Diary of a Network Geek

Yes, it’s true the higher cost of sending things overseas makes our economy stronger.

Well, in what I have to admit is a nice turn of events, ABC has an article telling us how the high oil prices are actually generating manufacturing jobs here, at home, in the good, old United States of America. Yea! So, what I’ve been saying for quite some time is finally being recognized by industry at large: it’s cheaper to “outsource” to small towns in Middle America than it is to send the work overseas. Okay, maybe it wasn’t quite as true when I was saying it back in 2003, but it sure seems to be now.

You know, it’s not that I mind being right, even when I’m right so far ahead of the curve, but I sure wish people in positions of power would start listening to guys who have been in the trenches. Most of us really do know more than you’d expect about this stuff. Honest.

Advice from your Uncle Jim:
"Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction."
   --Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Here’s just one example.

You can’t control a foreign workforce with domestic laws. Oh, but that would never be a problem, right? WRONG! Check this story at the Sanfrancisco Gate. So, is it a good idea to let sensitive data go off-shore for entry when it could get released without permission? I don’t think so. After all, I’m not sure I want my medical records open for all to see. And, if you have any kind of psychological issues, would you want records of that to be publicly available? Based on the situation in that article, it could.
So, do you still think off-shore outsourcing is a good idea?