"Pindell, Tim P" <TPindell@otterbein.edu> wrote:
>> No doubt about it, although this isn't *necessarily* a
>> bad thing - if its better for them to do it in China than in
>> the US, it makes sense for them to go there. Frankly, I
>> think that for most of the jobs that are "lost" overseas, a
>> huge portion of blame can be placed squarely on conditions
>> which make it unfavorable for those jobs to remain in the US,
>> such as opressive taxation, regulation, a tort system run amok, etc.
>>
> Sure, in a strict business sense, it would be a better deal for
> manufacturers to go overseas. However, there is more to this than
> money. I blame Clinton and the GATT/WTO disaster for tilting the field
> in favor of China. Removing the trade regulations and tariffs while
> granting permanent normal trade relations with the PRC was and is an
> embarrassment.
Wait, Clinton removed a tarrif??? Ok, so maybe his motives weren't
in the right place, but I'll take what I can get. I guess that old
saying about blind squirrels and acorns really is true! :-)
> Every dollar they "earn" from us is an endorsement of
> their horrific behavior. I would simply like the opportunity to not
> engage in that endorsement of an oppressive dictatorial regime even if
> others support it. If some of you wish to sell your souls for a few
> bucks and get a marginally "better deal", then by all means, go ahead.
> I just want my freedom to exercise some economic patriotism and opt out.
Go for it. Anything that is made in China can be obtained
elsewhere. It will probably cost more, but its there.
>> That's an unenviable position for those people to be in,
>> but people must evolve with the times or they will find
>> themselves in those circumstances. In a time of automobiles,
>> there is not much call for buggy whip manufacturers. I know
>> it sounds harsh, and I suppose it is in a way - life is not
>> fair. Just because mankind taught itself to build luxury
>> condos and airplanes does not mean that they are not living
>> in the same harsh environment as the wolf or rabbit trying to
>> find shelter from the storm and simply stay alive through one
>> more day.
> Channeling Ayn Rand again? The Life-is-Not-Fair meme is a modern
> conservative cop-out. We've got these large primate forebrains. We don't
> need to be surrendering them to the base animal instincts of greed and
> opportunism at every turn. I thought we had evolved farther than that.
> Perhaps I should not be expecting so much.
No channelling here, that was actually an original thought, but
for someone to think that it was on the level of Ayn Rand is
flattering - thank you!
Back to the premise, its simple common sense; to deny that life is
not fair is the cop out. I take that back - its not just common
sense, its so much more. Its thousands of years of historical
precedent and undeniable truth. To think otherwise would be as
intellectually embarrassing as to suppose that the earth is flat and
that the sun revolves around it.
Should the buggy whip manufacturer continue to thrive after the
demand for his product goes from 90% to 5%? The only way to do that
is to subsidize him. Wether you force everyone to buy buggy whips or
simply throw cash at the guy, it is done on the backs of everyone
else, and in either case is nothing more complicated than legalized
theft. Also, because of the simple fact that you will get more of
whatever you subsidize, trying to keep the buggy whip manufacturer in
business will only exacerbate the problem by creating more buggy whip
manufacturers. Next comes the typewriter repairman, sail maker and
telephone operator, all of which technology has largely made obsolete.
Keeping these people in those positions, which requires an unfair
transfer of wealth (this is called theft when anybody but the
government does it) from others is suicide. Not only economic
suicide, but the very process of interfering in the market reduces
freedoms for everyone, so it is a political and societal suicide as
well. These people who have jobs which have become obsolete must
adapt, either by doing something else, or doing what they do so well
that they can capitalize on whatever demand may remain. (We still
need buggy whip manufacturers, just nowhere near as many as before,
and a manufacturer of premium, quality whips could do well for
themselves.) This process of adapting will not only be of greater
benefit to society, but to those individuals, since an actual job for a
valued good or service is bound to pay more than a fake job maintained
via subsidy. Sometimes it is difficult to face these sorts of
realities, but to do so is the true compassion.
--
-Jon-
.- Jon Steiger -- jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com -.
| '96 Kolb Firefly, '96 Suzuki Intruder, Miscellaneous Mopars |
`-------------------------------- http://www.jonsteiger.com --'
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