Posted on 07/16/2003 10:42:49 AM PDT by IonInsights
LAS VEGAS: When a former US secretary of state of the stature of Dr Henry Kissinger walks into a technology conference, 10,000 techies filling up the Ballroom at Mandarin Bay stand and applaud, even before he says anything. When he answers a question about outsourcing of economic activity, his reply draws a bigger applause from the largely American audience.
“If outsourcing would continue to the point of stripping the United States of its industrial base, and of the act of getting out its own technology, then it requires really careful thought of national policy and probably create incentives to prevent it from happening.”
It was Mr Sanjay Kumar, chairman and CEO of Computer Associates (CA) who put the question to him. Mr Kumar mentioned the increased outsourcing of technology related work, from insurance claims, airline reservations, computer programming to countries like India and China and asked Dr Kissinger whether this would erode middle class power bases in Europe and the US.
Dr Kissinger’s answer: “I don’t look at this from an economic point of view but the political and social points of view. The question really is whether America can remain a great power or a dominant power if it becomes a primarily service economy, and I doubt that. A country has to have an industrial base in order to play a significant role in the world. And I am concerned from that point of view.” The mood was unambiguous — American jobs must not be lost.
Mr Kumar also reminded him about his acceptance speech after winning the Nobel Peace prize where he had voiced concerns about the rise of technology, and asked whether he had changed his mind about technology since then. Dr Kissinger said, “My concerns have mounted since then. I am of a generation that grew up on books. It helps you develop concepts. With computers, you don’t have to remember things because the information is all there.” He worries that despite the fact that there is an explosion of information, the problem is how to transform information into knowledge and knowledge into wisdom.
“I worked with leaders who had an intuitive sense of the future although they didn’t have so much information. Statesmen have progressively more information but they have progressively more insecurity because they have no sense of the evolution of the system,” he said. The role of technology should be to bridge the gap between availability of information and the ability to use it, Dr Kissinger said. An idea that the IT industry will have to mull over.
Why would she wait to 2008?!
Now, Now you know that the "Pro-Outsourcing" crowd isn't interested in facts. Just greed. As a further note you might want to take a gander at this.An American success story
CALLER: I'd dis de person dat can make di decision?
ME: What?
CALLER: I'm callink about yer telephone listink. I'd dis (insert infor here) information correct? For your bidiness page listing?
ME: Uh, close enough.
CALLER: The listing will be "XX amount" for 2 years.
ME: You have a lovely voice. Where are you calling from? India I bet.
CALLER: Yes. India.
ME: Nothing personal but the last thing I'd do is pay for a listing in some telephone book I've never heard of. Besides, it might lead to more calls from India by people I can barely understand.
Why?
Because of much higher costs of living.
In other words we have a better standard of living.
The first thing my client asked the new companies was who handled their support, if it was outsourced, the company was "outsourced".
Unmentioned in the story are the side effects of Harley's success. That of the creation of American jobs by it's main competitor, Honda. The "Made in America" meant big sales to Honda, hence they now build their cruiser and Goldwing models right here. U.S. Honda workers pay taxes which provide for our defense, and the skills and machinerey they use can be quickly retooled in the event of war for weapons production.
Yes, until now American workers had/have a better standard of living.
Worse. IIRC, candidate Bill Clinton expressed serious reservations about NAFTA and said he would only consider it if solid environmental, legal, and labor protections were in place.
Later, of course, President Bill Clinton signed onto NAFTA without blinking.
Anyone who expects differently of Hillary (or for that matter, Kissinger) is living on Fantasy Island.
We were going gangbusters until the justice department took sides against microsoft and started the unraveling of the tech revolution. The accounting fiasco is a side show in comparison.
We lead in innovation and product development. I say we become a we bit more piratical against - say the french, germans and any other groupo so left leaning that it takes little wind to knock them down.
So has this Bush administration! I'm getting so pissed off with them that I am about ready to demand a refund of my contribution(s)!
To where, or to whom, do we turn?
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