Thats it, start learning Chinese

[CVMA544]

WTF?

The fat lady has warmed up, has the sheet music in her hand and is heading toward the stage.

U.S. Bridges, Roads Being Built by Chinese Firms | Video - ABC News

 

[fireblade]

lol .......here's what will really make you go WTF ....... a lot of are power grid transformers are build and come from china...... and a lot of power companys around this country have orders transformers on back order......... cough ......

 

[femurphy77]

Well at least we can rest easy knowing that they will put the same thought and concerns for environmental issues, consumer safety, etc into these infrastructure projects as they've put into the various consumer products we've been hearing (so negatively) about lately!

 

[bingley]

This report doesn't make sense. There's gotta be something going on that we don't see. Can California really save that much money by turning down federal funding and hiring Chinese firms? What is the role of the union in all this?

 

[The Bubba Effect]

Ni Hao ma?

 

[ZombieApocolypse]

Who do you think carved the "new" MLK monument? It certainly wasnt an American.

 

[CVMA544]

This report doesn't make sense. There's gotta be something going on that we don't see. Can California really save that much money by turning down federal funding and hiring Chinese firms? What is the role of the union in all this?

I know on some projects the Feds only provide part and the state the rest.

If the Feds were gonna chip in 20% and the State was on the hook for 80% and the Chinese do it for 70% the State is 10% ahead, the Chinese pay their folks top wage for sure, and of course the quality of work and materials are top notch.

 

[Calvin]

"Top Qwarity" - Phrase I heard most often during 2 trips to China.

 

[jedi]

So have ya heard that Dancing with the Stars is fast starting a new season?
OP the don't care about your post and those of us that do are sadly far too few to do anything about it. The titanic is about to hit the iceberg folks. But rest assure the band will continue to play.

-Jedi

 

[linzal12]

By cutting the Feds out of it they no longer have to go by the Davis-Bacon act and can bring in the lowest bidder they can find. From whatever corner of the earth they want.

 

[bingley]

I know on some projects the Feds only provide part and the state the rest.

If the Feds were gonna chip in 20% and the State was on the hook for 80% and the Chinese do it for 70% the State is 10% ahead, the Chinese pay their folks top wage for sure, and of course the quality of work and materials are top notch.

Do you have the actual figures? Or are you just guessing? I'm asking not to give you a hard time, but because I believe there is something crucial missing from the report. I don't know what it is, but I got the sixth sense that someone may be pulling a fast one on us. The union's involvement in publicizing these contracts needs more examination, as does state government's justification of the bidding outcome. Both of these have been glossed over in the new report.

From the few seconds the person representing California had on the news, it seems like there is some sort of process they followed. What is this process? Is there a stipulation for hiring American firms only? (It seems like there isn't unless the state takes federal money.)

The union obviously has a lot of invested interest. It stands to profit from "winning the case." Is the Union attempting to gain politically against state governments or corporations by drawing attention to these cases? I'd think the union would love a law that prohibits bids from international firms. On the other hand, corporations and state governments would prefer a free market, where they can hire whomever they like. Is this what is at stake?

I haven't run a large construction project, but I would doubt that worker wages, whether at the American level or at the Chinese level, would constitute a big part of the total cost. Consequently, I doubt that cheaper labor brought in from overseas would make such a dramatic difference in bidding.

Look at the responses in this thread. Many people jump to this "Chinese firms = low quality" conclusion. Surely state governments have been hiring foreign firms for a while. Is the union capitalizing on certain preconceived notion about Chinese labor to rile up anger? There is also a lot of tension between certain state governments and the federal government over taking or not taking federal funding. Is this how the federal government is getting back at the states that spurned Obama?

We have to look deeper for dirt. Again, the news report doesn't make a lot of sense. It just doesn't give us a whole lot of information. Keep your mind sharp and suspicious! Don't get played.

 

[rambone]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxJdEqaCcGc[/ame]

 

[Kaiser]

Who do you think carved the "new" MLK monument? It certainly wasnt an American.

+1 on that sculpted by Chinese artist Lei Yixin.

However in all truth I am encouraging my teenagers to learn Madarin.

 

[bingley]

+1 on that sculpted by Chinese artist Lei Yixin.

You learn something everyday.

I guess when it comes to art I'm more international. A great artist can come from anywhere. But when it comes to building bridges and roads, come on, this is not painting the Mona Lisa.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Ni Hao ma

Cantonese does not count.

Have to learn the north language.

"We do not fear Heaven, we do not fear Earth, we fear the Southern attempting to speak the north language."

 

[88GT]

Isn't this what we want? Trade with all? Market forces left to work without government manipulation?