Originally Posted By: Tornado Red
Originally Posted By: Gary Allan
Quote:
The solution to the problem of disappearing jobs... lies not in trade sanctions against competing nations, but in a total overhaul of the government's taxing and regulatory policies.
I don't see it that way. While it's "true" ..the rationale behind it is not quite right. The regulations aren't there because someone decided to pull something out of their behind. Their origins are based in just cause. I don't think we want to "go back" to the fond "good old days" of child chimney sweeps and "company town" coal mines (some beg for the return to such "mastery") with their patch towns. Do we want to return to the unchecked pollution ..etc..etc. ...
Figure it out, the wages of sin is government intervention. Figure a way to breed a more sensible greedy person ..or instead of throwing an award banquet and cheering them along for pulling the best coup, give them the death penalty.
You want more jobs, but you don't want to change the rules that destroy jobs. You want more manufacturing, but you keep piling more burdens on manufacturers -- and what's worse, the current administration keeps promising a whole lot more burdens.
You speak of "breeding" a different kind of human -- Stalin had the same idea, he wanted to create the New Soviet Man. Of course it required eliminating all of those who did not fit in his new society. Mao and Pol Pot had the same idea.
Human nature does not change, if you doubt me then consult the Hebrew bible, or the writings of Confucius or Aristotle. The society you desire, where people react differently to incentives and disincentives, might be realized by a different species on a different planet, but it does not exist here and you cannot change people to make them do what their human nature tells them not to do.
I can tell you my opinion, but there are a lot of smart folks out there that have given this complex issue much more thought than I have.
The main hurdle is to identify which laws and regulations are preventing the retention of existing jobs, as well as the creation of new jobs. I think we can all agree that the tax burden is too high, but the U.S. has been living on the proverbial credit card too long and now it's up to John Q. Taxpayer to pay the bill. I think that everyone, including companies and wealthy individuals should be taxed at the same rate. As for welfare and food-stamp recipients, they should work within their local communities before receiving such benefits. Some could clean buildings, others could pick up trash or watch the children of those working to earn their welfare checks. These are just a few examples of jobs that welfare recipients could perform. Only the mentally ill and truly disabled, especially our veterans, should be exempt.
Relaxing air quality standards and environmental permitting requirements will drive industrial growth. Who wants more pollution in their community though? Relaxing standards for various toxic substances in our drinking water will prevent the need to purchase expensive equipment, but who wants their children to consume more lead or benzene? On the other hand, does it make sense to manufacture vehicles in Mexico (i.e. Volkswagon) and then transport and sell them in the United States without tariffs or quotas? Volkswagon can't afford to drop out of the U.S. market, which means that tariffs and quotas could be used to encourage them to produce vehicles in the United States. They will continue to produce vehicles in Mexico as long as the economics support them doing so. We cannot compete with the availability of cheap labor and lax governmental oversight that exists south of the border. Utilizing protectionism to safeguard domestic jobs and industry doesn't have to equate to isolationism. I would rather have a smaller, healthy economy than a large economy with an ever increasing deficit. Again, this is not a matter of political affiliation because neither party seems to understand what the term Balanced Budget truly means. Millions of Americans have been learning first-hand about the consequences of living on credit, but they don't have the luxury of printing more money or borrowing from China.
This leads one to ponder the question of how Canada, England, France, Germany and other European nations are able to prosper despite government provided healthcare and high tax rates. Last time I checked the Euro was doing better than the Dollar.....