"Finally, your gratuitous and un-informed remark about "protectionism" demonstrates that you either don't understand FAIR trade, or you don't wish to."
Oh, I understand 'FAIR trade'. It's where a group of workers use the power of government to set artificial HIGH prices in order to take the hard earned wealth from their fellow citizens. Did I leave something out?
Yes. An equal playing field.
Using your own skewed metaphors: "Free Trade": "It's where a group of Communist Uber-Men Politicos use the power of government (in their workers paradise) to set artificially LOW compensation rates in the global "market" so as to "take the hard earned wealth (and industry and technology) from the U.S. citizens and their employers...and put it under Chinese control."
China now holds $500 billion hoarded in U.S. T-Bills. What do you think will happen when they finally allow their Yuan to float up 150% to where it belongs? They just stole IBM's PC division for a billion and change (hey, where are the Sherman Antitrust enforcers nowadays???). $499 billion left to play with, and the year isn't over yet. Lockheed and Boeing will likely be squarely in their sights...