Did you notice how he talked about how the government this and the government that? He doesn't seem to realize he IS the government.
I doubt the guy even bothered to read the results of the 1971 study by Maurice Stans from the Nixon administration, "A Metric America, a Decision Whose Time has Come".
Seems Metrication was originally pushed by a Republican administration, how ironic is that?
Mark
----- Original Message -----
From: Edward Schlesinger <edws...@gmail.com>
Date: Saturday, June 8, 2013 4:09 pm
Subject: [USMA:52901] My reply to Mr. Gallagher.
To: "U.S. Metric Association" <usma@colostate.edu>
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Here is a copy of my response to "Supporting American Choices on Measurement".
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8/Jun/13
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Patrick D. Gallagher
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100
> Bureau Drive, Stop 1000
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Gaithersburg,
> MD 20899-1000
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Mr. Gallagher:
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I am writing in response to the
> petition I signed on We the People. These are my thoughts on “Supporting
> American Choices on Measurement.”
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Your response sidesteps an
> important issue that the United States lacks in trade, education, and sciences
> since we as a nation have not fully converted to the International System of
> Units since the 1970s.
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If you state we are
> bilingual as a country, inferring that most citizens of the United States have
> the same proficiency with USC and SI units, this statement is false. Students
> are particularly confused especially if they don’t go to college where the
> metric system is an integral part of the sciences. One day, while I was at the
> grocery store, I saw a group of high school students whose assignment was to
> bake a cake using metric units. I overheard them discussing what container of
> milk to buy to have 6 cups of milk but they didn’t know what that was in
> metric. I pointed out to them that for liquid measures; there are 250 mL in a
> cup. After making that calculation, they asked me how many milliliters are in a
> liter. If they knew the metric system, would they have to ask that?
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I know that since the 1890s U.S.
> customary units are all defined in terms of their
> metric equivalents. However, dual labeling does not help consumers or industry
> become familiar with using metric units. My observation has been consumers
> ignore metric units and figure price per oz. I understand that most consumers
> do not comprehend gram weight on the nutritional value label even though
> something as common as the one-cent piece is weighed in grams.
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The many
> countries that mandate the use of the metric system by law have had an easier
> transition than the U.S. and our voluntary system. South Africa and Australia
> come to mind as examples where the government put resources into education and
> manufacturing for a quick and smooth transition. How much money is wasted in
> building cost because the trades have not transitioned to metric? Successful
> use of a system of weights and measures is an all-or-nothing proposition. The
> so-called “choice” we have in this country, is holding us back and making us
> out of step with most other nations. It simply will not work in any meaningful
> way if I use customary units outside my home and metric in my home.
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Sincerely,
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Edward B. Schlesinger
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Edward B.
> Schlesinger
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--
> Sincerely,
> Edward B.
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