Freedom to Trade: A Guide for Policymakers

The Heritage Foundation ^ | October 20, 2015 | Bryan Riley and Anthony B. Kim

[1rudeboy]

Sorry I’ve been scarce, but I’ve been busy (manufacturing job, lol). It was time to give the hornet’s nest a good whack.

[sparklite2]

I have a large trade deficit with Wal*Mart and DirecTV. So far all of us seem to be doing ok.

[cripplecreek]

Make it easier to do business here. Its really a pretty simple concept.

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

PING

Read this. It says all the things I would have said to you if: (1) I had the time; or (2) I thought you’d actually try to understand it.

[DesertRhino]

Trade is one thing. But a “trade”treaty that addresses US gun laws, immigration policies, etc is not. A “trade” treaty that gives foreigners the right to sue the US government if a government policy impedes them in any way whatsoever? A “trade” treaty that discusses climate change.

Trade is fine. But I do not want foreigners to have any say whatsoever in US govt policy.

[ransacked]

Well said.

[DesertRhino]

I am in favor of trade, but until about 1990 a nation had to jump through some hoops to get most favored status. Now with free trade agreements that system is dead and we have zero leverage. In fact,, they can demand we accommodate them legally. You can literally use prison labor as in parts of Asia and freely sell the items here.

[1rudeboy]

"Most favored" status causes a lot of knee-jerk reactions, simply because of the terminology. It just means that you get to look up your products in the tariff book, instead of negotiating them one-by-one.

If you are a member of the WTO, then you get to use the book. It's as simple as that . . . .

[Mase]

Waiting for the guy who thinks my purchase of a Samsung television from Best Buy, for cash, causes the national debt to increase......

[Toddsterpatriot]

I hate that guy!

[1rudeboy]

I added almost $30 to our trade deficit with Canada today on whiskey alone.

[Mase]

Drinking the good stuff, eh? Manufacturing must be treating you well. That reminds of the bottle of Pendleton a customer gave me last Christmas that I should open.

Pretty quiet for a pro-free trade thread.

[Mase]

Yup, me too!

[1rudeboy]

Contrary to what you read on FR, manufacturing is not all it's cracked-up to be. Hot in the summer, cold in the Winter, dirty, smelly, noisy . . . 10-12 hour shifts, mandatory OT, etc. But it does keep me swimming in Canadian whiskey, so there's that . . . .

And as far as Canada goes, as we say here in Detroit, "be kind to your neighbors from the south."

[Jim from C-Town]

I understand free trade just fine. What the U.S engages in is not free trade. It is generally considered rape in most jurisdictions. The fact that our government actively conspires with foreign governments and large moneyed multi national corporations against its own citizens makes it no less appalling.

The numbers used in this article are from the same BLS that says unemployment is at 5% while 94,000,000 Americans of working age are not working and includes a person who worked for as little as one hour for pay in the last two weeks as employed. So what use are they ?

[expat_panama]

...manufacturing is not all it's cracked-up to be...

Yeah, but it's the only sector that creates value. </sarc>

[expat_panama]

...the same BLS that says unemployment is at 5% while 94,000,000 Americans of working age are not working...

Right, the BLS is a bunch of liars.  We know that because of the 94,000,000 number we got from ah, oh yeah, the BLS...

[1rudeboy]

And that's the funny thing . . . I would be creating more "value" (and wealth) by working in a cube somewhere. But it's my choice not to . . . so you could say that I'm costing the economy by working in manufacturing.