PG Music Home Forums General Discussion Off-Topic Feds Raid Gibson Guitar...again!?

My old L-5CES is likely loaded with now outlawed tonewoods.

But my response is exactly the same as when anyone tries to take *anything* of mine away, be it gun, guitar, wife, children or even the old family bible, for that matter:

You want it?

Come and get it.

Then we shall soon see how BAD you want it.

Read into that what you will.

But never, never tread on me.


--Mac

Interview with the CEO. 30 minutes of it.

http://youtu.be/O_-taqM5Sk0

Eddie,

Thanks for posting this. I watched the whole thing and I wish I’d gotten a note pad and pencil ready for the interview.

A few things stuck out, (speaking from the Gibson CEO POV, aka boss man's point of view).

A summarization of Mr. Juszkiewicz comments follows:

1. The “WTF” expression is extremely hard to wipe off my face!

2. The Lacey Act is hard to understand, …… especially since they keep changing it!

3. We’ve tried really hard to comply with the ever changing Lacey Act!

4. They won’t even tell us what we’re accused of doing!

5. Swat teams are inappropriate for raiding a guitar company! Are we gonna “shoot back” with a Les Paul, or smack'em with an ebony fingerboard?

6. I wish the hell I’d had our lawyer do this interview because I don’t have a friggin’ clue about what we alledgedly did wrong!

7. We just wanna make great guitars!

If you guys can make time, … please watch this interview. It's the perfect example of an American business trying like hell to comply with international law. Jeez!

I just read an article in the September 27, 2010, issue of "Forbes" magazine that finally and definitively reveals where Obama is coming from. The short version is that he is, in fact, consciously and deliberately trying to destroy American exceptionalism based on the anticolonial revolutionary aspirations of his father, who was a dedicated capital-C Communist. Basically he is punishing the United States for having succeeded. Everything, including the action against Gibson, makes sense in the context of this outlook. Bold text is a link.

yes

Hang in there...the "WIND OF CHANGE" IS GOING TO TRANSFORM THIS COUNTRY..FOR THE BETTER!WINDS OF CHANGE are acomin'...

Inspiring Music for thismoring's MOMENT....WATCH BIG SCREEN/HI-FI!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KcRl1p2waM&feature=fvwrel

"the previous (Bush Administration was...."

Now, now.....

Wall Street Mess WAS The Fault Of Democrats...
The Democrats are doing what they do best, and that is blaming anyone but themselves for the economic bubble burst which was precipitated by the downturn in the housing market and now with Lehman Brothers.

It started in 1977 with the Worst.President.
In 1977, Carter, along with a Democrat Congress, created a worthy project with noble intentions — the Community Reinvestment Act. Over strong industry objections, it mandated that all banks meet the credit needs of their entire communities.

In 1995, President Clinton imposed even stronger regulations and performance tests that coerced banks to substantially increase loans to low-income, poverty-area borrowers or face fines or possible restrictions on expansion. These revisions allowed for securitization of CRA loans containing subprime mortgages.
By 1997, good loans were bundled with poor ones and sold as prime packages to institutions here and abroad. That shifted risk from the loan originators, freeing banks to begin pyramiding and make more of these profitable subprime products.

Under two young, well-intended presidents, therefore, big-government plans and mandates played a significant role in the current sub-prime mortgage mess and its catastrophic consequences for the U.S. and international economies.

Hardest-hit by the mortgage foreclosures have been the citizens that Democrats always claim to help most — inner-city residents who fell victim to low or no down payment schemes, unexpected adjustable rates, deceptive loan applications and commission-hungry salespeople.

Now we're having to bail out at huge cost Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the very agencies that were supposed to stabilize the system....recently thy asked for more bailout money for themselves!

Democrats are fond of using the word "deregulation" as an evil term, at least when something is deregulated under a Republican Administration.

But this is exactly what Carter and Clinton did, they deregulated the mortgage industry and, to a lesser extent, the banking and financial sectors of the market. Dem "deregulation" brings the results we now see taking place.

Oh well, the hurricane was God's punishment...wasn't it???

Carter and Clinton and their band of Little Socialists forced lenders to provide risky loans for people who didn't financially qualify for the loans

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Good one.

I guess they decided to unlock it.

I think the government is getting hyper technical in its reliance on arcane theories of International Law. Besides, it's not like Gibson did anything really harmful to society...like playing a harmonic interval of a tritone.

I'm Keyser Söze............shhhhh

Sincere thanks to the moderator and to PG Music for unlocking this discussion. It is a subject which interests us vitally. While there is strong feeling attached to the matter, I believe that its expression is in accord with, but quite moderate in comparison to, the nature of the actions we are witnessing.

Richard

Well, I will attempt to stay out of the political fray, but I hope that Gibson is keeping track of serial numbers during this time of defiance. Reason: I'm hoping that I can purchase a 'defiance' model sometime in the future - in show of support.

I'm also proud to say that Mr. Juskiewicz (sp?) hails from my alma mater, General Motors Institute. I wish he had given me a job back about 10 years ago when I chatted with his administrative assistant while trying to get an audience with him. Either he is an extremely level headed guy, or a great actor.

I have a made in China SX bass guitar with a rosewood fingerboard for which I paid a grand total of 150 bucks or so, shipped to my door, in a gig bag and properly packed for shipment.

I've crowed here and there about how great of a deal it was.

You can be darned sure that nobody is raiding SX over in China about the rosewood fretboards on all of their guitars!

Just plain crazy!

This will end up in the Supreme Court, nearly certain of that. But then again, what about the raid from 2 years ago for which there are still no charges and inventoried wood held in hostage?

Do we think there will be any recompense to Gibson for lost income? No way. And who would pay anyways?

There is some untold story underneath all of this and I don't mean some right wing / left wing thing. It's too singular for that.

Smells like someone is calling in a favor for someone else for something shady. I doubt that will ever see the the light of day.

For those of you thinking it's this guy's politics; here's some of the charitable organizations that he is involved in. Please read the ENTIRE list, all the way to the bottom.

Following text pulled from CNBC at this location: http://www.cnbc.com/id/22402401

"Juszkiewicz is a committed supporter of The Rainforest Alliance and conservation. A member of the Society of International Business Fellows and others, Juszkiewicz continues his commitment to a better world through his active participation in organizations such as Nordoff-Robbins, which provides music therapy for severely handicapped children, to the T.J. Martell Fund for Leukemia Research, The Hope Foundation, The Environmental Defense Fund, Teenage Cancer Trust and leads numerous philanthropic endeavors under the Gibson Foundation banner. He is a board member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, a board member of the Beale Street Blues Company, Inc., a board member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum and Executive Vice President of the Guitar and Accessories Marketing Association. He is a co-founder of Music Rising, a campaign to help aid musicians of the Gulf Coast and is active in the Clinton Global Initiative. He is the recipient of numerous awards, honors and extensive media coverage."

Mr. Juskiewicz talks about in the interview that he's not about Republicans vs. Democrats, but he's about doing what's right for America. Study the list. His support of both right and left leaning organizations bear witness to his claims. Check out who his co-founders are for Music Rising. Read what the Clinton Global Initiative is all about.

The questions we all have to ask ourselves are along these lines: Do we want to see Gibson around for the future? What are we going to do about it in addition to letting others know about it online?

I've never bought a Gibson. To be honest I can't get on with tune-o-matic bridges too well; at least the little bit that I've tried. But I want to see this icon of the American music industry live on. I don't want to be party to seeing it disappear over these recent guilty-until-proven-innocent raids.

But I can write some letters and make some calls. Hit me up on my website for my e-mail if you want to see the letter I just wrote to my former senator, Carl Levin. That way, it doesn't bog down the PG bulletin board with private messages. I'd write to my current senators, but they don't carry the weight that guys like Levin do.

Let's get over who is in the Oval Office and help save Gibson if possible. If this goes on too long, it might be over for them.

-Scott

I apologize for my going off on a political rant, as I am "want to do"...both to PG
and to the people I offended.

Glad to see this thread back "on track"!!

No more politics discussion from G-Daddy!!

Geez, I'm, / we are Canadian eh. Lets go for ...beer? Good idea eh? The religious types can have the root kind. We even have a few of those A&W's here. No more roller skates for the lasses and you can't wait in your car. That would be too good eh? Problem here was for 1/2 the year the root beers froze on the outdoor tray. I never understood how it was always summer in Bedrock until I spotted the palm trees. I should have known all cave men lived in Florida.

From the "King of Snide Remarks"......Cavemen in Florida!?