Posted on 05/14/2009 8:21:08 AM PDT by 1rudeboy
Most people agree that, when it comes to economic recovery, more economic activity is better than less. When companies buy and sell more goods and services, we get more jobs and growth.
Yet, for some reason, this obvious fact eludes those who want to constrain America's access to overseas markets. At a time when government is spending hundreds of billions of dollars it doesn't have on doubtful "stimulus" initiatives, you've got to wonder why some politicians continue to argue against free trade agreements. After all, these pacts have a proven track record. Trade has created millions of jobs and is responsible for almost a third of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP).
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[Panama Free Trade Agreement]
Most Panamanian goods already enter the U.S. duty-free under long-standing trade preference programs, so no U.S. consumer or business would suffer as a result of this agreement. Almost 90 percent of U.S. manufacturing exports to Panama would immediately become duty-free, and any remaining tariffs would phase out over 10 years. Moreover, more than 60 percent of American agricultural exports to Panama would get duty-free treatment upon the agreement's implementation, and any remaining tariffs in that sector would phase out over the next 15 years.
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More than 57 million Americans are employed by firms that engage in international trade. Why are the unions not out there fighting for free trade agreements to expand their wages and job security?
What's more, free trade agreements account for more than a third of U.S. trade worldwide. The Obama administration should make FTAs a centerpiece of its stimulus effort. Expanding trade - a sector of the economy that accounts for 30 percent of GDP - should be high on the list of things that need to be done.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
So long as the free trade is a two way street as it appears this Panamanian deal is I’m all for it. Sadly too much of our imports come from countries that practice their own protectionism.
As opposed to those that want tax and regulatory burdens to fall primarily on American manufacturers.
How dare you. Do you really expect middle class americans to compete with 2 dollar an hour panamanian laborers living grass huts ?
“Almost 90 percent of U.S. manufacturing exports to Panama would immediately become duty-free, and any remaining tariffs would phase out over 10 years.”
Yeah, that should jump start our economy.
Opposition may stem from banking Panama secrecy practices and allegations of money laundering, an nothing to do with “free trade”. AIG suing the government for $300 million for tax rebates from its tax havens (including Panama) came at an inopportune time for those pushing the Panamanian FTA.
Well, Pedro Miguel Gonzalez Pinzón, the President of the Panama’s National Assembly, will no doubt clean up the money laundering and narco-trafficking. Maybe after he deals with his indictment for murdering American serviceman Zak Hernández.
Panama has been a key target of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development for resisting international norms in combating tax evasion and money laundering. ... we've learned that AIG, arrogance, incompetence, greed, has sued the U.S. Government demanding more than $306 million in taxes it paid, twice the amount of what it paid in the now infamous executive bonuses.Here is what AIG is claiming. AIG is claiming it overpaid taxes related to the activities of its AIG-linked Panamanian corporation, Star International Company, which is chartered in the tax haven of Panama. And if President Bush's Panama Free Trade Agreement is ratified, AIG's largest shareholder, which is this derivative in Panama and other offshore companies, would have expansive new rights to challenge U.S. tax laws. In fact, there are currently 350,000 foreign firms that are registered in Panama where there are zero to low regulations and taxing restrictions. So we know that, if this treaty is ratified, these policies will inhibit the ability to protect the American people, crack down on money laundering and tax cheating and shady financial deals.
And we all how trustworthy he is.
Sadly for the free trade crowd, it certainly isn’t helping the economics issues in this Great Recession. Ask the exporting Asian nations just how well free trade is working for them - or look at our upcoming issues with the dollar and dependence upon external buyers of our Treasury debt - and we see that this “free trade” dogma has been an utter farce.
And now the bill is coming due. Quickly.
“Free trade” dogma is one of the things where the GOP’s position looks absolutely silly in light of the rather brutal truth that mucks up their beautiful theory.
You're right, because only the government can properly decide the correct flow of trade.
Why are the unions not out there fighting for free trade agreements to expand their wages and job security?
Now this thread is going to get real funny!
No, because there is no such thing as “free trade” or “free markets” - in any other area other than illicit or contraband goods.
Start with the idea of a “free market” in the US, within our own borders. Is there a “free market” inside the US? No. The tax codes (NB the plural) are full of all sorts of social engineering. The Federal Reserve has gamed what your money is worth now and in the future, as well as has gamed what entire asset classes are valued at, thanks to their machinations with monetary policy.
Now let’s move outside our borders: is there any such thing as “free trade?” Not any more than there are “free markets.” When the Chinese can play games with the value of their currency vs. our currency, when they put huge amounts of their surplus (gained by exporting their goods and incredibly low prices into our market thanks to their pegging their currency to the dollar) into our credit markets in order to keep consumer loans flowing into the consumer’s hands at manipulated and low rates... that’s not either “free trade” or a “free market.”
Repeat after me: There is no spoon.
Corollary: the government spends too much money, so it should muck up the flow of trade.
I get it. Because there are rules, regulations, taxes and restrictions on trade, we should ask for more of the same, instead of less.
Repeat after me: There is no spoon.
Yeah, you're the one. LOL!
Well, duh, simple: Because they don’t work.
Farmers have been taken in by the whole “free trade” twaddle too. In the 90’s, it was claimed that “free trade” would open up vast new markets for US ag commodities and relieve us of some of the surpluses that keep ag prices low in the US.
Did farmers export more product? Yes, but we’re losing our previously strong trade surplus in ag goods - ie, imports are going up as fast or faster than exports are. And with these food imports are coming black eyes for the US farmer. eg, “mad cow” is found (time and time again) in Canada, and US beef producers take the hit as a result. Food safety issues are being imported from Mexico and China, and who is now going to be regulated with all manner of food safety regulations? The US farmer. The foreign farmers won’t have to comply, of course.
Free trade is a farce. Oh, it is sold and peddled under the rubric of “free markets” but it is anything but. When one sees the mountain of regulations that a US producer need comply with to export into various other countries which is not reciprocated by the US, we see free trade for exactly what it is: a way to open up US producers to competition from off-shore and a extra-national bureaucracy that prevents US producers from being able to challenge the quality or regulatory compliance by foreign producers.
If we want “free trade” then what the GOP should be advocating are “bi-lateral, reciprocating” trade agreements. No more GATT/WTO style agreements. We should make trade policy with nations on a nation-by-nation basis, and trade policy should be reflexive - if they lower barriers, we lower barriers. If they increase regulation on our exports, we increase regulation on imports from that country.
No, we should recognize that the “free trade” and “free markets” dogma is simply nonsense. There are no “free” markets or trade, period, thanks for playing.
There are always regulations and externalities in markets, and as we’re now seeing, monetary policy is a huge gaming of markets and trade. In none of the “free trade” treaties is there any mention of the role of central banks in monetary or currency policy to game trade and markets, yet that is exactly what the PRC does and has been doing for more than 10 years.
Thanks to the policy of “free trade” we’re rapidly approaching a point where major trading partners (first the Arabs and oil producers, then China, and now Japan) are talking about wanting to move away from the US dollar as the world’s reserve currency. Should they do that, even on a regional basis (discussion of which is even now underway in Asia - prompted in part by the Fed’s actions, and in part by the fact that the Asians remember TurboTax Timmy quite well from 1997/1998), will cause a very large disruption in the US, which is now an import-based economy.
This is obvious to all but the pinheads who have an analytical ability that can be completely contained on a bumper sticker.
I for one attribute Zero's and the Democratic landslide last Nov. to the Republican's indifference to the blue collar crowd and support of this labor arbitrage program. Throw in a lap dog media and McStupid didn't have a chance.
Thus I suspect every dollar wasted by Zero and Co. should be charged against whatever money we saved from free trade.
So it's beginning to look like this so-called free trade/new age economics is a zero sum game.
Time will tell.
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