~emerging from lurk mode~
I have to agree with some of what you say here but this particular line
strikes me as very elitist:
"I have friends who are very intelligent and have advanced degrees and they
think that its horrible and unfair as their much less intelligent plumber
makes more than they."
It this isn't elitism at its "finest" - who is to say exactly that this
plumber is much less intelligent? Hell if I looked at it as let's spend a
bit of money to learn a trade that is always in demand and have a
willingness to do the dirty work and make even more than someone else who
spent more money on college and graduate school to make less money, then
that seem to be pretty smart to me. Spend less money now to earn more money
later or spend more money now to earn less money later. Perhaps the advanced
degrees blind them from common sense, hmmm?
And just how is it unfair that the plumber makes more? Are they getting
their hands dirty to fix the problem? Do they know how to? It seems to me
that it's a supply and demand issue - they are demanding that the plumbing
issue be fixed and if they are willing to pay the wages, the plumber is
supplying his skills and materials to fix the issue. Which brings me to
another point - the cost of materials has skyrocketed due to Bush's war...
and the costs are passed on to the consumer.
And this elitist attitude is not solely found on the left - there are just
as many if not more on the right who feel the same exact way. You can't tell
me that George W. Bush is a "man of the people" any more than Hillary
Clinton is in touch with the common man.
I don't see an issue with helping the third world, I just don't see helping
them at the expense of our citizens which is what the corporations that have
been outsourcing jobs have been doing - and their motivation is NOT to
improve third world conditions or to educate the citizens of the third world
to be more productive, their motivation is to train them just enough to do
the jobs that are being outsourced and to pay a fraction of what they would
pay a skilled or semi-skilled American worker to do the same. The motivation
is greed and nothing but greed. Have the conditions of any third world
country improved due to outsourcing?
~returning to lurk mode~
athynz
2000 CC SLT 3.9L flame red/ light driftwood
home made cold air intake
all else stock
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 9 Feb 2008 10:25:19 -0500
From: "Tom Byrne" <kerib@ptd.net>
Subject: Re: DML: Made in China
Try what? Social capitalism found in Europe? That works well when they can
export, but not so well when U.S. exports are competitive and U.S. consumer
spending falls.
Capitalist ideals did not stop in 1787, they have been built upon and
refined using John Locke, David Codero et al as the basis for the evolution
of capitalism. Capitalism has changed much in the past 300 years. It is best
form yet right now.
For years, the left derided corporations and capitalists for not helping he
third world. Now that the third world is becoming the global manufacturing
base and its standard of living is rising, they cry fouls as unskilled and
semi-skilled U.S. workers suffer. You can't have it both ways, unless you
have a centrally planned economy. The results of which is equal misery for
everyone (except the ruling intellectual elite). Take a look at most left
leaning organizations. They are led by those from elite academia and
supported by those with barely adequate educations. This is like a master
and a dog.
The elite want to have the power to decide who gets thrown what scraps from
the table and labor fights to be first in line for the scraps. I have
friends who are very intelligent and have advanced degrees and they think
that its horrible and unfair as their much less intelligent plumber makes
more than they.
That disrupts their hierarchy and makes them unnecessary. Do not doubt for a
second that this is the attitude of the academic left.
- ----- Original Message -----
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