America's Free Market.

[War-Horse]

When I was a kid, a steel mill employed alot of people, and they made good wages...almost double what the national average was.
Well, an oversea company started to ship in steel for a lesser price than the local mill could produce it.  (Import)

Now most Americans were happy because all that mattered to consumers is that the same end product cost less. (You could by this wrench for $6 or pay $12)
 Well normally the local steel mill would raise wages every year equal to the inflation rate or a little less.  But to compete, they tried to skip a year and the laborers went on strike.   
Well as they we're on strike americans continued to purchase the oversea's products, giving them a stronger foothold in the lobbyists pockets.

Now the local workers still made much more than most around them, but thought if they gave an inch, theyd eat a mile.......
Eventually the Mill closed and 3,000 guys had to get a job for half the pay they were used to.

But, we would have been fine according to the law of the free market if we simply had stopped or slowed purchasing the wrench, and the company would have adjusted the price to "what the market would bear"....it would have been a perfect law of "Supply and Demand"
But outside interests and kickbacks to politicians, CEO's and such made this impossible.

 If Imports had been limited, the market would have found a balance.  And of course Americans are always looking for the best value.(Wal-mart) so overseas companys who pay laborers .50cents a day have and ARE prospering and we build them everyday.......

This is why NAFTA and involvement in the UN, and wars that are none of our business, will destroy us.   Yes, we are reduced to a "Service" economy because we went global and couldnt compete with other countries.

Do You know why Farmers sold out their land to developers?  Because the prices for their food couldnt compete with imported food and we always chose the better value for our family.   Add to this, the Developer offered a huge price for the farm and the Farmer saw a way out.









Ron Paul for President.....

[Bindare_Dundat]

Ever try to by anything made in Canada or the US anymore?

 I went to Home Depot to buy some more tools for work and I deliberatly tried NOT to buy something from China. Good fucking luck. 99% of all the tools are made in China, don't worry though, some pencils and chisels were made in the US.

My old man fed, clothed the kids and paid the mortgage working a factory job, pressing a button on a machine. Those days are long gone.

[240 is Back]

things are made cheaper in china.  they pay their people pennies compared to what we pay ours... we have unions, min wage and all that stuff here.  that's expensive. 

we could bury our head in the sand and pay 10 times as much for everything, while the rest of teh world pays 1/10 the cost.  what would that solve?

this NAFTA thing... i'm in favor of it actually.  exploit CAN resources using Mex labor.  It lets us compete with the chinese and their cheap labor, as we can pay workers in MEX a tenth what they would earn here. 

Yes it cost americans jobs in the mnfg sector - guess what - our economy and system isn't set up as a mnfg economy - it's a service economy.  Dr, lawyer, busboys and teachers and every other service job in the USA is here to support americans and will stay.  As far as IT - our college kids just have to work harder and smarter.  If HP lays off 5000 people, it's because those 5000 were no longer profitable.  You can keep them (a dog in your portfolio) and drag down the rest of the company and the DOW... or you can slice them and let them re-learn a skill or be absorbed into the service sector.

I could be wrong.

[stormshadow]

things are made cheaper in china.  they pay their people pennies compared to what we pay ours... we have unions, min wage and all that stuff here.  that's expensive. 

we could bury our head in the sand and pay 10 times as much for everything, while the rest of teh world pays 1/10 the cost.  what would that solve?

this NAFTA thing... i'm in favor of it actually.  exploit CAN resources using Mex labor.  It lets us compete with the chinese and their cheap labor, as we can pay workers in MEX a tenth what they would earn here. 

Yes it cost americans jobs in the mnfg sector - guess what - our economy and system isn't set up as a mnfg economy - it's a service economy.  Dr, lawyer, busboys and teachers and every other service job in the USA is here to support americans and will stay.  As far as IT - our college kids just have to work harder and smarter.  If HP lays off 5000 people, it's because those 5000 were no longer profitable.  You can keep them (a dog in your portfolio) and drag down the rest of the company and the DOW... or you can slice them and let them re-learn a skill or be absorbed into the service sector.

I could be wrong.

What people don't see is that as we continue to build up these other countries through importing their manufacturing, their standard of living increases.  Their market will then demand more for their labor.  It is already happening and I see it first hand in my industry.

When an American kid can play video games and get high all day, while a kid on another continent is living in a grass hut and working 15 hours a day in a factory, there is going to be a trend toward equilibrium.

[War-Horse]

What people don't see is that as we continue to build up these other countries through importing their manufacturing, their standard of living increases.  Their market will then demand more for their labor.  It is already happening and I see it first hand in my industry.

When an American kid can play video games and get high all day, while a kid on another continent is living in a grass hut and working 15 hours a day in a factory, there is going to be a trend toward equilibrium.

Exactly.  This is where 240's thought is skewed.   We cant exploit mexican labor for canadas or the USA resources.   
 Americans will support a lower purchase price for any product...... so mexico's power and economy will climb, and ours will drop to meet where ever we can fit in.

An equalizing will take effect, and thats not in our best interest.  However globalization has taken place and now other countries depend on us to be bullies and so-on.  It will be to our detriment.