Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/688506
8 The PCB Magazine • June 2016 Unless you have been living under a rock or in a cave for the past six months or so, you should be aware (and perhaps astounded, aston- ished, amazed, dumbfounded, aghast…) at the presidential campaign goings-on. Dear heaven! But without going into detail or expressing an opinion, I thought I would share some high- lights of my recent visit to our nation's capi- tal. I attended IPC's IMPACT Washington, D.C. for the first time, though hopefully not for the last. It is a conference, an event, a seminar on the workings of our government, along with meetings with congresspersons and staff, all crammed into just a couple of days. One afternoon I walked down to the Na- tional Mall, observing the numerous huge, very permanent stone buildings along the way. I walked past the EPA, OSHA, and IRS buildings, the Department of Justice and the FTC. There is the Capitol building on one end of the Mall, the Washington Monument on the other, and the White House just to the north, next to the Trea- sury Department. Congressional offices, the Li- brary of Congress, the Supreme Court, other de- partments (Agriculture, Commerce, Transporta- tion, Education, HUD, FDA, U.S. Postal Service and more) surround the Mall. This city definite- ly has the corner on white stone. And these de- partments with names engraved in huge letters are not going anywhere. They are here to stay; they will not be abolished, and they don't care a whole lot about you or your company. Nevertheless I came away a believer, not so much in the workings of our government but in the need to participate, speak up, and have your voice heard. And the best way to do that is col- lectively, through an organization that has your best interests in mind. I feel so strongly about by Patty Goldman I-CONNECT007 Impacting the Industry—Literally PATTY'S PERSPECTIVE