How Free Trade Is Killing Middle America

The American Conservative ^ | Jan. 24, 2014 | Patrick J. Buchanan

[dragnet2]

Perhaps it is time for a profit and loss statement of its costs and benefits. Undeniably, free trade has been a bonanza for the top 1 percent and many among our top 10 percent.

These are America’s winners from free trade. The losers? Middle Americans. The average U.S. family has not seen a rise in real wages in 40 years.

[Mad Dawgg]

"My argument is that labor is such a small component of manufacturing cost using first world labor would increase cost but only a few cents on the dollar."

oh how stupid of me. Of course you would think such being you both deny reality and basic math...

So let me sum up for you. You claim on one hand labor has little bearing on the cost of goods sold and on the other hand we can't compete with China's low labor rates because it has little bearing on the cost of goods sold.

Right?

[1rudeboy]

find = fond

[dragnet2]

Perhaps it is time for a profit and loss statement of its costs and benefits. Undeniably, free trade has been a bonanza for the top 1 percent and many among our top 10 percent.

These are America’s winners from free trade. The losers? Middle Americans. The average U.S. family has not seen a rise in real wages in 40 years.

And you think this is because of Free Trade

Of course, that an government intentionally flooding the country with upwards of 25 million low wage illegal aliens who devastated the wages of middle class America while choking off their hospitals, schools, social services, jobs etc...

You need to pay better attention.

[khelus]

Re "Marx said that free trade would destroy the middle class."

He was dead on the money in that regard. Where he went wrong was claiming that would be a good thing for society.

How true.

[central_va]

So let me sum up for you. You claim on one hand labor has little bearing on the cost of goods sold and on the other hand we can't compete with China's low labor rates because it has little bearing on the cost of goods sold.

I said little, not no effect. I'm not accusing you of this but I've been in arguments where Free traders tell me screwdrivers would cost $10.00 a piece if made in USA. They honestly believe that. Well mathematically they haven't really thought that out. Leaving quality out of it(which is a big omission) let's say a screwdriver imported from China costs $1.00 US, a buck. For that same screwdriver made in the USA to cost $10.00 US labor per screw driver would have to be $8.00 US per screwdriver let's add a dollar for extra taxes and regulations. Do people really believe that? Do you believe that?

[1rudeboy]

Perhaps it is time for a profit and loss statement of its costs and benefits. Undeniably, free trade has been a bonanza for the top 1 percent and many among our top 10 percent.

If to what you refer is crony capitalism, then I'd like to see an argument that crony capitalism can be eliminated (or reduced) by raising tariffs.

It's a little known fact that, when a U.S. company brings a trade complaint to the U.S. government, the taxpayer foots the bill for that company's legal representation via the USTR (or the USITC--I forget which). So there is little incentive to reduce frivolous complaints. The end result is that U.S. taxpayers pay to get themselves screwed by the U.S. government, with the company/industry getting the benefit. What was I saying about crony capitalism?

[1rudeboy]

...but I've been in arguments where Free traders tell me screwdrivers would cost $10.00 a piece if made in USA....

What was the tariff rate you were proposing on domestic screwdrivers? I missed that part.

[Mad Dawgg]

"I'm not accusing you of this but I've been in arguments where Free traders tell me screwdrivers would cost $10.00 a piece if made in USA."

Do you believe that placing tariffs on all imports will have no affect on the price of goods?

[1rudeboy]

So Marx told the truth by being false. Nice.

[central_va]

I think a 10% tariff would offset the social problems created by Free trade. So you can buy your Chink made crap screwdriver but I think you should pay $1.10 instead of $1.00. I would also eliminate the income taxes and institute other consumption based taxes.

[dragnet2]

Open borders for big biz cheap labor, controlling punitive biggov, and free trade for the wealthy 10 percent, have economically gang raped the American middle class.

[Mad Dawgg]

"I think a 10% tariff would offset the social problems created by Free trade. So you can buy your Chink made crap screwdriver but I think you should pay $1.10 instead of $1.00."

OK then so a ten percent tariff on oil would only raise the cost of a screw driver by 10 percent? Right?

[central_va]

That is the beauty here, I am only talking about manufactured goods. Oil is a raw material not subject to tariffs.

There are only three ways to create wealth; mine it, grow it or manufacture it. We are doing ok of late on mining and agriculture. It is manufacturing that is being raped.

[1rudeboy]

I am not involved in mining, growing, or manufacturing. Yet I create wealth. How can that be?

[central_va]

IF a factory closes in the USA today and re-opens in China tomorrow there is a mathematical 90% chance that the USA workers laid off were non union. It is just math.

[khelus]

dragnet2: Perhaps it is time for a profit and loss statement of its costs and benefits. Undeniably, free trade has been a bonanza for the top 1 percent and many among our top 10 percent.

These are America’s winners from free trade. The losers? Middle Americans. The average U.S. family has not seen a rise in real wages in 40 years.

Mad Dawgg: And you think this is because of Free Trade

dragnet2: Of course, that an government intentionally flooding the country with upwards of 25 million low wage illegal aliens who devastated the wages of middle class America while choking off their hospitals, schools, social services, jobs etc...

You need to pay better attention.

dragnet2,
You are absolutely correct.

What many do not realize is that 'free trade', off shoring, flooding the country with illegals and 'guest workers', onerous regulations and even taxes are set up to benefit large multi-national corporations and finance at the expense of small business and middle class workers. There has been a massive transfer of wealth from the US middle class to large international corporate & finance, and the statists in power with a few crumb & dropping down to the poor, illegals, and many new immigrants.

Regulations and corporate taxes are both red herrings.

Regulations are often written with the 'help' of 'experts' provided by global corporate with the intent of suppressing competition from small and new businesses.

Corporate taxes work the same way. They hit small business bur are written so that large international corporate can easily dodge them. The Great Corporate Tax Dodge

[PuzzledInTX]

the thing that will go up in demand are people who understand and can use information

Let's not forget people who can COLLECT information, which can be done by less educated people.

We need to produce a product that is less likely to be outsourced and that is to gather, analyze, and produce local usable data for marketing and distributing outsourced products (i.e. geographic and census data as one example).

[central_va]

I am not involved in mining, growing, or manufacturing. Yet I create wealth. How can that be?

You are adding value to the wealth creators, not creating wealth. If there were no mining, farming or manufacturing you would die or become hunter gatherer.. What you do does not directly create wealth.

[1rudeboy]

I am trading my labor for dollars. How does that not “create” wealth for me?