Open Letter to Any Politician Who Will Listen

To [Politition]:


I am a citizen of the United States of America, and I reside in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Over the past couple of days, our president has increased his attacks on our governor and our businesses and their executives.

In his press conference on March 27, 2020 he said:
"I say Mike (Pence), don't call the governor of Washington; you're wasting your time with him. Don't call the woman in Michigan," Trump said. "It doesn't make any difference. You know what I say? If they don't treat you right, don't call."

In a tweet from 10:29 PM · Mar 27, 2020, He said this:
"I love Michigan, one of the reasons we are doing such a GREAT job for them during this horrible Pandemic. Yet your Governor, Gretchen “Half” Whitmer is way in over her head, she doesn’t have a clue. Likes blaming everyone for her own ineptitude! #MAGA"

In another tweet from 11:16 AM · Mar 27, 2020, He said this:
"As usual with “this” General Motors, things just never seem to work out. They said they were going to give us 40,000 much needed Ventilators, “very quickly”. Now they are saying it will only be 6000, in late April, and they want top dollar. Always a mess with Mary B. Invoke “P”."

On March 27 the president enacted the Defense Production Act and targeted toward General Motors:
"Today, I signed a Presidential Memorandum directing the Secretary of Health and Human Services to use any and all authority available under the Defense Production Act to require General Motors to accept, perform, and prioritize Federal contracts for ventilators. Our negotiations with GM regarding its ability to supply ventilators have been productive, but our fight against the virus is too urgent to allow the give-and-take of the contracting process to continue to run its normal course. GM was wasting time. Today’s action will help ensure the quick production of ventilators that will save American lives."

I have a few concerns about how this is playing out and how my state is being treated. If my understanding is correct, GM now has to prioritize and produce ventilators that will go to the federal government for distribution. If this is incorrect, please let me know. If our president is only providing assistance to states whos governors show the appropriate level of appreciation and the VP has been ordered to not talk to our governor, then the citizens of Michigan are effectively making resources that are desperately needed in our state, but we won't have access to. I can't even begin to wrap my head around how insane this is.

I have worked for manufacturing companies my entire adult life, and Mr. Trump's criticisms seem totally unfounded to me. GM doesn't make ventilators, they make automobiles. Furthermore, they don't really make the automobile, they assemble them. Yes, they manufacture some of the components, but the majority come from outside suppliers. To convert an assembly line to build a totally different product and set up a supply chain is a huge undertaking. The fact that they are promising 6000 ventilators at the end of April is nothing short of amazing. Mary Bara should be congratulated for that level of effort. Of course, Mr. Trump has never run a business that actually produced anything, so he is not a reliable expert in how manufacturing works. It would be nice if he would listen to the experts in the field and stop attacking people who are doing their job.

I am not seeing any leadership coming out of Washington. Between the bickering, infighting, and name-calling, it is like watching a bunch of fourth graders playing on a playground where the biggest bully has commandeered all the equipment. In a national emergency like this, the number one job of the leadership is to put partisanship aside and remind Americans that we are all in this together. Attacks and namecalling only create division and distract from the work that needs to be done.

I was not a fan of George W Bush, but on the evening of 9/11/2001, he gave a speech asking the American people to come together and unite to get through the tragedy. It was one of the best speeches I have ever heard from a president. We treated the first responders as heroes, and we loved our neighbors because they were Americans before they were republicans or democrats. We came together as a country. That is what we need from our leadership now. Lead by example, follow the guidelines and give people a reason to come together. That's your job.

I am a firm believer in not complaining about something without being able to propose a solution. This situation is so irrational that I can't begin to think of a way to resolve it. The problem isn't a partisan issue or a fiscal issue. It is all about egos. Thousands of people could die because of one person not showing enough appreciation to another. Is that really where this country has devolved?

I am not sure what options Michigan has. If Washington is controlling the distribution of emergency supplies, we are in trouble. Can the governer send the state police to GM and confiscate the ventilators when they are produced? I would support that, but then we have the same problem with other states not getting the resources they need, so that isn't an acceptable solution either. We need leaders to come up with rational solutions, and balance distribution based on need, not appreciation level.

I really hope someone responds and tells me that the press briefings and tweets are just there for the ratings of this reality show we call America, and in the background, there are people doing some real governing and looking out for the lives of all Americans.


Looking forward to your response,


Jim Karnopp
President
Kartech LLC

Don't forget the units.

Remember in school science classes how they beat into you how important units are? Like you cant add inches and centimeters together, you have to convert one of them to the other first. I ran into this issue in a couple of ways this morning. I got up this morning ready to work my first official day from home, and when I looked in the mirror, I was a little frustrated that I didn't get a haircut before the ban on barbershops being open. I was already easily a month overdue for a haircut, and going another month didn't sound very appealing.

I figured with all the social distancing, I'm not going to see anyone in a professional environment for at least month, so what the hell I'll just trim it myself. Usually, when I go to the barbers, I tell them to do a four around the sides and back and then as short as possible on top without it sticking up. I figured I would take my trimmers and set them to 6, and just do everything the same. It will grow out in time anyway, right? Now, remember my comment about units? I am not sure what a number 4 is in the haircutting world, but one thing I can guarantee you now is that it is not millimeters.

In my own defense, this was first thing in the morning, and I hadn't had a cup of coffee yet, so rational thought was not part of the equation. A couple of simple estimations in my head would have helped me prevent the subsequent error. I mean 6mm is just a little over half a centimeter, and a centimeter is a little less than half an inch right? In other words, 6mm is really fucking short.

So I took my beard trimmer set at 6mm and again not thinking clearly I didn't try doing a small test, no I do a full swipe up the side of my head. The really funny thing is that I was looking in the mirror, so when I say, you should have seen the look on my face, that's because I was able to see it quite clearly at this point. All of a sudden I was wide awake, and all the calculations and conversions I have mentioned flooded my brain in parallel. Of course, once you have a big stripe of almost bald head staring at you in the mirror, you realize that you are totally committed. I proceeded to trim the rest of my head down to match.

Now vanity isn't really my thing. I know nothing of fashion or style, and I am definitely not a sexy man, but I am kind of glad that I will be working from home for a while. When Forrest came home from work he kind of looked at me funny and asked if I got a haircut, when I started to explain, he couldn't even let me finish before he started laughing uncontrollably for what I think was just a little too long. I think he almost died from lack of oxygen. Then he pulled out his camera and started taking pictures, It turns out, it looks worse in the back which makes sense since I can see that side at all.

I definitely won't have to worry about a haircut for a while, and it is probably better to screw it up now than right before going back to work.