Courtesy of Mish.
I like it when people speak their minds. I like it even more when they are correct and they blast government officials at the highest levels. And I especially like it when the person blasting government is a prominent person.
Thus I am pleased to report an incredible letter from the CEO of Titan to Arnaud Montebourg, Minister of Industrial Renewal of France, criticizing not only French unions but unions in the USA.
Via Google translate from Les Echos, please consider Incredible Email From the CEO of Titan to Montebourg.
“Les Echos” received a copy of the letter which the President of the American Titan told the Minister of Industrial Renewal why he threw in the towel on purchasing the Goodyear plant Amiens Nord, in a very direct style.
“How Stupid Do You Think We Are?”
Here are some excerpts I transcribed from an image of the letter posted on Les Echos.
Dear Mr. Montebourg:
Goodyear tried for over four years to save part of the Amiens jobs that are some of the highest paid, but the French unions and French government did nothing but talk.
I have visited the factory a couple of times. The French workforce gets paid high wages but works only three hours. They get one hour for breaks and lunch, talk for three, and work for three. I told this to the French union workers to their faces. They told me that’s the French way!
The Chinese are shipping tires into France – really all over Europe – and yet you do nothing. In five years, Michelin won’t be able to produce tire in France. France will lose its industrial business because government is more government.
Sir, your letter states you want Titan to start a discussion. How stupid do you think we are? Titan is the one with money and talent to produce tires. What does the crazy union have? It has the French government. The French farmer wants cheap tire. He does not care if the tires are from China or India and governments are subsidizing them. Your government doesn’t care either. “We’re French!”
The US government is not much better than the French. Titan had to pay millions to Washington lawyers to sue the Chinese tire companies because of their subsidizing. Titan won. The government collects the duties. We don’t get the duties, the government does….
