ok, i am not in disagreement with what you are saying...
and this is not my argument, but for argument sake, how do you counter it:
everything that anyone does in the U.S. can be done cheaper elsewhere (manufacturing, information technology, services industries, etc.). how does one balance the desire to spread the wealth by moving industries, and now information, to poverty stricken countries without bankrupting yourself by eliminating the market?
is it a valid long term goal for the U.S. to be purely a consumer oriented services industry? there certainly must be cons to that.
Our continuous increases in productivity should have a great deal to do with it. Manufacturing jobs have declined worldwide while manufacturing output rises.
ISM Manufacturing Output expands for 23rd Consecutive Month
Ten Myths About Jobs and Outsourcing
Let the lower-cost, lower-skilled work move to the countries who have the comparative advantage while we continue to develop the technologies and services that will maintain our position as the world's innovator.
If I remember correctly, our economy produces 5 service jobs for every manufacturing job. What do you think pays more, low-skilled manufacturing jobs or professional services?
is it a valid long term goal for the U.S. to be purely a consumer oriented services industry? there certainly must be cons to that.
We manufacture more goods now than at any other time in our history.
That is not true by any means. In the overwhelming number of situations, American workers produce far more in value than they cost, and further, they produce multiple times as much in a convenient manner as do these "low cost" places - thus the unit cost is lower.