FreeRepublic , LLC
PO BOX 9771
FRESNO, CA 93794
STOP BY AND BUMP THE FUNDRAISER THREAD
OUT!! DONATE TODAY
SUPPORT FREE REPUBLIC
FreeRepublic , LLC
PO BOX 9771
FRESNO, CA 93794
Posted on 10/05/2002 12:27:31 PM PDT by forest
"The collateral damage is huge," Stephen Cohen, a regional planning professor at the University of California at Berkeley told the Associated Press last week. "We've never had anything like this. This affects the entire economy."
He's correct, too. The problem will affect the Christmas trade of major merchandisers and could actually be the death-blow for struggling corporations like K-Mart.
On the other hand, what about out local merchants and the average customer? Will they actually be harmed at all? Probably not.
Yes, there is a longshoremen's strike on the West Coast. Yes, there is probably billions of dollars of merchandise sitting idle at the 29 major Pacific ports. The current cost has been estimated at $1-billion a day. According to the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents shipping lines and sea terminal operators, a 10-day shutdown could cost $19.4-billion. Some of that is produce that could spoil. A good portion of the merchandise is to stock American stores for Christmas shoppers.
We have no dog in that fight one way or the other and the arguments thrown around are much too complicated to relate properly here. But, in summary:
According to the International Longshore and Warehouse Union: ILWU workers remain locked out of West Coast ports by the PMA. "We want to return to work as soon as possible. PMA has said for weeks that any work stoppage would have a severe impact on the national economy, and now it is the PMA which has taken the action to stop work at the ports."(1)
According to the Pacific Maritime Association: "The PMA's offer would make the members of the ILWU among the highest paid union workers in America. Under that proposal, average salaries for full-time longshoremen and marine clerks would grow to $114,500 and $137,500, respectively. On top of wage increases, the benefits package alone would increase from $42,000 per employee to more than $59,000 in the fifth year of the contract."(2)
The economic problem is that U.S. foreign trade has quadrupled in the last 20 years. It now equals about 20 percent of our nation's economic activity. Just the trade through West Coast Customs districts reached $567-billion in 2000. That is almost one-third of our nation's international trade.
That sounds like a major problem developing and it can be for certain sectors of our society. All types of businesses could be affected, especially smaller shops that order parts from overseas.
Closer to the home front, many of the containers handled by the West Coast ports include toys and other merchandise from China. And, as we have reported many times before, a lot of this Chinese merchandise is made by Chinese Christians for sale here at Christians time.
That is, many practicing Christians in China have been arrested and sent to prison camps for practicing their religion. While in the prison camps, the prisoners are required to work at producing a product. Some of those products are then shipped to the United States and purchased as Christmas gifts. These products are lumped in with many Chinese made products and sold through out largest chain stores. Americans spend hundreds of millions of dollars on these products each year. That provides needed revenue to keep the labor camps functioning.
This is nothing new, of course. It has been going on for many years. China, you see, is not only the world's largest country, it is also the world's largest oppressor of Christians. But, that is something many American merchandisers of Chinese goods understandably do not want advertised -- especially just before Christmas.
Anyway, I've harped on that topic enough over the years. Let's move on to something a little more friendly.
Throughout the United States, we have millions of small shops and merchants. Look around. They're everywhere. Most of them market very good stuff, too.
If this longshoremen's strike adversely affects the well being of the chain stores supporting communist China and causes unemployment in Asia to increase, so be it. So, ask me if I care that major marketers of Chinese made goods may not have product on the shelves for Christmas. Fact is, I don't!
Because, if I buy Christmas gifts for kids, I damn sure do not want something made in a Chinese labor camp -- or anywhere in communist China, for that matter. They don't like me. I won't support them. Case closed.
Yes, the longshoremen's strike is going to cause some economic problems. But, no, it need not affect our Christmas celebration one little bit. Buy American.
ILWU wages will reach $137,500 plus $59,000 in percs and bennies. I could live on that all week!
Christians in China are in forced labor prisons making toys for Christian Christmas in America.
There are millions of American shops, so buy American.
If this longshoremen's strike adversely affects the well being of the chain stores supporting communist China and causes unemployment in Asia to increase, so be it. So, ask me if I care that major marketers of Chinese made goods may not have product on the shelves for Christmas. Fact is, I don't! Because, if I buy Christmas gifts for kids, I damn sure do not want something made in a Chinese labor camp -- or anywhere in communist China, for that matter. They don't like me. I won't support them. Case closed.
Yes, the longshoremen's strike is going to cause some economic problems. But, no, it need not affect our Christmas celebration one little bit. Buy American.
Sickening, and so sad...
Thanks for nothing, Doug. There is nothing complicated
about an extremely overpaid bunch of union goons shutting
down 20% of the economy so that such basic material
tracking technology as bar code scanners can be used
to manage this stuff. Your reluctance to discuss the
luddite featherbedded unions suggests that you do
actually, have a dog in this fight, whether it is hiding
under the porch or masquerading as a shoe tree.
That is a close call -- affect or effect -- that I thought about for a while and looked up in three different places.
To effect is to be brought about by a cause or an agent; a result. Which I took to mean, a "result" that already happened. This is not the case here.
To affect is to achieve a result; to influence a result. Which could (maybe) mean that it has not exactly happened yet.
That unpleasant "result" of the strike on our economy, not yet being apparent, I used Affect.
Which is "exactly" correct? Heck if I know! But, there came a time when I had too much time invested in thinking about just that and had to pick one. So, for the above reason, I ran with "affect."
WFTR
Bill
Correct, but only technically - it's semantics....the unions forced the lockout.
Yes, but to affect something is to have an effect upon it. Since the term "?ffect" is being used as a noun in the headline, effect would be correct. If the headline were written using a verb, "Strike affects economy" would have been appropriate.
The shippers won't allow the workers to collect their salaries for performing virtually no work...which was the case before the lockout, with the unions implimenting a "slow down".
This was in effect people standing around and doing nothing.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.