Re: The future of boating
Issue 1:
What have I offered regarding your valid, real question was first facts. Will we be able to boat, service our boats, etc?
Fact: Brunswick corporation (stock ticker BC) is no GM. They are quite adept for such a large company. They mothballed their factories and even kept some lines of motors alive against the wishes of the EPA. They have reduced their significant back log of inventory. They have updated their cross-section of brands, even dumping some like Maxum. They are rolling out new product lines. They have their debt under control and its low. Their strength has been reflected in the over 300% increase in the price of their stock (yeah, I got a big piece of that). Even with gas prices going up they just had their rating increased by Moody's. This not only drives investors to them, but keeps their ability to borrow if needed cheaper.
As long as Brunswich is alive and strong, there will be plenty of mercury / mercruiser / quicksilver parts and service providers. As long as merc is solid, companies like sierra, mallory, and SEI will have a place in the economy, and retail outlets like iboats will sell their parts.
Thus, we are good with keeping our boats up and running unless you have an OMC power plant -- but that is hardly related to the economy. There will also be new boats for us to buy.
Issue 2:
Comments were made about how sorry our youth are, presented as an argument about how this will negatively impact our future.
Fact: There has been an absolute bottle neck at the nations most prestigious and highly selective universities and incredibly talented kids are being denied admission. Even the flagship state schools cannot admit all the talented youth. There is a significantly talented generation of kids coming into the economy and they will continue to do the great things their parents have done. I see it first hand.
Issue 3:
It was argued that there is no manufacturing left in the US.
Fact, this is simply not true. We have lost a lot of jobs, but still lead the world in manufacturing. Yes, we still produce more than China -- maybe not for long, but the posts make it sound as if there are no manufacturing jobs anymore. To counter this I offered the fact that a brand new major manufacturing plant is opening up right down the road in Chattanooga, TN. Tennesseans and Georgians, not Chinese will be working at that plant, and earning wages that will allow them to be boaters if they so wish.
You want another fact?
Fact: I tried again to get into the marina for a slip this year -- still a multiple-year waiting list, and then I have to accept an uncovered slip while waiting on the even longer list for a covered one. Demand for access to the lakes is still strong around here.
Now lets see some show me state stats on why we need to worry about not being able to service our boats or buy new ones over the long haul.
