If you shoot a gun you probably know about Hoppes #9 for cleaning the guts of your gun, smells good too.

The parent company is Michaels of Oregon.
In 2002 the good news was new jobs in Meridian Idaho.

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/ ... i_93915966

Today the good news is 200-300 jobs lost right before christmas to ship manufacturing overseas by the new owners Bushnell.

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/ ... _n15654845

Bushnell wanted to get the lost jobs on thier books before the new year. (Per KBOI and Idaho statesman)

These were not many high paying jobs, but they were american jobs and american products.

The lost jobs were not announced on the international press but in the idaho statesman and local radio news only.

The product lines of Michaels were/are: Uncle Mike's, Hoppe's, Butler Creek, Stoney Point, Uncle Mike's Law Enforcement and Blackwater Gear brands.

I am pretty darn dissapointed, but what did we think would happen when a nice global company like Bushnell and thier parent bought out michaels to fill out the gaps in thier product line.

Blackwater Gear will be a great addition to Bushnell, "a new brand that caters to the tactical market and provides products such as belts and vests for the military and Special Forces sectors."

Was it Marx or Lennin who said, "We shall hang you with rope you make with your own hands."

He had it wrong, "We shall hang ourselves in the search of marginal profits with the rope outsourced to countries that hedge thier currency from inflation."

Is not the biggest gripe about management plans for our waters that decisions are made on the margin that do not take into account the future health of the waterways or the species that live in it.

One of the greatest streangths of America, historically, has been the cash flow generated by our middle class. Something Ireland has been able to see in thier country as thier own middle class population explodes.

We will figure it out, maybe crafts such as small shops building custom fly rods (or similar) will be the future answer. The world tends to go in cycles.

Crafts -> Trades -> Mass Production -> Custom Production (Crafts) Each has thier trade offs and JC has covered some of that cycle in his fly rod articles.

JC if I am flaming go ahead and put out the flames.

I still hate to see people out of work before Christmas. It is a hard time of the year to be out of work or searching for work. Bushnell should be spanked.

Yeah!!!!!!! go team!!!!!!!