Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Formerly About Applied Materials -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Cary Salsberg who wrote (46380)	5/7/2001 7:08:18 PM
From: michael97123	Respond to of 70976

Cary's questions about free trade need to be answered. Yeah capitalism is great, but we just cant write off sections of the population without paying serious consequences. How do we "socialize" captalism without killing the golden goose is the $64 question. Needs to be answered sooner that later. MIke

To: Cary Salsberg who wrote (46380)	5/7/2001 10:04:20 PM
From: Ian@SI	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 70976

Cary, If I remember correctly, you've now retired. Perhaps you could use some of that "free" time to read a couple, or a couple more, books by Milton Friedman - a Nobel Prize winning economist. He has a knack for exposing commonly held economic myths which have no basis in economic reality. Free trade is good for the world economy, but not necessarily good for many parts of the US economy. especially those parts of the US economy which may not be as productive as equivalent functions in other parts of the world. Without free trade, all Americans pay the price for this inefficiency. With free trade the productivity improves or the function gets outsourced thus improving productivity in another way. I think in an earlier post, you fretted about exporting an accounting service to Ghana. Regardless of what service was exported to which country, an unemployed person in a third world nation doesn't consume too many US goods or services. An employed person does consume goods and services many of which will be American either directly or indirectly thus contributing to US employment and improved Quality of Living. I further believe that there is a multiplier effect such that all parties to the Free Trade environment benefit. I've yet to see a compelling argument for keeping inefficient processes and services when they can be readily substituted with ones which are more productive. Let everyone do what they're best at. I finally found my niche. Retirement! <vbg> Just some thoughts from the other side, Ian.

To: Cary Salsberg who wrote (46380)	5/7/2001 10:11:48 PM
From: Katherine Derbyshire	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 70976

>>I have worried that a democracy cannot survive if a large part of the population is reduced to third world standards of living.<< Democracy is resilient. You'll see a strong shift toward more protectionist policies and more robust social welfare systems long before any such reduction in the standard of living happens. >>Social welfare, such as subsidized housing, nutrition, medical care, child care, aged care, and higher education, will be necessary to maintain a safety net for many citizens whose full time jobs fail to provide an adequate lifestyle.<< Such a safety net has been the standard in Europe for many years. The safety net is also blamed for consistently high levels of unemployment, but many (most?) Europeans are clearly willing to accept the tradeoff. >>I do not believe that a socialist society works as well as an isolated, integrated capitalist society where the members consume what they produce. << Maybe not, but is an isolated capitalist society even possible? US trade barriers are among the lowest in the world already. For that reason, free trade agreements usually require the other country to give up more than the US does. Katherine