The Return Of The Giant Sucking Sound

SFGATE.com (The SF Chronicle) ^ | 02/09/04 | Adam Sparks

[sfwarrior]

Since 2001, the United States has lost 2.8 million manufacturing jobs. Hello! Is anybody listening? This is a crisis. Our house is on fire, and few in Congress are paying attention. And, at the rate things are going, the only jobs even college graduates will be able to get will be in the service industry. That's political lingo for flipping hamburgers.

[Euro-American Scum]

Hang on to your socks, we're getting ready to go for a rough ride. There's no way any of us can stop it either.

No. But there is the choice of going out on your knees or on your feet.

[ninenot]

It is true that the Dimowits and their stooges in the Press are suddenly tuned to this problem...

But the manufacturing economy in the Upper Midwest actually stopped dead in its tracks about mid-2000, and has not yet recovered.

[the invisib1e hand]

'giant sucking sound,' SF Chronicle...it all makes sense.

[ninenot]

You better take a good look at union packages over the last five-seven years. Not NEARLY as lucrative as you suspect.

In fact, most unions are taking 1%-2% increases in wage AND taking less health-care benefits, besides.

That is, all except the Gummint unions (AFSCME/NEA.)

[Happy2BMe]

"..how does an American worker making between $25-$40 an hour, at a factory or "knowledge" job, compete with those making 10-20 cents an hour."

The 10-20 cents/hour are off shore jobs that replaced traditional jobs in textiles, circuitry fabrication, clothing, electronics production, small engines, tools, hardware, appliances and myriad of other "blue-collar" manufacturing jobs outsourced overseas just in the past ten years. This outsourcing increased dramatically under the present "conservative" president, George Bush.

The jobs that this segment were doing at $35 - $45 an hour are now being done by Enlish-language challenged Pakistanis and Indians reading off of cue cards making less than $5,000 a year (and living better than any time in their lives, I might add).

These are, of course, Jobs Americans Just Don't Want.

This phenomenon didn't really catch the attention of a majority of Americans who were being affected by the loss of jobs until the "white-collar" jobs such as those related to the Information Technology, telemarketing, and financing jobs started being outsourced overseas.

Bought a Dell lately? Applied for a credit card lately?

This historic leeching off of American jobs to third-world nations not come at a more economically desperate and critical time. The siphoning off of jobs overseas is occurring at the same time as the migrant labor invasion from Mexico.

FORMULA: Outsource JOBS (+) MIGRANT LABOR INVASION (=) EXTINCTION OF AMERICAN MIDDLE CLASS.

Over . . .

[AndyJackson]

I've read THE book

Out of curiosity, what is "THE book?"

[Iscool]

You have forgotten to mention the Unions. They have contributed more to this situation than any other reason has. Their demands for higher wages and huge benefit packages have driven many companies out of business in the past. Now they're driving them overseas.

That's rediculous...The union employees are just trying to keep pace with the cost of living...And most are not keeping up...I pity the non-union employees who have nothing to help them survive while the CEOs reap millions per year even if they're non-performers...

So what do you figure an employee is worth??? In China they're worth about 20 cents per hour...And they can barely afford a one or two room apt for themselves, their parens, grandparents and kids...Is that what an employee is worth to you??? What makes you think you are worth any more than they are???

Problem is, while many white collar workers whine about the pay of blue collar workers, the pay of the white collar workers rises in conjunction with the blue collar worker's pay...But for some reason, some at FR seem to feel thay while they are valuable, blue collar workers a value-less...

[ninenot]

It's not hard to find extreme cases--but it is VERY hard to find zillions of them.

By and large, management-types are earning the kind of money that they should be--not too much, not too little.

Your argument is just like the "unions are leeches" argument: there are a few--but FAR less than one thinks.

[raybbr]

You have forgotten to mention the Unions.

Are you aware that only 13.2% of all manufacturing jobs in the U.S are in unions. Tell me how 13.2% of that workforce has ruined it?

[RockyMtnMan]

He also said that if NAFTA passed he would be forced to play along. He didn't support NAFTA but it's sink or swim and he's not one to drown.

[ninenot]

Unfortunately, 'conservatism' is often mis-translated as "biggest profit-ism."

Comes from the Protestant Revolution, believe it or not. It's a moral/theological argument.

Amazing how many "Christians" find ways to pay slave-wages.

[SuziQ]

Thanks for posting that info about the job situation. So many have bandied that 2.4 million jobs lost figure around that I wasn't sure what the truth was! I knew that jobs had been created, and that of those 2.4 million people who had lost jobs over the last three years, many had already found new jobs, but didn't have the actual numbers.

[Sofa King]

I think it's time for everyone to stop bitching about the loss of American manufacturing and start doing something about it. If you think it's such a huge problem, then stop buying imports! What I am appalled by is so-called conservatives demanding that the government MAKE them do it.

[Coleus]

STOP the FTAA-Free Trade Area of the Americas

Many RepubliCRATS are pushing this bill, it's only going to get worse. Castro, Chavez, et. al., and the rest of the communists in South America will become partners with the USA in trade, we will forgive debts and bail them out, etc.

[raybbr]

Why? because the unions have established a sense of entitlement and have held american companies hostage.

Are you aware that only 13.2% of all manufacturing jobs are union? How is it that such a small number is causing the ruination of manufacturing?

[Peach]

You will need to go read the actual article at Business Investors Daily which will prove to you that the jobs created were not what you so mockingly called bed pan washing jobs.

Those are the jobs Americans DON'T want.

But I don't expect to convince someone like you. It's obvious you have an agenda and a spin all your own.

[jpsb]

How does the cool-aid taste? Do you like it?

[lucysmom]

...puts the giant fart ina tornado at 330,000 jobs lost vice 2.3 million. Election year scare mongering isn't new but it really has become high political theater to scare the hell out of anybody willing to listen to this claptrap.

330,000 or 2.3 million jobs lost really doesn't matter very much. Even if zero jobs were lost we would still be in trouble because job growth would not be keeping pace with the number of people entering the labor force.

In December 2003, 62.2 percent of the labor force was employed; in October of 2000, 67 percent of the labor force was employed. These are both Household survey numbers.

[jpsb]

Sofa King is an excellent name for one that obviously got his education from TV sound bites. Welcome to FR, Sofa King, now prepare yourself for a real eductaion.