Alabama Takes a Hit Below the Belt - US to Buy Chinese Condomns

Being from Alabama, I could not resist posting this article. Moreover, if ever there were any doubts about how hard-hitting and far-reaching the economic downturn is in the country, as well as, the impact of the new global economy, this story captures it perfectly.

For a roughly 3 cents saving per condemn and because Congress removed "Buy America" language from the recently passed stimulus bill, USAID is taking its business to China!

As a result, 300 individuals in tiny Eufaula, AL are SOL after decades of service.

WOW


Stimulus? U.S. to buy Chinese condoms, ending Alabama jobs
Reported on McClatchy (3/23/09)
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/251/story/64577.html
By Mike McGraw of the Kansas City Star (3/22/09)
http://www.kansascity.com/637/story/1100966.html

Call it a condom conundrum.

At a time when the federal government is spending billions of stimulus dollars to stem the tide of U.S. layoffs, should that same government put even more Americans out of work by buying cheaper foreign products?

In this case, Chinese condoms.

In a move expected to cost 300 American jobs, the government is switching to cheaper off-shore condoms, including some made in China.

That's the dilemma for the folks at the U.S. Agency for International Development, which has distributed an estimated 10 billion U.S.-made AIDS-preventing condoms in poor countries around the world.

But not anymore.

The switch comes despite assurances over the years that the agency would continue to buy American whenever possible.

"Of course, we considered how many U.S. jobs would be affected by this move,” said a USAID official who spoke on the condition that he would not be named. But he said the reasons for the change included lower prices (2 cents versus more than 5 cents for U.S.-made condoms) and the fact that Congress dropped “buy American language” in a recent appropriations bill.

Job Losses Spawn a Wave of Business Creations

For thousands of us around the country, the current recession has created a major rethinking in how we sustain ourselves economically. No longer able to count of institutional stability or life-long jobs, many of us are looking at a variety of methods for improving our lot in life in this new world order. Many have gone back to school to upgrade skills or retrain for other job sectors. Others, such as those referenced in this article, have tapped into their entrepreneurial ingenuity to become their own bosses.

As we move forward as a world (we have to look beyond traditional borders and job sectors) entrepreneurs will be more vital than ever for reshaping the global economic community; particularly in the science, technology and environmental sectors. Hoever, for many, it simply boils down to taking control of their own financial destiny.


Weary of Looking for Work, Some Create Their Own
By Matt Richtel and Jenna Wortham of the New York Times (3/14/09)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/14/technology/start-ups/14startup.html?_r=1&ref=business

Alex Andon, 24, a graduate of Duke University in biology, was laid off from a biotech company last May. For months he sought new work. Then, frustrated with the hunt, he turned to jellyfish.

In an apartment he shares here with six roommates, Mr. Andon started a business in September building jellyfish aquariums, capitalizing on new technology that helps the fragile creatures survive in captivity. He has sold three tanks, one for $25,000 to a restaurant, and is starting a Web site to sell desktop versions for $350.

“I keep getting stung,” he said. And his crowded home office is filled with beakers and test tubes of jellyfish food. “But it beats looking for work. I hate looking for work.”

Plenty of other laid-off workers across the country, burned out by a merciless job market, are building business plans instead of sending out résumés. For these people, recession has become the mother of invention.