Happy belated 90th birthday to Alfred Bader!
You may have never heard of him. He's one of those American success stories who appear to be waning these days. Not unlike our beloved bagoh20, he started a successful business which grew: Bader co-founded the Aldrich Chemical Company.
Bader's Wiki page lists him as Canadian which I find odd because I associate him with Milwaukee. I first heard of him around 1981 when I saw my first Aldrich Chemical Catalog of Fine Chemicals which graced every chemistry laboratory. You couldn't open a chemistry journal in those days without seeing one of his advertisements which always led with "Please Bother Us!" exhorting his customers to give feedback regarding customer needs.
The Aldrich catalog came out once a year or so and was sort of a Sears Wish Book of what you could buy to supply your experiments. The cover of each new catalog featured a reproduction of an oil painting -- usually a Dutch Masters -- and usually one that Bader had acquired for his collection. More about that here.
Bader, the man, has a rich history: refugee, chemist, businessman, art collector, philanthropist. Celebrate him.
11 comments:
I love it!
I have a cousin who works for that company as a chemical engineer. In Milwaukee.
And through the miracle of chemistry still romancing the wife!
Nice story, thanks chick.
Hats off to the unsung entrepreneur. As we watch this authentic phenomenon disappear, replaced by government coercion.
I really appreciate the association, but I doubt I'll ever create anywhere near as much wealth as he did. I'm just too lazy and hedonistic. Nor will I likely get as old, but he probably never expected to make either milestone himself, so keep hope alive!
Incidentally, I don't think most people appreciate all the things that creating wealth does for us all, and I know most leftist don't, or at least they talk, and vote like they don't.
Of course the creation of wealth is the source for our material stuff like our homes, cars, toys, appliances, utilities, comforts and lowly pleasures, but it also pays for our higher interests like peace strength, stability, art, education, and community. It supports us so that we don't spend our days entirely in toil carrying water, hunting and gathering, and barely surviving. It pays for our ability to spend much of our time enjoying each other and our hobbies, and pursuing our interests and our bliss. It gives us time and resources to explore our planet and our universe, to drive to the mountains or ocean in comfort and convenience, to visit strange places and meet people or stay close to family and friends even if their lives have taken them far from us. It provides for your children now and in the future. It extends our lives by more than double what they would be without wealth.
For the leftist minded, it's important to remember that everything you want the government to do for us is and must be paid for by business of some kind. Every penny spent, every resource, ability, technology, and even the time to do it, are entirely the product of business directly or indirectly. It is the engine of our lives at a personal level all the way to the global. Of course like anything powerful it has risks that must be mitigated within reason, but business and wealth creation should be respected, nurtured and embraced like a golden goose that smells like a puppy.
Another wondrous thing about business is that it is the best, and maybe the the only vehicle besides crime, violence, or marriage that one can enlist to go from poverty to wealth. Virtually anyone can do it, and it always involves helping others in a symbiotic relationship at some level where both of you end up better off than you were and better off together than separately. That's the kind of collectivism that works and doesn't sacrifice freedom and individuality.
I never expected to be a businessman, and never tried to be. It's just how you get things done, even when you are just trying to have fun.
The alternative to business creating wealth for a society is that society stealing wealth from other societies. That's how most of history ran, why empires were built and grew, the pursuit of wealth.
That's why America is ultimately different. We are a mercantile nation that wants to trade with others, in supporting business development we undercut the need for imperial expansion. We don't need to steal to become wealthy, we are makers who contribute. Of course, there are times in which businesses themselves become anti-trade, the oligarchies that then infect the political class, everyone stealing from others instead of trading and growing. They put useful names like taxes and regulations to it, but it's anti-business and pro-authoritarianism.
Business is also, ultimately, egalitarian. The rise of the middle class destroyed the absolute rule of kings and ultimately the nobility. It levels the playing field, not by everyone being told they get no more, no less than others. But by everyone being told they have an equal shot. Make something, write something, develop something people want, and you make a living off of it.
In a free society with respect for law you have to generally make other people happy through a product or service to succeed in business. What a great concept: Please people = success.
Competing concept: make people equal = happiness.
The second, although attempted, has been an obvious failure in both execution and objective. First, equality is not the method used so much as the lie told. The equalizers say what equal is and who gets to be it. Second the the result of equality is not happiness, but rather stagnation and requires oppression to maintain the situation.
The concept of pleasing people for success allows the people to decide what they want, and where they are satisfied. This applies to both suppliers and consumers. I like it.
Thanks for all the positive responses!
I started more detailed profile of another praiseworthy chemist/industrialist named Arnold Beckman over a year ago and then put it aside. I should finish it. I retold the story to young high school students and they find it interesting that one guy did so much.
You should finish it. I think one problem in our society is an over-celebration of the beautiful media stars and vacuously wealthy heirs.
People then assume that there's this class ceiling. But, the stories of people who had nothing, came to this country or West or wherever and then worked, for and with their family is key. It makes it seem possible. And when people see it is possible they are inspired to pursue their own possibilities.
I met him a couple of times. He gave me a copy of his two volume autobiography. Very nice guy. Smart as hell.
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