Alexandria, VA— Catholic Charities USA sent a congratulatory letter to President-elect Obama yesterday. The contents are included below:
November 5, 2008
Dear President-elect Obama,
As president of Catholic Charities USA, let me congratulate you on your election to the presidency of the United States. You have inspired many people through this historic election.
We at Catholic Charities USA look forward to working with you to alleviate the need of so many of our fellow citizens. For over 280 years we have provided human services on this continent. Last year we served over 8 million people. We have done so in partnership both with the government and private sector. I know that you share our commitment to these “least among us” and I hope that we can continue to work together to empower people to overcome the bondage of poverty.
Be assured of our prayers for the success of your leadership so that God will grant you wisdom and strength for the enormous responsibility that you now assume. As you know, our Biblical roots call us to build a land of justice and peace where the disenfranchised will be valued and find opportunity. We stand ready to work with you in that endeavor.
My sincere congratulations!
Fr. Larry Snyder
President
Dear Father Snyder: 11-16-08
We feel that our ambitious effort to unlock an enormous number of good, livable-wage jobs (now being squandered)would contribute greatly to the good work being done by Catholic Charities - especially NOW when millions are unemployed,losing their healthcare and many even losing their homes!!!
How can we work with Catholic Charities to integrate this STEWARDSHIP into American policy?
Summary details are included in our appeal to our Washington lawmakers below ;
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Senator Norm Coleman 11-15-08
Senator Amy Klobuchar
Representative Betty McCollum
Dear Lawmakers:
Boosting Innovation in Detroit’s Big 3
Employers have far too much power to KILL OFF employee inventions. This is one reason Detroit’s Big 3 has fallen so far behind as a world competitor. We urge you to take away much of that power to kill employee innovation as a condition for any bailout.
For example: Industrialist, Henry Ford is often quoted as vowing “Never to put one of those expensive self-starters in any Ford car!” Just imagine how far your self-starter invention would get then while working for Ford. Worse yet, the Ford Co. would already OWN your invention and then most likely bury it in its dead files so you couldn’t take it elsewhere for development!
This innovation-killing process is still widely used today just as it was back in 1913. We must reform that terrible progress-killing practice if we want to compete in this bitter global competition for our business and jobs! This common policy is practiced in most American firms and stifles innovation all through our industries -- not only in Detroit’s Big 3.
For a more recent example: one day I learned that had I invented the Xerox process my employer would have logically and rightfully already owned it. However, rather than handsomely rewarding me for a MULTI-BILLION dollar invention, he undoubtedly would have quietly ABORTED that fantastic invention and buried it in his confidential dead files so I couldn’t take it elsewhere for development!
I can say this with confidence since he actually DID reject that invention but thankfully one of his employees did NOT invent it so he couldn’t readily kill it! It is well known that he would have killed that invention, much less invested in its development, since it would compete with his profitable thermal copiers (but they were terrible by comparison).
Fortunately for all of us, the Xerox process was invented elsewhere where the “less sophisticated” employer released this unwanted invention back to the employed inventor as “worthless.” Once liberated from the stranglehold of the corporation, it has spawned a huge $50 BILLION entirely new xerographic industry creating 500,000 new jobs! (Wall Street Journal May 23, 1989)
Please push to replicate this hugely successful Xerox example all across America with the very simple, NO-COST reform outlined below:
“Use or Return” reform
Before voting to bail out the Big Three automobile companies, I urge Congress to require that these employers “Use or Return” employee inventions. This is a perfect time to force these firms to reform their innovation-killing, job-destroying policies. The main features and enormous permanent benefits are listed below:
The Creative Freedom Act of 2009
(Use or Return)
Main features:
1. Employers would be allowed to continue to claim most employee inventions, but not be allowed to "sit on" them.
2. Employers would be required to make a serious investment in the development of every employee-submitted invention within 2 years in order to keep it.
3. "Highly competitive inventions" which might require the employer to replace (or scrap) his existing product line would be exempt upon appeal.
4. "Obviously unwanted" inventions would have to be released within 60 days
The main benefits:
1. Employers will develop more employee inventions (for fear of losing ownership due to inaction).
2. Employees will submit more inventions (knowing that the firm could no longer "sit on them" indefinitely)
3. Employees will regain their constitutional rights to creative freedom (and a possible piece of the action)
4. The above items will permanently build on each other producing new business and jobs, thus breaking the stranglehold our firms now have on new business and job opportunities.
5. Most of these new products promise to create new design, development, tooling and manufacturing jobs here in America, since new products seldom produce the huge volume sales necessary for offshore profitability.
6. Retaining these new inventions here will keep this cutting edge technology here in America.
7. All of the above benefits can be generated without imposing one cent of additional taxes on anyone!
The U.S. Patent Office pushes inventors to “use or lose” their patent rights by imposing stiff fees after a few years or the USPTO will release your rights to everyone! So why should we allow our employers to claim and permanently sequester employee inventions preventing them from ever getting to the U.S. Patent Office?
USPTO Fee Schedule, effective October 02, 2008
Fee Code 37 CFR Description Fee Small Entity Fee
(if applicable)
Patent Maintenance Fees
1551/2551 1.20(e) Due at 3.5 years 980.00 490.00
1552/2552 1.20(f) Due at 7.5 years 2,480.00 1,240.00
153/2553 1.20(g) Due at 11.5 years 4,110.00 2,055.00
I urge you to support this common sense, NO-COST means of producing new business and new jobs by simply prohibiting the ongoing squandering of one of our most valuable assets – human creativity! The American taxpayer has a huge investment in the education of its citizens; we should (MUST) not let our employers squander that valuable asset and squander our major industries as a result.
Thank you.
Robert Nepper retired 30-year R&D engineer
2251 Shawnee Dr.
N. St. Paul, MN 55109 651-777-5159 nepperr@comcast.net
Robert Nepper retired 30-year R&D engineer
2251 Shawnee Dr.
N. St. Paul, MN 55109 651-777-5159 nepperr@comcast.net
Posted by: Robert Nepper | November 16, 2008 at 06:35 PM