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My sympathies to anyone who's losing a job over outsourcing to India. But the more I read about this problem, the more jaded I'm becoming. I never made $60,000 plus a year. Why should I care about these $60,000/yr jobs being lost? I'm retiring soon. I want the cheapest damn price for every service I get, for every article of clothing that I buy. Why should I sympathize with these guys? It's everybody for themself in this economy.

Nobody sympathized with the Rust Belt states when their steel jobs went overseas. Now it's the turn of other sectors of our economy. It's no fun, right? Maybe their areas will start to look like the run down steel mill towns that litter the Western PA landscape. They can turn it into a waterfront mall and pay people minimum wage to work there.

I tell you why you should care. The Dems may well win the election over this - and win back congress. It is not just IT. Outsourcing means that almost any middle class job can and will be sent overseas. I fear it is too late as it is already planted in the back of everyone's mind. This is a very big deal. If we get two more Dem terms where they can control congress the nation will not recover. We will go the way of the UK. It will be over for us - we will side into third world status withing 15 years. Your retirement money will be worth nothing.

People that think that we are on the cusp of a conservative revolution in this country better get a grip on this issue, we are likely to get tarred with it even if it was sent in motion years ago. Conservatism will lose out for another generation - it will be the New Deal all over again.

Why should I care about these $60,000/yr jobs being lost? I'm retiring soon. I want the cheapest damn price for every service I get, for every article of clothing that I buy. Why should I sympathize with these guys? It's everybody for themself in this economy.

I'll refrain from asking if you're relishing in schadenfreude, and ask more about your statement of "Its everyone for themselves in this economy."

What do you think that means? That you're entitled to own products made by slaves as some inalienable right? Or that you think that we should lower our standards of living just because everyone else is lower than ours?

What do you think is going to become of the US when all we care about is "getting the best damn product for the cheapest price"? When all that's valued in this country is the lowest price you get can get for a trinket? Is that a country you want to live in? Perhaps you don't care about the long term aspects of this as you're retiring soon, but I would hope others aren't as falsely selfish as you.

I say falsely as I'm a selfish person, but I don't put getting cheap products at the top what I want. I'm far more selfish about protecting the standard of living for all Americans, and I believe that's accomplished by not sitting idly by while every industry is looking towards China and India.

And on a practical side, what do you think is going to happen when the 2.5M people laid off grows and grows? They sure aren't going to continue voting in Republicans that sat there dumbfounded as their jobs were being shipped offshore. Think FDR II but bigger.

But the more I read about this problem, the more jaded I'm becoming. I never made $60,000 plus a year. Why should I care about these $60,000/yr jobs being lost? I'm retiring soon.

The social security payments you will be receiving were not built up by you over your lifetime earnings. They will be coming from current taxpayers. The current taxpayers are having their wages cut by outsourcing. They are either losing their jobs and starting over at drastically lower wages, or accepting pay cuts. This is eroding the tax base from which you will be receiving your retirement. I hope you don't need social security.

On a grand scale, aside from the loss of jobs, we are being placed in a position where we are competing with nations that do not even subscribe to the concept of indoor plumbing. What compromises do we make as a nation to compete at that level? Do we become slaves ourselves? Also, those "large salary" jobs are held by "large comsumers" who drive the economy. Those jobs that depart our shores take those dollars and potential consumers with them. Downward spiral at this point. Pretty soon, the concept of indoor plumbing becomes quite "novel" for Americans...

Why should you care? Well if you are retiring soon will you be expecting a check from social security? Well guess what, social security is currently financed by today's money. If that goes away, so does your check. That's why you should care.

"Why should I care about these $60,000/yr jobs being lost?"

That $60K job helped keep the economy out of recessionary waters, by helping it expand. That engineer, software writer, or network analyst who's job went to Bombay used to take his salary to the grocery store, to the gas station, the dry cleaners, to the barber shop, to FedEx, to the sporting goods store, etc. Each dollar he spent went into someone else's pocket, who in turn took it to the grocery store, the gas station, etc., and so on. That demand for more food, gas, cars, computers, rollerblade wheels, etc. meant more jobs would be needed to produce, sell, transport, stock and retail those goods and services. From there, more people would be employed to keep those new cars running, to fill out insurance paperwork when those cars are involved in traffic accidents, make new tires to go on the car, keep the XM satellites up and running so the driver could listen to XM radio when he drove, etc. I was once told in Econ 150 in college that each dollar earned in the private sector is respent seven times. So when that $60K is removed from the American economy, it's actually $420K. Multiply that thousands of times, and is it any wonder the economy has been so bad for so long?

Each of those 60K dollars were also taxed, which provided the government funds for defending the nation, building new roads, keeping CommieLib NPR on the air, and keeping Social Security flowing. If you don't understand the economic impact of losing well-paying jobs in any other way, this last example should hit home with you.

Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!