Our Governor Dennis Daugaard and Texas Governor Rick Perry both visited Connecticut this week to try luring gun manufacturers to relocate or expand their operations away from the tyranny and oppression of sensible and popular gun control laws. Knowing that portraying Connecticutters as effete East Coast anti-gun elites, Governor Daugaard dispatches Pat Costello to call Texans lazy:
"South Dakotans show up for work on time. They put in a good day's labor for fair wages. And have lower instances of absenteeism. So there's just a host of things. So if there's anything that would set us apart from Texas, I think it would be our workforce," Costello said [Sammi Bjelland, "Gov. Daugaard Visits Connecticut Gun Makers," KELOLand.com, 2013.06.18].
Get ready for a quick draw contest at the next Republican Governors' Association meeting.
I don't have stats to verify Costello's claim on absenteeism (and he's making the positive claim here, so I challenge to produce such stats, along with an itemization of his "host of things"). But here's some statistical speculation:
- Hispanics make up 38.1% of the Texas population.
- Hispanics make up 2.9% of the South Dakota population.
- Hispanics have slightly lower rates of absences and work time missed than white folks.
South Dakotans work hard. So do a lot of other Americans. Trying to convince gun manufacturers that South Dakotans work harder than Texans probably isn't adding any value to South Dakota's sales pitch.
Apparently the governor's idea of a fair wage is a lot different than mine.
ya Joan I'd like the Governor to tell us what a fair wage is.
Good luck Cory waiting for those stats. You'll be waiting awhile
Can't fix stupid.
Looks like the gunmaker is going to relocate to South ... Carolina.
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/2013/06/18/3544853/conn-firearms-manufacturer-coming.html
I just shake my head at the Republican Party's continued efforts to low ball South Dakota workers by bragging about so called "fair wages".
Makes me think of a quote from Warren Buffet - something along the lines of: "Honesty is a very expensive gift. You shouldn't expect it from a cheap person."
I thought that ole Denny and the rest had given up on the gun makers after the last deal that went down in Rapid City. As I seem to remember, the state and Rapid City gave some pretty sweet deals to the slickster from Israel, then they left like a thief in the night. It looks like the gun runners just want cheaper labor and you know what they say, you get what you pay for. Look out boys for the bolt to come back at ya, quick!
So I saw in the paper the other day that we need immigrants(Mexicans) to get the farm work done. Does this mean that South Dakotans have lost their work ethic and now need immigrants to do the work. So our work ethic has just become a cute line we talk.
South Dakotans need to get over their thinking that they have the hardest working people of all. I've been in MN for over a decade now, and the workers here are just as hardworking, but in a smarter way - for much better wages.
Jerry, was that Israeli deal in the news? I'd love to read more about that.
Dave, you're right... and that article about PTR Industries says that Stag, one of the manufacturers Gov. Daugaard visited, is looking at the same place, in part because the boss likes to golf there, and in part because it makes sense for manufacturers to locate to the same place, since their shared suppliers can make multiple deliveries more efficiently. How many gun manufacturers do we have in South Dakota to promote that combo efficiency?
Jenny, good point: people need to work hard and work smart.
Roger, South Dakota's reliance on immigrant farm labor is telling. That labor market fact shows we South Dakotans seem as disinclined to do that hard farm work as folks elsewhere. We imagine we are all still homesteading farmers, when in fact we're urbanizing, computerizing, and white-collarizing like the rest of America. (See also the cognitive disconnect that allows us to elect a Congresswoman who dresses up like a farmer instead of qualified professionals.)
" I've been in MN for over a decade now, and the workers here are just as hardworking, but in a smarter way - for much better wages."
smarter way? I'd love to hear the logic behind that one.
It's called unions, DB.
And, without putting words in Jenny's mouth, doing the exact same work in Minnesota as South Dakota for a wage that's 50% higher.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA....
Let me know how that next gov't shutdown goes.....
http://www.startribune.com/business/212258521.html
Sounds like Minnesotans are already pretty complacent with their employment situation.
Wow, the pitch is so misinformed it's beyond belief. Modern arms manufacturing, like most other precision industries, is nearly completely automated through machinery. You don't need a bunch of unskilled labor to build arms, it would be like telling them that they should move to SD because there are lots of horses here.
Modern manufacturing systems need:
1. Feed stock materials.
2. Technicians.
3. Replacement parts.
South Dakota has none of these, nor the infrastructure, people, or equipment to even make a semi-competitive bid. Further, even if you put all of these things together in SD, it would be new and untested without any backup. Why would a high tech manufacturing company ever move here? One failure and they would burn through 10x the economic incentives offered by the state. Conversely, if something fails in an existing manufacturing center, they could quickly and inexpensively fix the problem.
Our state people fundamentally don't understand modern manufacturing.
Farms don't need ignorant un-educated Mexicans, Milk factories and manure stench factories need them.
Farms won't need much of anyone soon do to the advances in robotics. We are one a couple of years away from tractors that can drive themselves in the field.
Tractors can nearly drive themselves already. The GPS systems will keep them on track. An operator may have to turn them at the end of the field, but I am not even sure that is required.
Things like this just do not do the State any favors.
Jenny, I read that article in the Strib today too. One of the things I noticed is that, while describing the tax differences, there was no mention of all the deficiencies SD endures due to the minimal services and one party government. I'd like to see an article cover all of it. Maybe the Strib could do a series.
Jenny, my observation is that Minnesotans have a higher opinion of ND than SD. What do you think? I don't think MNans think about SD much at all. As the Strib story said, the focus is on much, much bigger fish in a much, much bigger pond. SD is a guppy, and will remain so under one-party control.
Here ya go Cory, in all its glory. These flim flam artists stuck it to the good folks of South Dakota without even a hug.
http://rapidcityjournal.com/news/local/israeli-firearms-manufacturer-opening-plant-in-rapid-city/article_091341ba-bea8-11de-b587-001cc4c002e0.html
Deb, Minnesotans love the beauty of the Black Hills (especially Custer State Park) and of course the Sturgis annual bike rally. They're indifferent towards the rest of the state, and think it's flat and boring aside from crossing the Missouri river and seeing the "beautiful sunflower fields" in August to get to their tourist destination. I don't know of any Minnesotan that would ever consider moving for a job to SD, but I've been in Rochester since I moved here and b/c of Mayo Clinic (which employs 1/3 of the city's population), it wasn't really hit by the recession. Minnesotans are very settled in this part of the state and I know plenty of people that have been employed at the Clinic for 30-40 years and plan on retiring from there with a very generous traditional pension. As for ND, there was only one lady I talked to that knew a lot about the oil boom in ND and was telling me about it. I hadn't realized ND was thriving considerably from the oil reserves found there. As for Sioux Falls, MNs think it's a nice enough town but can take it or leave it since there's shopping galore in the Cities with Mall of America, etc.
Yes Jenny, you're right about the Hills and Sturgis. I live in St. Paul and do hear talk about ND. People aren't too eager to live in ND or move their families there, but they want to make some big money.