Ain't it the truth!!?

[70Ford]

I thought this thread was funny because my wife was made in Japan......

HA HA HA..I kill me.

[GregW]

One of the things we can do to reduce our dependence on foreign transportation fuel is to build much more rail based commuter and intercity trains. In (the hated Europe) the Mediterranean coast is only 6 hours by train from London. It is quicker to go from London to Paris by train than by airplane. They are building high speed rail from Paris to Moscow!

We need to realize that, like the Europeans, if you want to get somewhere you take the train. If you want to play you take the car. This is very applicable to the East and West coasts and the Mississippi valley.

[bale002]

Originally Posted by Padgett2

... medical coverage, retirement benefits, social security, workman's compensation, unemployment, 401k contributions, liability insurance ...

... all those countries will gradually raise their standard of living, pay their employees more, and then it will be cheaper to make things in the USA again.

Or maybe the other way around. In fact, the laws of physics say that the standard of living of the average US worker is more likely drift down towards that of the average global worker than the other way around.

Let's put it this way for the sake of illustration: the standard of living of the average US/European worker/retiree is 100, the global average is 1; in the next 20-30 years (maybe less), the global average, now including Americans and Europeans, is more likely to be 25 rather than 50 or 75, much less 100.

Yeah, officially we will probably still have things like medical coverage, retirement benefits, social security, workman's compensation, unemployment, 401k contributions, liability insurance, but their real economic value will be, and is being, reduced significantly.

You know, officially for many centuries the Roman Empire kept up the illusion of its republican institutions, and they even extended citizenship to inhabitants throughout the Empire, but in reality many were debt slaves and young men of "foreign" extraction comprised its armies.

Sound even a bit familiar?

[Stephan_K]

Originally Posted by bale002

You know, officially for many centuries the Roman Empire kept up the illusion of its republican institutions, and they even extended citizenship to inhabitants throughout the Empire, but in reality many were debt slaves and young men of "foreign" extraction comprised its armies.

Sound even a bit familiar?

And in todays world we will suffer the same fait to almost the same degree...