The Word on Wall Street!

Is the manufacturers and retailers that have been able to succeed in these tough economic times are those that have been best at managing inventories and thus controlling their costs. Lean and mean is the byword for survival.

Its those who can benefit from "Just in Time Deliveries" of needed material (manufacturers) or finished products (retailers) are who is winning and their time windows are being measured in minutes and hours, not days.

The reality of this needed efficiency is hitting home hard in Oregon where we have not seen any major improvement in our roads and freeways in several decades and what changes that have been made have slowed the flow of traffic and our economic lifeblood, commerce.

The changes, or better said encumbrances we suffer, range from turning lanes being lost to bike paths to the constant Traffic Accident Investigations that close major roadways for hour upon hour while every grit of sand over a wide area is documented infinitum for posterity.

Our governments efforts in Traffic Calming and restricting the use of motor vehicles has suffocated our economy and if we begin to make things right today it will be years before we can catch up with the more progressive parts of our nation and the world, if even then.

Guess its time for we Oregonians to cut bait and think of the good-old-days as we watch businesses leave our state for parts where they are both understood and appreciated.