Most people would agree that nothing is free. Somewhere along the line you wind up paying for everything in some way, not always in cash. Free trade is really a good idea but only if everyone is playing by the same rules. Fair free trade is good.
Everyone knew, especially Ross Perot, what would happen to our high priced manufacturing jobs. The "sucking sound" was heard around the globe, American companies moving their jobs to cheap labor countries with fewer restrictions and regulation than they had in the USA. became the new Exodus. It was a gift to the rest of the world and US manufacturers. It was also an implicit acceptance of sweat shops and slave labor. For a country which can't seem to apologise enough for our slave history, we encouraged it in other countries.
It is good in some ways that poor countries finally had jobs and work but as their standard of living began to rise, there was a simultaneous decline in ours. There are those who predict that before long, the long suffering "slaves" will demand higher wages and lose their edge. Actually, this could happen only in true democracies and there are few among our chief competitors.
All Americans love the lower prices of slave made goods but the cost in human suffering for those who "won" and those who "lost" is taking its toll. Unless and until competition is based again upon quality and productivity and not cheap or "slave" labor, our labor force will suffer. Steps must be taken, even a tariff system for gross human rights offenders, to equalise just competition among nations. Lacking this, subjugation and exploitation of foreign labor will continue and we cannot be competitive unless we sink into third world labor conditions.
Everyone knew, especially Ross Perot, what would happen to our high priced manufacturing jobs. The "sucking sound" was heard around the globe, American companies moving their jobs to cheap labor countries with fewer restrictions and regulation than they had in the USA. became the new Exodus. It was a gift to the rest of the world and US manufacturers. It was also an implicit acceptance of sweat shops and slave labor. For a country which can't seem to apologise enough for our slave history, we encouraged it in other countries.
It is good in some ways that poor countries finally had jobs and work but as their standard of living began to rise, there was a simultaneous decline in ours. There are those who predict that before long, the long suffering "slaves" will demand higher wages and lose their edge. Actually, this could happen only in true democracies and there are few among our chief competitors.
All Americans love the lower prices of slave made goods but the cost in human suffering for those who "won" and those who "lost" is taking its toll. Unless and until competition is based again upon quality and productivity and not cheap or "slave" labor, our labor force will suffer. Steps must be taken, even a tariff system for gross human rights offenders, to equalise just competition among nations. Lacking this, subjugation and exploitation of foreign labor will continue and we cannot be competitive unless we sink into third world labor conditions.
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