Quote Originally Posted by auminer View Post
I've been digging, but haven't yet found a smoking gun... but whatcha wanna bet that there's some kickback business going on here?

Here's what I mean, and bear in mind I HAVE NOT FOUND DIRECT EVIDENCE OF THIS, but this is my suspicion: Scrap metal trade group makes up this really spiffy set of guidelines & for a price, A STEEP PRICE, will 'certify' you as being compliant with these guidelines (which aren't easily found online until you buy a kit from them) then, this trade group (read:PAC) makes campaign donation to state legislator. State legislator introduces a bill requiring people to be compliant with the above mentioned guidelines or face fines.

So... in order to continue to make a living, you have to pay some trade group a couple of thousand dollars for them to wave their magic wand over you & tell you to pretty much carry on as you've already been doing.



THAT's how you make money off of scrapping.
Its a form of business that really seems to be in high gear: Professional Certifications. In the construction industry you got this "group" of people together that were bent on a certain ideal...ie: green building. So they wrote up all these articles and commentaries on their definition of what "green" construction should look like in order to save the earth. Then they appealed to politicians, who were just giddy at the thought of being a savior to the green movement. The politicians passed laws with those guidelines, then gave gov grants/loans/gifts (taxpayer money) to the original group to oversee the implementation of the laws and certification of the industry. They never picked up a 2x4 in their life, but they control what a contractor can and can not do on a job site. Amazing how we come up with ways to make money, eh?