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Posted by D Sherman [72.47.153.24] on Friday, May 11, 2012 at 22:43:54 :
In Reply to: Re: they say it's getting better......big joke posted by ChrisHin Wash. St [67.142.167.23] on Friday, May 11, 2012 at 21:57:37 :
I was too young to think about going but I met a man who'd just come back from welding on the pipeline and he was wearing a watch with the case and the band all covered with gold nuggets. At that age, it impressed me.
When was that, 1975? I think I heard $50K/year was a typical wage for semi-skilled work, with all living expenses paid while you were there and nothing to spend it on until you got back to Seattle. $50K in '75 would be $150K today, if you go with the official rate of inflation. If you go with the price of gold, it'd be about half a million.
Gave a ride to a young man a couple weeks ago, heading to North Dakota from Seattle. He'd do whatever work he could get, make as much money as he could, and then head out for adventure. It seems like the old spirit of America is still alive in the oil patch. I can see why Obama wants to strangle it off by not letting them build a pipeline.
I don't mind $4 gas quite so much when I see some of that money going into the pockets of American workers. We could have a mining boom right here with all the silver, zinc, lead, copper, and gold that are still in the ground if the feds would just back off and let the miners mine.