[Mariner]

American workers can't compete against the stacked deck overseas of no medical care, no environmental laws, no safety laws and $3.00/hr wages.

Free trade under those circumstances is nothing less than suicide.

[1rudeboy]

Here's a list of countries with which the U.S. has Free Trade Agreements:

•Australia
•Bahrain
•Canada
•Chile
•Costa Rica
•Dominican Republic
•El Salvador
•Guatemala
•Honduras
•Israel
•Jordan
•Mexico
•Morocco
•Nicaragua
•Oman
•Peru
•Singapore

I'd like to see some actual data on whether any of them have no environmental or safety laws, and whatnot.

[Gondring]

American workers can't compete against the stacked deck overseas of no medical care, no environmental laws, no safety laws and $3.00/hr wages.

Americans have to realize that their OSHA protections, for example, are a benefit. Therefore, keeping labor costs constantand all other things equal, labor without OSHA has higher wages.

Protectionism can stop the American market from going there, making things more expensive for Americans, but it can't stop others in the world from going for the best value. If that's a worker willing to work for lower labor costs, or provide more quality, quantity, innovation, etc., then that's where they will go...unless you can convince them to voluntarily make a poor consumer choice.

[ichabod1]

Sadly, they have that with the illegals too. Some of those construction jobs that are completely filled with illegals would come in handy right about now too. Maybe the mexicans should be taught that taking American jobs can be hazardous to the health.