Posted on 11/25/2002 8:15:37 AM PST by SAMWolf
And I'm proud of him, I taught him everything he knows. :-)
Thank you for the kind comment.
You impudent, ungrateful whelp! You ought to be forced to spend the rest of your life running a business to Uncle's every whim, no matter how irrational and contradictory, and woebetide you if you EVER displease your God--said God being the jackass in a cheap suit from the Internal Revenue Service, Environmental Protection Agency, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and any other 3 or 4-letter agency.
Pathetic.
Not to mention it illustrates that you think it's legitimate for government to be in control of such things.
You need a lot more than insulting, cretin. You need to pay the pricetag you so glibly impose on others' "patriotism."
All that we can obtain. "If an exchange between two parties is voluntary, it will not take place unless both believe they will benefit from it. Most economic fallacies derive from the neglect of this simple insight, from the tendency to assume that there is a fixed pie, that one party can gain only at the expense of another." -Milton Friedman
Taken to its ultimate evolution, nothing would be made in America because everything can be made cheaper in a third world country.
That's a fallacy. There are more than simply the costs of labor to consider. Workmanship, transportation and competitive advantage are just a few others.
So, when we get to the point that nothing is manufactured here any more, what do all of those Americans that are out of work do for a living???
They do that which their neighbors most desire from them and they are most able to do, if they seek the highest rewards for their time.
Countries are literally defined by the basket of goods and services they offer. What is the problem with defining our country around a set of goods and services and using our ability to cause pain to others to enforce our position?
The purpose of the government is to defend my liberty and property. Not to cause pain to me or those I seek to trade with.
America already has a serious current account deficit. That means we purchase more stuff from abroad than we sell to foreigners. No country can sustain a current account deficit for more than three years at a rate of 5% or more without seeing a devaluation of its currency. We are there this year.
A devaluation of our currency by foreign holders of said currency would only be a price response to our government's inflation and the holder's own preference for what price to sell his goods. His pricing power is, of course, limited by his competition, and the demand of American consumers. There's nothing nefarious or bad about this (well, aside from our government devaluing our money via inflation).
So the theory is that free trade is good for business. The problem is that not every American is in or is a part of a business that benefits from free trade.
So what? Not every American was in the candlemaking business when light bulbs were invented. The candlemakers had to adjust to meet the demands of those who have money to exchange. This is beneficial as it steers production (of goods and services) to meet demands. Surely you don't hold otherwise?!
If shoes cost a dollar, what does that matter if you have not a dime in your pocket??
Non sequitor. If you want to make money you have to do something that people want. It matters not that your father, and your father's father were candlemakers. Times, thankfully, change.
1 - When nothing is made here any more, where will you work?
I will work in a capacity that meets the demands of my neighbors for goods and services. No different than now.
2 - When the majority of the country is unable to earn a living wage, who will you serve?
Why would people be unable to earn a living wage? Free trade has boosted the standard of living of Americans to the lead in the world. Our poor have air conditioning, refrigeration, automobiles, and a host of goods that would have been unthinkable luxuries for the rich just 150 years ago. The reason this has taken place is specialization of labor and the associated relative reduction in costs. You propose undercutting the process that has made us the envy of the world. Limiting our ability to cut consumer costs would only serve to stagnate the standard of living by locking spending on goods at their current level.
3 - What do you think constitutes a reasonable balance??
The most reasonable course is to not thwart the very system that generates our wealth. You, nor any other bureaucrat, is endowed with the foresight to arbitrarily set price and wage levels. That is the economic nonsense that bankrupted the USSR. Quit trying to institute the madness here!
It has been said, "Patriotism is the last bastion of scoundrels."
I love my country because it defends my freedom. Not, I love my country and it happens to be free.
The Declaration of Independence asserts the right of all men to dissolve their ties to government when it becomes antithetical to the ends of freedom.
Huh? Coercion means force or compulsion. Someone putting a gun to their heads?
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