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Politics : View from the Center and Left -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: neolib who wrote (28235)	9/8/2006 2:47:36 PM
From: TimF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 542203

The question is, what fraction of the USA's consumption of manufactured goods as well as what fraction of worldwide manufacturing is in the USA? That's a question but not a very relevant one to the issue of has manufacturing declined in the US. If we produce more our manufacturing has not declined, esp. since we produce more not just in absolute terms but in per capita terms. From solely the consumer's standpoint, it does not matter who manufactures goods. It doesn't matter who makes the goods, but if there is more competition in making them than the combination of price/quality/service should be better (individual parts might be worse if one or two of the three are more desired than the rest). Increasing the competition benefits the consumer. It only matters if the consumer loses his/her job because one component of competitive pressure resulted in there employer offshoring their job. The individual whose job is offshored is probably hurt. The economy as a whole has a low unemployment rate. The long term tend will be a reduction in the gap between the USA's and the rest of the world's standard of living. That is likely to happen, but as a result of the rest of the world achieving a higher standard of living, not as a result of the US having a lower standard of living. You are already seeing one effect in the price of oil and other raw materials. Real prices of oil and many other raw materials aren't nearly as high as the increase in nominal prices would suggest. Oil was more expensive in 1981. I'm not saying there will be no difficulties for the US as a big part of the rest of the world catches up (India, China, South East Asia, and some other places but not Europe and not some of the least developed countries), but there will be positives for the US from the growth in other nations as well as negatives. Also the process is going to happen anyway and trying to fight it will only do harm overall.