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Burb - What would I do if I were that executive? I would stop ordering new raw materials; lay off most workers and or anything else to raise the last quarter’s profit. Then I would gladly take my expected bonus and run as far away as possible.
The rest of you - have any of you ever heard of reciprocal trade agreements where our imports from country A are roughly matched by our exports to country A? Have any of you ever heard of countervailing tariffs?
Properly implemented trade agreements raise the standard of living of the people on both sides of the trade not just increase one side’s return on investment. Tariffs set at a level needed to eliminate the advantage gained form lax environmental and wage standards encourage other countries to raise their standard of living to match ours instead of desperately struggling to keep a slave wage class while their traders become billionaires at the expense of their and our workers.
We need to implement both of these before we lose even the industry’s we need to make our weapons. At this point the rifles used by our Army are made in a Virginia factory owned by a Belgium located company. This is beyond absurdity.
Burb - What would I do if I were that executive? I would stop ordering new raw materials; lay off most workers and or anything else to raise the last quarter’s profit. Then I would gladly take my expected bonus and run as far away as possible.
The rest of you - have any of you ever heard of reciprocal trade agreements where our imports from country A are roughly matched by our exports to country A? Have any of you ever heard of countervailing tariffs?
Properly implemented trade agreements raise the standard of living of the people on both sides of the trade not just increase one side’s return on investment. Tariffs set at a level needed to eliminate the advantage gained form lax environmental and wage standards encourage other countries to raise their standard of living to match ours instead of desperately struggling to keep a slave wage class while their traders become billionaires at the expense of their and our workers.
We need to implement both of these before we lose even the industry’s we need to make our weapons. At this point the rifles used by our Army are made in a Virginia factory owned by a Belgium located company. This is beyond absurdity.
Allowing raw materials to run out and wreckless cost reductions sent your company into a tailspin to BK. All assets are frozen while the courts sort it out with creditors, your contracted severance of $6M is held up in court, you'll be lucky to see a measley $3M.
Now nobody has a job, not just those vulnerable to outsourcing.
1) "Globalization" is unlikely to completely reverse. One should plan accordingly.
2) "Globalization" is not about win-win for everyone. There are definite losers, from ancient and modern cultures being wiped out to the "economic incarceration and institutionalized poverty cycles now increasingly apparent. So plan accordingly and don;t be so surprised or act too smug when such individuals wake up and use their voting power in a way that asks for inclusion. Perhaps those lucky enough to have received a fair shake had ought to give a little back and not be willing to build barbwired resorts (like in the Caribbean) or hide behind gated communities within gated communities. Arguing that it universally and uniformily "good" is just plain silly and empirically ignorant.
3) "Globalization" is all about arbitrage and standardization. With globalization, we are fast moving to one global culture. Travel used to be mysterious. Now it is dreadfully boring with few surprises. And this comment can refer just to travel within the US. Globally, the world has become smaller. Some progress. This dimension offers huge profit opportunities but more reasons to seek isolation and a return to older forms of uncertainty. Perhaps Thoreau is more relevant than ever before.
4) Globalization will not be the smooth ride we would like to imagine. Countries are no different than individuals when backed into corners with few options. Cultures that feel the noose tightened will lash out if not to survive remind us that hubris should always be costly. The nationalism and classicism of the past is alive and well. The EU elections are evidence of that. I am sure the xenophobia in the recent history of China and India will emerge from time to time. Even 10% a year growth in GDP, already things of the past in both countries, would be unlikely to present the occasional flare-up of anti-foreign emotions. Hate and revenge are not the exclusive domain of the masses. The worst of all this is preventable with some efforts to recognize the real costs of globalization and the heterogeneous impact of welfare.
As for me I am as pessimistic as I am optimistic. Our greatest triumphs as well as our greatest blunders lie ahead. Let's hope we can survive both.
If this doll is made in China by someone making 50 cents and hour, why does it cost $43.88... at wal mart ??????
Weren't they were much cheaper when they were made in America by someone making say $5.00 and hour..
You would think by outsourcing at that low of an hourly labor rate it would be cheaper than when someone making it was being paid $5.00 an hour.
Well your POTUS just sold part of an AMERICAN auto company to CHINA!!!
So? If the current corporation is so inefficient that it can't manage to run its own company, sell it to someone who can.
Personally, I've lost a job to outsourcing before. I didn't feel sorry for myself or whine and complain, I got off my ass, went out and got some extra training, and found a better job. It's not rocket science, people. To compete, you have to be competitive.
So? If the current corporation is so inefficient that it can't manage to run its own company, sell it to someone who can.
Personally, I've lost a job to outsourcing before. I didn't feel sorry for myself or whine and complain, I got off my ass, went out and got some extra training, and found a better job. It's not rocket science, people. To compete, you have to be competitive.
"It's not rocket science"
But sometime next year NASA will be outsourcing that too.
The arguments on both sides points to a few things. We need to restructure so that everywhere on the planet is a good place to live.
Then we need to give up the idea that constant growth on a finite planet is the goal. It's impossible in the long term.
It's time we hold our leaders feet to the fire to create a world *we* want to live in. Not one that let's them live like kings, and the rest of us like serfs.
Always pisses me off when a politician uses the term "democracy". Where are these "democracies"? If the majority are worker bees, how come all the systems favor the rich?
Simple answer, because it ain't really a democracy. LOL!
And one thing is clear, unless times are dire, the masses remain apathetic, populist and celebrity-bound. Hitler knew this to a "T."
And when things get extreme, they will vote for either saviour or hero or against the scapegoat.
S.
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