Bath Iron Works to lay off 70

[MaineDem]

Bath Iron Works will lay off about 70 workers at the end of the month, according to the shipyard and a member of Maine's Congressional delegation.

Workers who belong to Local S6, the shipyard's largest union, confirmed that the layoffs would occur within their ranks.

And U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud issued a reaction to the news that 70 employees would be laid off effective Feb. 1.

"...While I understand that changes must be made so that BIW can remain competitive, we cannot abandon the hardworking families who do great work for our country at the yard and who depend on these jobs," Michaud said.

http://news.mainetoday.com/updates/020977.html

Damn!

[Shorebound]

1. Not good

Especially coming at the end of a week full of layoff and closure announcements in the paper and lumber industries. At least Verso in Bucksport is hiring.

The article was very brief. The layoff could be part of the downsizing required as the last destroyer moves through the yard. Sure hope it's temporary.

[asteroid2003QQ47]

2. Clear conscience?

http://www.topix.net/bigpic/mini-90f1442737b5237aac8f5f15ae8801d9
Maybe BIW, oft touted as Maines largest employer, could build these while waiting for the forthcoming contract to build these-

DDG-1000 Zumwalt-class destroyer
...the new destroyer is seen as vital to testing new technologies and tiding the shipyard over till the Navy launches new warship programs.
http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2007/07/29/maines_bath_iron_works_sails_into_an_uncertain_future/
they are both deemed essential in Uncle Sam's wars of aggression.

New Armored Truck Sees First Iraq Death

January 22, 2008

A soldier killed over the weekend south of Baghdad was the first American casualty in a roadside bomb attack on a newly introduced, heavily armored vehicle, a military spokeswoman said Tuesday.

The V-shaped hull of the huge MRAP _ Mine-Resistant, Ambush-Protected _ truck is designed to deflect blasts from roadside bombs, a weapon that has killed more American soldiers than any other tactic used by Sunni insurgents and militia fighters in Iraq.
<snip>
There now are more than 1,500 of the costly vehicles in service in Iraq and the Pentagon is working to get at least 12,000 more, using $21 billion provided by Congress. MRAPs cost between $500,000 and $1 million, depending on their size and how they are equipped.
<snip...>
http://www.topix.net/content/ap/2008/01/new-armored-truck-sees-first-iraq-death

Should Maines largest employer be totally dependent on building implements of destruction?

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Anyway, all the time, all over the world. People were using their motor cars to kill with. They were carrying infectious diseases around, blowing microbes in other peoples faces, leaving gas-jets turned on in kitchens, pumping out carbon monoxide in closed garages. How many people, for instance, were involved in manufacturing H-bombs, from the miners who mined the uranium to the shareholders who owned mining shares? Was there any person in the world who wasn't somehow, perhaps only statistically, involved in killing his neighbor?
--Ian Fleming, Goldfinger