We Must Make Stuff
Manufacturing is underrated. It’s hard.358
The Real Work
Some people have an absurd view of the economy as a magic thing that just produces stuff.
They think goods and services magically come from somewhere, and if somebody has more stuff than somebody else, it’s because they took more from this magic source of stuff.359
Now, let me break it to the fools out there. If we don’t make stuff, there’s no stuff. If we don’t grow the food, process the food, and transport the food…there’s no food. Medical treatments, getting your teeth fixed, everything. There’s no stuff if we don’t make stuff.
Some people have become detached from reality. This notion that the government can just send checks out to everybody and everything will be fine is not true—obviously. You can’t just legislate money to solve things. If you don’t make stuff, there is no stuff. The whole machine could grind to a halt.360
Technological progress is not inevitable. It’s not some kind of abstract concept. Humans make technology. If we don’t do it, it will not happen.361
Somebody has to do the real work.
There’s an overallocation of talent in finance and law, especially in the United States. Too many smart people go into finance and law. This is both a compliment and a criticism. We should have fewer people doing law and finance and more people making stuff.
Manufacturing used to be highly valued in the United States. These days it hasn’t been as much, which I think is wrong. Making cars is an honest day’s living, that’s for sure. Making anything or providing a valuable service like good entertainment, good information—these are valuable things to do.362
I’ve got mad respect for the makers of things.363