Free trade loses lustre

The Sunday Times ^ | February 29, 2004

[sarcasm]

WASHINGTON: Free trade is losing support in the US, in particular among high-income Americans, as more professionals feel threatened by job outsourcing to low-wage nations.

A recent poll by a Washington research group found falling support for free trade but the shift was most dramatic among those earning more than $US100,000 ($A130,000) a year.

The University of Maryland's Program on International Policy Attitudes found the percentage of those earning more than $US100,000 who actively supported free trade slid from 57 per cent in 1999 to 28 per cent in January 2004.

These results surprised even the researchers.

"It is rare in any case that any demographic slice drops 20 or 30 points on any issue," said research director Clay Ramsay.

"It certainly provides evidence for the theory that job insecurity is creeping up the income scale."

The poll showed more white-collar Americans joining the blue-collar outcry against globalisation and cast a cloud on the ability of the US to remain a leader in free trade. It also suggested protectionist talk would rise during the presidential election campaign.

But researchers said the results showed a majority of Americans endorsed free trade in principle, even if they believed it was being handled poorly by Washington.

"Feelings about international trade have gone from lukewarm, to luker," said PIPA director Steven Kull.

"Two-thirds say they support the reciprocal lowering of trade barriers but feel more needs to be done to mitigate the effects on workers and the environment." But the trend towards outsourcing of software and engineering jobs to countries such as India had led to a rethink of the benefits.

Senator Charles Schumer wrote recently in the New York Times that free trade had to be reconsidered in light of new economic realities, notably that much of the outsourcing was going to "a relatively few countries with abundant cheap labour".

"When American companies replace domestic employees with lower-cost foreign workers to sell more cheaply in home markets, it seems hard to argue this is the way free trade is supposed to work," Senator Schumer wrote.

[Thisiswhoweare]

Please don't confuse their wonderfully contrived arguments with the facts.

People forget how fiat currencies historically die - and they always do.

A nation that gives up its core technologies and industries, destroys itself with excess taxes and regulations, monetizes its debt. and fails to secure its borders in the midst of a crises will inevitably fall without remedy.

[Thisiswhoweare]

Particularly if some well intentioned Freepers started it up on say, a thread like this, and kept thumping...but I still think it is a long shot.

[1rudeboy]

Perhaps you should re-read my responses on this thread?

[1rudeboy]

Sure, I'll take a stab at it . . . economic activity expands, incomes rise, and standards-of-living increase when barriers to trade are reduced. Looking at U.S. economic history, of course.

[BiffWondercat]

Reading a second time will provide little more substance than the first time. The economists are getting it wrong.

[BiffWondercat]

When in Rome I guess...

[hedgetrimmer]

Never never never never never never give up!
--Winston Churchill

[XBob]

28 - "They have won many of these trade complaints thanks to the anti-U.S. composition of the World Trade Organization Court."

IT'S TIME FOR US TO GET OUT OF THE WTO !!!

[Ciexyz]

btt

[RussianConservative]

The communists oppose free trade.

Wrong, Lenin and Marx very for free trade, it destroy national soverignty and make world socialism much easy.

[RussianConservative]

Free trade exist in 1860's to 1910's...at that time it help destroy economy of Britian and France Empire...also by 1910's it is in swing to reverse as the empires start to guard own trade and hate each other because Free Trade damage so...so you get WW1...after WW1 free trade again...when that die you get Great Depression and WW2...so much for track record.

[ETERNAL WARMING]

The Free Traitors here seem to insist it's a DEMORAT issue. WRONG! It was Conservatives that first squawked and the Dems are smart enough to pick up on it and make it their own. This is a bipartisan issue. The only question is, how many votes Bush will lose to them because of his overwhelming concern for the "international economy." He's lost my vote because of it. He's lost alot of votes because of it. He's just one more corporate sellout unconcerned with his nation and the people in it. This ain't a boardroom, Jorge. And we're not buying your lame excuses. Think again. I'm voting Constitution Party.

[ETERNAL WARMING]

FAILED "ISOLATIONIST" ways
LOL Man, you're completely uninformed. Those "failed isolationist ways" made this nation great and wealthy. Probably because we had FAIR TRADE, not isolationism.

[ETERNAL WARMING]

Karl Marx supported Free Trade. He reasoned that it was one of the fastest ways to break down sovereighty to they could take over.

[ETERNAL WARMING]

What was the average wage in the US in 1960?


Gotcha! What was the average cost of living in the US in 1960---guess what! We were better off! One worker could support a family! Even go on a vacation once a year and buy a new car when needed.

[sarcasm]

economic activity expands, incomes rise, and standards-of-living increase when barriers to trade are reduced. Looking at U.S. economic history, of course

Average American real wages are lower than they were 30 years ago.

[raybbr]

Looking at U.S. economic history, of course.

You're being such an astute and knowledgable proponent of free trade led me to believe that you would have come up with a little better answer than that. How about some specifics?

By the way, I thought we didn't have free trade. Isn't that what the big fight is about? Trade has been regulated even during the good times in our economic history. It doesn't add up.

[1rudeboy]

False. Marx believed that free trade would lead to class-tension. That is all.

[1rudeboy]

Please see my #178.

[1rudeboy]

Here we go again. I think you meant to say:

[According to a single Canadian study I found on the Internet in favor of increasing the minimum wage] [a]verage American real wages [for anyone with less than a college degree] are [marginally] lower than they were [during a period of time, if expanded, that would defeat my thesis].