Rage against off-shoring is very real

[RayH]

There is a substantial difference bewteen foreign competition and outsourcing. We are shipping our infrastructure overseas.

The problem isn't the few cents extra profits the corporation makes or even higher unemployment in the US. The problem is the next generation not learn the skills of modern technology. Our country will lose the technological lead because there will be no technology jobs.

American know how will turn to American NO HOW!

[whitebeard21]

World war 3 is almost over and America has lost. If China and India stop exporting goods to the US we are in a world of hurt. No clothing no appliances no car parts no cell phones no tv no stereo the list goes on forever.
Do not forget no parts for all of our high tech weapons systems since they are made overseas also.
Can anyone build a computer from parts made in the US?

[RayH]

Pretty soon, a computer might not only have no parts made in the US, it may have nothing even belonging to a US company. China has begun manufacturing its own cpus.

Don't poo paw about what those chips do or don't do now. It's what they may do in the future.

[Optimus Prime]

Sorry to thread crap, but World War 3?, haha.. a war is a war, but just because America and Britain had a war with two 3rd world countries doesn't mean it's a world war.

[Solid Snake]

Giving jobs to non-US citizens is always a bad idea. Whether it's giving programming jobs to Indians or Mexicans in your local pizzeria, It puts Americans out of work. Maybe the Mexicans or Indians can do the same job for less pay, but their cost of living is lower than ours. Sure, the company heads get rich and the foreign workers make out pretty well but we as Americans lose. When you mix workers and employers of different economies, bad things happen. If you want an Mexican economy and a Mexican quality of life, then open up the borders.

[skybolt_1]

Hey everyone...

Although I realize that many of you are in MUCH better understanding of the "big picture," of trade and foreign policy and such, I am not amoung your ranks.

As a student due to graduate with my BS in IT this April, there is not a day that goes by that I am not scared, TO DEATH, of what the hell I am supposed to do!

I am 21 years old, ahead of most people my age in terms of education. To be honest, I wish I wasnt! I am leaving to go into the worst job market I have seen in my short life. I have considered graduate school (to weather the storm) but have pretty much given up on that for several reasons.

First, all I am truly into, what is really my passion, is computers and networking. But no one is hiring in those fields and if they are they want 5-8 years experience!!!! So why sink money into doing something that doesn't count for anything!

Right now I am working as a telemarketer for a major north-east cable provider (not hard to figure out who). I look at the people around me, good people, with degrees and some who were small business owners, and now look at them! (NOTE: I know that some are here as a result of their own mistakes but most arn't). I talk every day to hundreds of people ever day who are just as scared as I am because they have no money to buy what I'm selling. I have had to reduce myself to leaving out key parts of the truth to survive, to get a paycheck every 2 weeks. No, wait, make that - I LIE TO SURVIVE.

What the hell kind of life is this? I want to get married to my girlfriend but I am scared that I won't be able to provide for her, that I will be a drain on her finances when she graduates. (BTW she has 120k in school loans to pay off).

Do I blame myself? A little bit. I sometimes wonder that if I had a more go-get-um attitude I would be more sucessful... I'm trying daily to improve that...

Do I blame the government? Quite a bit. They have given breaks to people who don't need them for years

Do I blame corporations? Yes. They have no other interests than furthering their bottom line. That's not the way it should be.


Sorry if this post demoralizes or upsets but it's what I have to live with, along with millions of others, every day.

skybolt_1

[willy_ph]

Ultimately the crux of the problem resides within all levels of government. I personally think the decision to implement widespread free-trade in search of new markets, rather than establish a sustainable economic system has led to the outsourcing phenomenon.

America isn't the only nation that is having their manufacturing and high skilled labour fields gutted through outsourcing. Most of the northern economies (Canada, Germany, Great Britain, etc) are experiencing similar situations.

To solve this dilemma, all nations must abandon the view that nations must compete for business (Competition State). Competition among states to attract investment and business doesn't result in high wages and stable business that people can depend on. But rather, it exacerbates the recent trend of part-time, temporary, low wage jobs that have emerged within the last 10 years and results in a global wage race to the bottom.

It's obvious that there isn’t one solution that can be implemented worldwide to solve this problem, but there are several propositions that have the potential to combat this trend. Firstly, northern nations must allow for strong unions that have the political capacity to effectively challenge business interests with respect to labour laws. Lawmakers must support these unions by halting the legislative attack upon organized labour by implementing stiff penalties against companies who engage in deliberate union busting and intimidation tactics. In southern nations, unconditional grants must be made available to those nations who cannot attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Such funds will allow those nations to invest in national infrastructure to attract legitimate and sustainable business, while simultaneously provide effective social programs to support and educate the unemployed population. By providing stable social welfare programs and accessible education to the unemployed, the tide of unemployed migrant workers will be reduced as indigenous businesses are established that capitalize upon the social and intellectual capital native to a country. One solution to provide such funds would be through the implementation of the Tobin Tax (a minute tax upon international monetary exchanges) which would obtain some of the much needed funds to implement the programs that are required to aid developing nations.

Disclaimer: Before you go criticizing my reply, keep in mind that this was written up very quickly and as such, there may exist a number of difficulties or contradictions within the preceeding passages.

[Atomic Rooster]

Oops! My bad. I thought this thread was going to be about off shore oil rigs.

[Gomer]

skybolt:

I am 21 years old, ahead of most people my age in terms of education. To be honest, I wish I wasnt! I am leaving to go into the worst job market I have seen in my short life.

Be glad you weren't graduating immediately following the September 11 attacks. Right now you won't find your dream job, or maybe not even a job you enjoy doing. But you ought to be able to find something.

Regarding your girlfriend... hopefully she has some sort of master plan and was pursuing a degree which will easily allow her to pay off 120K in loans.