Jim O’Leary

There are elections, and then there are watershed elections, such as those in the U.S. in 1800, 1860, and 1932. Voracious student of history and longtime engineer Jim O’Leary believes the 2012 election falls into this category, as "unrest with the governmental status quo has reached an epic high tide."

It’s no secret that the U.S. economy is in a precarious state. How did we get where we are, and what can be done to improve conditions? Longtime industry professional Jim O’Leary believes the answer lies in encouraging manufacturing and the time to choose a pro-manufacturing agenda is now.

Despite media coverage and political candidates’ speeches about the importance of manufacturing to the U.S. economy, the sector continues to struggle. Why? What will it take to address the various problems plaguing manufacturing? A longtime industry professional offers his opinion founded upon recent historical events.