Boise OSHA Safety Issue

Yes, the cars that were derailed because of no safety stop were removed the middle of the summer but guess what--still no safety stops at the end of the tracks to prevent further derailments and loss of life if one of them cars strike a 2500 pound car on Hwy 11. Yeah right, safety program my you know what. Its a safety program when its necessary for there to be a safety program. That too is show and tell and the majority of the workers know it also. Just do what is necessary to get your next cooler or thermos bottle or fishing pole or what ever that a local business is contibuting 50% toward you getting it. No, even thats fake. All these years and some, but not the majority, can't see what harm has been done to yourself or to your children and to your town by this company. Paycheck yes, ethical, moral, quality of life--not a chance. This is just a typical, run of the mill, American corporation in its death thros trying to grab what it can while it can before this business too, is performed by some body in another country. When this paper company is down to 400 workers, then 275 workers, they will still try to brow beat you into thinking they are somebody with a club. Give me a break!! You would not have gotten 2nd street either, if I had been on the city councel. Who cares about "the few" workers that new machine employs. That was the biggest mistake the union ever made. Trade 1000 workers for what?? A peanut factory and a blue steel building that now employs howmany??

I am not against unions at all. The union made that mistake and most in the union have a hard time convincing themselves they didn't. In fact, they can only convince themselves otherwise because of the jobs you mention. # 4 most probably would not have gone away. #1 and #2 or #1 and #3 would have gone away. Annnnd #1 and #2 or #1 and #3 should go away now and most probably will, sooner or later. I might add, just like the "will-sheeter" that did not come here this summer, loosing those machines will also not be a bad thing for the town. It will be a bad thing for 3 shifts of workers on one or two machines plus some maintenance and some salary I certainly do admit and sooner or later it still will be a bad thing for our workers but not a bad thing for the town. Had you never let it go this far, we most probably would have had a wood pellet operation here as well as a snow machine plant or accessory plant here. If you carefully control the dis-assembly of that operation, in such a fashion as to loose as you are gaining, and gain in several areas rather then one plant that thinks it is bigger then only 850 workers, you now would not even be in the state of affairs you are now. Three shifts of what you have on that new machine, are you kidding me!! Everything else is nominal as far as worker population is concerned and you just re-inforced the wicked witch from the east and nothing more. Lets put it in more terms that everyone can come to grips with. If I hear you right, you are "happy" with what the new machine brought you in lieu of what at least three other company's could bring you with say 400 workers. Don't forget the insulite closed because of another lie about the lack of fiber that was available, the primary arguement being made at that meeting to rid the company of the penninsula so Blatnick and Humprey could have there park, something that could not be done without it. Then another lie, built the new machine which uses as much fiber as the four insulite machines. Granted the county and state have opened up fiber resources that we always had and were under utilized. Now I am not in the plant anymore, and there are many that are not, but there is another side to your job. I certainly don't want you to loose your livlyhood unless I can give you another job but I think thats the crux of the issue. In any case, we don't owe corporate America anything for what they do or don't. They offer a job at a rate and we accept that rate in exchange for a fair days work, period. We own them nothing, especially not any land they can do without and can't even bring themselves to the decency to argue with anything but another fake and false arguement. Say what you want, I don't want anybody to loose their jobs but I want 2 machines gone, dis-assembled and shipped out of here with those jobs re-placed with 4 other corporate interests in their stead. Look at it also like this, sooner or later this industry will vanish to Asia without a doubt. Sooner or later!! If you make the moves now, to carefully control your own destiny instead of letting an entity you can't even touch, control your destny, some folks that have children will still be able to call this home and have a reason to stay here and return, or not. Lastly, most towns in America have no industry at all, and make it just fine, even better then we do and without one entity continually holding a club over your head. No industry at all but a variety of business interests. The few folks still working in that plant can only see their own individual situations and now don't even care about the majority of their neighbors. Just like a union negotiation, there is room to come to an understanding here and the company has made absolutely no attempt at doing so.

How many are employed by Boise now?? Boise and others say about 850, thats the number I have been using. Would I give up one company that has disdain for 850 workers versus four companys that have disdain for 850 workers.....you betcha I would. Four entitys not only are easier for you to control but are easier for the local population and local government to control also. You betcha there just fine. The gas argument is a waste of time and illogicxal for all that read it. The price of gas as is the price of everything not based on any thing by itself. The British a more oil then they need and have paid over $9.00 for years, others are subsidized for as little as .25cents a gasllon. Even your wages are based on an incorrect thinking. There is no reasoin in the world to think a house should not cost $1.19 or $42.00 or any other price no more then there is to think your $10.00 an hour is in actuality any more money then $100.00 and hour they are both relative to an ambiguous value that has a value only because you have it and you yourself have givem it a value. That value means differant things to both the receiver and the giver. Simply put you have what you have and can't possibly imagine living on 1/4 or 1/2 of what you now have. The same holds true if you now made $100.00 an hour. The actual amount is purly a relative thing. You are correct about many things but there kind of mixed up in a local sota of way. Lastly, this town IS NOT a paper mill town. This town is Internation Falls, Minnesota,in which a small paper mill exists that employs a small number of its residents. It can be many other things and employ many other workers doing many other things, in fact it does, like I said, it "only" employs 850 workers. It still can employ may other good and willing workers who have said for the last 12 months they want to work or come here and work, you just won't let them because your to busy defending the 850. I might add that,as I have state before, there are at least 75 to 125 of those 850 current workers that don't have to be working and can retire now if they choose and do so without have a worry about where the beans were going to come from. You can argue all day long sir, if your one of those that wants to hang your hat on the old then certainly do so. In my opinion, working on #4 machine for ABC corporation or working on # 4 machine for XYZ corporation is the same. "If" I am correct thensplitting the company up,which is exactely what the bankers would like to do and neither you nor I can prevent it in any case, into 4 separate entitys would be better for the workers and the town. In any case, I like talking to you, even if neither one of us knows anything.

Well maybe your right and maybe your not. You see, I just checked Fergus Falls and they are a nice little town and they don't have a Boise. I checked Bemidgi also,yep, they also don't have a Boise. Same for Park Rapids. In fact I checked and most of the towns in Minnesota don't have a Boise. I think we just can't get the drugs out of our system. Was a time when we had an International Falls in the past, your right no Boise then either. Today however I think your right MamaG we wouldn't.But we could have had and we still can have a mini metropolis with a 10 fold higher tax base if we had 5 Boise's here. and with 5 different company operations we could control what they do better and give our kids that still live here a reason to stay and those that left a reason to come back. Nobody gives away anybody, anything unless of course its charity. Is that what we are doing here? Being chairitable? Give me one reason, only one, what anybody is going to get out of this but the paper company? Actually, if the plant moved there operation further to the east, it would effect a good bit of construction labor to effect the change. Thats some big bucks for a lot of construction and steel guys that could do the job. But of course as I seen in another blog, you are talking something about cutting somebodys nose off, or some such surgical procedure thats going to help somebody out in town. Without regard to the burner road, building a bypass further to the east is probably not a bad idea. It will kill some business on 53 but heh, who cares. There will be plenty of acreage to build new businesses on the new road. The situation here is that the folks "in town" don't want the road given to Boise, they want to keep it or be compensated fairly for the road, depending on who you talk to. It doesn't matter what I want, I am just the guy with the typewriter and I only get one vote just like everybody else. Of course I would like the privlage of at least being able to exercise my one vote how I choose.

Don't you see that it is this attitude that will bring us to extinction. Not everyone in this town is Boise owned. What has Boise done for them? They get to breathe in Boise's "smell of success" but share none of the profits. Boise is part of the reason other businesses don't want to come here. The town is so indebted to Boise that they leave no room for another employer. Wake up and smell the coffee.

Gardenut and the following bloggers have it right. The boat may have sailed unless our local elected leaders can see beyond the influence of Boise. My dad's dad didn't get the chance to retire, he was 71 and still working for Mando when he passed. He only hoped that his sons would have it better and they did. They both retired at 62 with full benefits and able to live well on Medicare, social security and their pensions. They both passed away due to the insidious carcinogens they worked in, so their retirement was cut short because like all of us who work for Boise, we give our lives for the company. We give our bodies because there isn't enough modern tools and equipment and you have to do your jobs by hand, literally. What good is retirement, "the golden years", when you can't walk and can't use your hands and talking a boatload of medications just to live? Now you have to fight to get the help you need. My grandpa came here to get a better life, and then my dad was able to enjoy the fruits of his labor, but no matter what I do, I will never seen the day when I can retire at 62 with full benefits all around and enjoy the land I love up here. Boise is not the wonderful place some of you think it is. It is a place to work owned by bankers who don't care about you at all.
The city leaders and all those elected have a responsibility to care for all of us, not just those they meet with at Business After Hours, and unless they make radical changes in thinking, our precious International Falls will be home of great memories and the last gas station on the way to Canada. Sorry to be so glum today, just how I feel and to all, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

E'toile du Nord

I agree with six-shooter on the tourism issue-they are not and will not create full time living wage jobs. The only people that will benefit from tourism are the business owners! Those of you that complain about the elected officials, did you all vote at the last election? There were many well qualified folks running for office and how many changes were made? Basically NONE! I would wage with the upcoming local elections coming in November, it will be the same story again.