[Mase]

You can not compete with price fixing, government fiat, slave labor, etc.

In that case where the rules are different the free economy will always lose.

Can you cite some examples of a free economy losing to a protected economy that employs price fixing, government fiat and slave labor?

Thus the ideal that free trade is based on is deeply flawed because the Theory believe that all countries are playing by the same rules when they are not.

So free trade agreements don't specify the conditions for trading? Are you saying that none of the countries signing trade agreements adhere to the rules?

Free trade will slowly choke the life blood out of the USA.

When was the last time this country rejected a free trade agreement? Since that time, what empirical evidence can you offer that free trade has choked the life blood out of the USA? I'd be particularly interested in GDP growth, employment growth and any increases in family wealth since then. You could also look at our growth in exports, absolute manufacturing output and our standard of living.

Fair trade on the other hand will benefit not only the Rich but the middle class and the poor also.

I just love that term. No one ever bothers to explain what fair trade is or--even more to the point--to whom trade should be fair. In the name of fairness, different groups advocate different protections for their specific industries and call the comparative advantage of other countries "unfair."

How do you define fair trade? Fairness assumes a dubious character in policies that pick and choose whom to treat "fairly."

As is clearly demonstrated in the Index of Economic Freedom, once economic barriers begin to emerge, a nation's wealth begins to decline. The only form of fair trade is free trade.

Thus China/USA trade is tilted in favor of China..

I don't suppose you'd have any data to back that up, would you?

[unseen]

You cite alot of increases in the wealth of America since 1975. What you fail to mention is that personal debt is at an all time high. National debt again at an all time high. Personal savings is at an all time low. It now takes two incomes to have all that wealth when in 1975 there was a large percentage of one income earners. You want some examples of a free economy losing to a protected economy. Japan/china vs the USA are two that come to mind we have trade deficits with each country. Taiwan also trade deficit. I.e we have a net lose of weatlh from this country to those country. Our technology edge is gone because we traded it away for nothing in return, our military edge is shrinking because the free unrestricted trade with China is allowing them to jump decades ahead in technology in mere years.

Fair trade is the trade between two nations with the quasi same workers laws, environmental laws government regulations and most importantly average yearly income. You can not compete with someone making .50 cents an hour no matter how much productivity you have especially when you are exporting those productivity improvements so the .50 an hour person will become as productive as you in the next few years. The WTO gives countries little say in the country to country conditions of trade. There are guidelines true but they do not put the interests of the USA above any other country. We have ceded our interests to a world body that could care less about nation states, individuals freedom, etc etc. Free trade has choked off the manufacturing base of this country. Most manufactured goods come form outside countries and are assembled here. What will we do in a time of war. Order our parts from Brazil?