole nation. No trademarks, brand names or copyrighted titles shall be used. Every formerly patented product shall be known by a new name and sold by all manufacturers under the same name, such name to be selected by the Unification Board. All private trademarks and brand names are hereby abolished.

    POINT4: No new devices, inventions, products, or goods of any nature whatsoever, not now on the market, shall be produced, invented, manufactured or sold after the date of this directive. The Office of Patents and Copyrights is hereby suspended.

    POINT5: Every establishment, concern, corporation or person engaged in production of any nature whatsoever shall henceforth produce the same amount of goods per year as it, they or he produced during the Basic Year, no more or no less. The year to be known as the Basic or Yardstick Year is to be the year ending on the date of the directive. Over or under production shall fined, such fines to be determined by the Unification Board.

    POINT6: Every person of any age, sex, class or income, shall henceforth spend the same amount of money on the purchase of goods per year as he or she spent during the Basic Year, no more and no less. Over or under purchasing shall be fined, such fines to be determined by the Unification Board.

    POINT7: All wages, prices, salaries, dividends, profits, interest rate and forms of income of any nature whatsoever, shall be frozen at the their present figures, as of the date of this directive.

    POINT8: All cases arising from and rules not specifically provided for in this directive, shall be settled and determined by the Unification Board, whose decisions will be final.

    God Help Us.

  2. dwbinder says:

    We have Chauncey Gardiner as President. He has rice pudding between his ears. He has been short changed by the Lord and is dumber than a jackass. He is too stupid to know he can’t walk on water.

    • dennisl59 says:

      We really don’t know how stupid he may be. Why? None, zero, nada, zilch of any of his college transcripts have ever been released, by design and on purpose. However, we can, using the research and books of both Stanley Kurtz(Radical in Chief) and Dinesh D’Souza(The Roots of Obama’s Rage) gain a greater understanding of the man. Having read both, I can tell you he is a clear and present danger to America as the current President of the United States of America. In my opinion, of course.

  3. RuBegonia says:

    Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) [link redacted, post in TAMwire?] says: “This is nothing more than a political favor for the unions who are supporting President Obama’s re-election campaign.”

  4. radargeek says:

    Clearly its more of odumber paying back to the union in Washington state.

  5. lord-ruler says:

    This is terrible. The audacity of these people is breathtaking.

  6. Slimfemme says:

    When I read about this all I could say is, I told you so!!! This is the logical consequence of this administration. A lot people seem to be confused about whether the president is fascist or socialist. This is fascism pure and simple. Don’t be surprised if in the future they make it illegal for us to move to states that are more prosperous. I wouldn’t put it past them.

  7. Foreverautumn says:

    When I first looked at this article, the first thought that crossed my mind was, “Atlas Shrugged”! I swear to God, it’s almost like that chick had a crystal ball or something! Now I’ve gotta wonder when they’ll spring Directive 10-289 (aka Moratorium on Brains) on us.

  8. dennisl59 says:

    Here is the body of the complaint filed by the NLRB directly from their own website:

    NLRB Acting General Counsel Lafe Solomon today issued a complaint against the Boeing Company alleging that it violated federal labor law by deciding to transfer a second production line to a non-union facility in South Carolina for discriminatory reasons.

    Boeing announced in 2007 that it planned to assemble seven 787 Dreamliner airplanes per month in the Puget Sound area of Washington state, where its employees have long been represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. The company later said that it would create a second production line to assemble an additional three planes a month to address a growing backlog of orders. In October 2009, Boeing announced that it would locate that second line at the non-union facility.

    In repeated statements to employees and the media, company executives cited the unionized employees’ past strike activity and the possibility of strikes occurring sometime in the future as the overriding factors in deciding to locate the second line in the non-union facility.

    The NLRB launched an investigation of the transfer of second line work in response to charges filed by the Machinists union and found reasonable cause to believe that Boeing had violated two sections of the National Labor Relations Act because its statements were coercive to employees and its actions were motivated by a desire to retaliate for past strikes and chill future strike activity.

    “A worker’s right to strike is a fundamental right guaranteed by the National Labor Relations Act,” Mr. Solomon said. “We also recognize the rights of employers to make business decisions based on their economic interests, but they must do so within the law. I have worked with the parties to encourage settlement in the hope of avoiding costly litigation, and my door remains open to that possibility.”

    To remedy the alleged unfair labor practices, the Acting General Counsel seeks an order that would require Boeing to maintain the second production line in Washington state. The complaint does not seek closure of the South Carolina facility, nor does it prohibit Boeing from assembling planes there.

    Absent a settlement between the parties, the next step in the process will be a hearing before an NLRB administrative law judge in Seattle, set for June 14, at which both parties will have an opportunity to present evidence and arguments.

    Summary: Boeing wants to have the fallback of having at least 3 787’s being built in South Carolina in case the primary plant union goes on strike and shuts down making the other 7 planes. Boeing is betting the company on this plane; they have buyers, they need product to sell.

  9. SoCalGal says:

    The Audacity of Hype. This man is purely and simply, evil.

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