Incompetence is all too obvious at the trade shows of major industries in the United States. At the AAPEX Trade Show, it was apparent that the PTO needs to answer some of those Viagra Spam-emails; because they are absolutely Impotent to the piracy of patents, trademarks, concepts and innovations in our country. There was at least, and this is not an exaggeration, 10 Football fields of Knock-Off Asian products at the show of patented products manufactured in China, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, India, etc.
The President of the United States ought to show up at one of these manufacturing shows unannounced with a few secret service guys wearing a fake beard and hat with sun glasses and look for himself. I swear to god, I threw up after walking through the down stairs show at the Sands EXPO Center. This is a Personal Observation at the Trade Show, I discussed this with many hard working entrepreneurs in the auto sector. Some parts were after market products, which are not the patented type, but 85% were. 10 football fields of products displayed in separate 10 X 10 booths. Ten football fields. You could park 3-4 747’s in that room.
The Czar of manufacturing needs to get his little ass down there and check it out. Same at the Westek Show and many other trade shows involving manufacturing. I saw, Coleman Lanterns exactly the same as the green lanterns they became popular for camping, exact copies. Green with no Coleman Stickers, selling these in broad daylight. Coleman and other niche manufacturers have done extremely well previously hiring workers in the states.
It has been said by President Bush that America can compete with the world’s low cost labor third worlds emerging. YES. This is correct, I totally agree, however when we have our designs, innovations, inventions, registered patents and trademarks and then sold right in front of our faces in a National Trade Show, by the way this is the second largest attended tradeshow in the US, since it is co-branded and attended by all the SEMA crowd too. Which is the Aftermarket Auto Trade group.
http://www.aapex.org and http://www.SEMA.org
I would think that the Chinese, Koreans, etc can go ahead and make their own innovations or pay the royalties to those companies they steal the patented products from, it would not be that much money and everyone is treaded fairly on a level playing field. We have certainly heard talk about these problems, but the Czar of Manufacturing has not addressed it to the degree of the actual problem and we pussy foot around the Free Trade debate by listening to conservative think tanks and liberal bleeding hearts who want to help other nations peoples, so they can live better. That is just wonderful, but not by stealing American Entrepreneurs dreams, jobs and designs. Play fair and compete, that is free enterprise, this other thing is just plain stealing.
These other countries exploit workers and keep the cash for their stealing entrepreneurs, who from an Eastern Culture point of view see nothing wrong with this. Meanwhile the PTO allows these Violations of Intellectual property on our citizens as they build a 600 million dollar building which is suppose to fix things? Hardly, when government agencies get bigger they become less effective not more efficient. All this does is provide more jobs for low income people in Washington, who create paperwork slowing the process not protecting it. And of course this also provides more work for more lawyers who launch suits against our own citizens in infighting instead of catching the real culprits in Asia. If a company here moves manufacturing to Asia, they also are giving them the edge to create higher sophisticated technology in manufacturing and methods.
http://www.carwashguys.com/finite.pdf
We have been advised that we will be getting a Czar of Manufacturing, so let’s get his little butt out to the real problems and see it and report back to the President Administration. The Czar of Manufacturing has many issues to deal with such as Free Trade, PTO, Violations of Intellectual property and working together for a peaceful solution. If we look at the the last five years we have seen a doubling ever year in the amount of products which have been pirated. The software industry, movie industry, publishing industry, aircraft industry, heavy equipment, industry, trucking industry, auto aftermarket industry, need I name more? Surely the mighty government can do something about this situation, before we have NONE, as in NONE, ZERO manufacturing jobs left. As you can tell I was outraged. Yet, we as people are focused on many other issues in the media like the Michael Jackson Trial, while our country, brains, innovations and jobs are being stolen right out from under our noses? Level the playing field, and yes we can compete in the World economy.
All we need is a little reality check from the Unions and international enforcement of patents. People are out of work in the manufacturing sector, these are real jobs and we need them. If we are to become the innovators of the world and sell our inventions then we need to protect them. We need better skills and education taught to fulfill this and we need PTO enforcement on hand at all trade shows getting to the bottom of this. If violations occur it is a crime, and therefore we need the power to enforce these issues. They would do it to us and do. I can remember previously the rules in some nations that you have to work through a foreign national in their countries to do business there, yet we have no laws like that and they do not care even if we did. They have laws against us, but not the other way around. That is not a level playing field, that is not balanced trade, that my friends is pure BS.
We have laws against us, against our own companies, tying our entrepreneurial hands behind our backs, yet they do not follow the same laws and we do not enforce those few laws we have in place against them as they flagrantly spit in our faces. Fair is fair, either get out of the way or enforce it for all. It was pathetic our generosity towards these abuses of our laws and rules of intellectual property. How can anyone in the world think otherwise and how come I am not seeing these issues at the top of the list of political agendas? We talk with China about there Manipulation of currency? How about the out right theft and stealing of our innovations, inventions, patents, concepts and markets? We attack our companies and threaten them with fines from Elliot Spitzer, SEC, FTC, etc. and then turn a blind eye to the to intellectual theft while we demand transparency of our own corporation right down to the dollar on the books, which is available to all thru EDGAR and other sources for the same international competitor who is stealing us blind. We give away so much. We attack our own and then allow those who have no reason to assist our people, exploit our weaknesses. We make everything public and then our companies have no chance against the sneak attacks on our markets, products and companies. The stuff just shows up one day in the ports with 10-20 packed shipping containers of copied parts? No trace? Then they take our stuff sell it to other markets, which we are not allowed to sell in? Or where our companies would have to pay extensive tariffs. What a complete shame, what a complete slap in the face to free enterprise, the hypocrisy of the WTO and international trade groups is so obviously stacked against fairness of strength and competition that it is a wonder anyone can utter the words free markets in good faith.
We allow companies who are offshore or foreign to compete with us without disclosure, while our public companies cannot hide anything from competitors otherwise they are in subpoena city of regulation extortion, they are in violation of the Sarbanes Oxley or the myriad of rules, regulations, laws and the letters of those laws, the intent of those laws and/or case law which was decided in some bogus politically motivated jurisdiction Kangaroo Court with an elected judge who is beholden to the people who got him/her elected. How can any entrepreneur predict, what a court might say, they are making this stuff up as they go along? Depending on which way it is hanging while they are playing with it under the bench for Pete’s sake. If any foreign competitor sues one of our companies here, they can use our laws against us, if they sue us there, they use their even more corrupt system of ethics, laws and pony show courts. Have we become so brain dead that we cannot see we are eating ourselves away with class action law suits, regulatory bureaucracy, union demands, health care suits, etc. All we do is attack, attack and divide ourselves, all the while allow for free reign of our markets with no accountability to those who manufacture there. You cannot class action sue a Chinese Manufacturer, you cannot even find an address half the time, even if you could you could not make any money on the suit. If you could subpoena them they might behead your messenger. So instead we attack here. And of course then our companies say forget it, and manufacture there, then those companies steal the patents and start manufacturing the same product, sometimes next door, sometimes across town and then sell those knock offs in the same markets where the demand dictates such as in the US. DAH?
We are driving our companies over seas, can’t anyone see but Mr. Lou Dobbs TV host and we are allowing those companies over seas to attack us here. The Chinese study Sun Tzu, shouldn’t we be studying Carl von Clauswitz? Either we must get rid of some of this bogus over regulation, which is non-reality based and then make sure those regulations that are reality based be used world wide and enforced equally. Or we go for protectionism, which undermines free trade and makes enemies out of former trade partners and means continued wars over trade issues and culture clashes? Look there is a problem here, so let’s address it.
WTO and every other trade group or any negotiation should completely address this. Lets pay attention and let’s keep the playing field level, let’s let the best man win. I will not here any debate on this topic, I am right. Wise up World.
“Lance Winslow” – If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs