In World of Big Stuff, the U.S. Still Rules
Imagine my surprise when I discovered that Peoria, Illinois – only a hop, skip, and and a jump from my home town in Illinois – is where Komatsu leads the world in the manufacture of heavy mining machinery! And Decatur, Illinois, just 80 miles south, is home to the second largest manufacturer - Caterpillar.
In the little town where I now live in Costa Rica, a local industry mines gravel from the river flowing through it – and has tons (literally) of heavy equipment – that make a big racket day and night. Their trucks (often Mack Trucks) are found for miles around, carrying sand and gravel for every kind of construction. Reinforced-concrete buildings are springing up like mushrooms, because the land is still cheap. A large concrete plant is just down the road, working full-time.
This is not to say employment is plentiful – this heavy machinery dwarfs the people operating it. And the birth rate keeps soaking up the all the jobs available. And the young are not inclined to work hard.
The work ethics is a extinct as the Dodo Bird.
No trackbacks yet.