Posted on 09/26/2010 4:44:23 AM PDT by RS_Rider
The United States is rapidly becoming the very first "post-industrial" nation on the globe. All great economic empires eventually become fat and lazy and squander the great wealth that their forefathers have left them, but the pace at which America is accomplishing this is absolutely amazing.
It was America that was at the forefront of the industrial revolution. It was America that showed the world how to mass produce everything from automobiles, to televisions, to airplanes. It was the great American manufacturing base that crushed Germany and Japan in World War II.
But now we are witnessing the deindustrialization of America. Tens of thousands of factories have left the United States in the past decade alone. Millions upon millions of manufacturing jobs have been lost in the same time period. The United States has become a nation that consumes everything in sight and yet produces increasingly little.
Do you know what our biggest export is today? Waste paper. Yes, trash is the number one thing that we ship out to the rest of the world as we voraciously blow our money on whatever the rest of the world wants to sell to us. The United States has become bloated and spoiled and our economy is now just a shadow of what it once was.
Once upon a time America could literally outproduce the rest of the world combined. Today that is no longer true, but Americans sure do consume more than anyone else in the world. If the deindustrialization of America continues at this current pace, what possible kind of a future are we going to be leaving to our children?
(Excerpt) Read more at seekingalpha.com ...
Collapse of Complex Societies !!!
been reading that, it is an immense important book.
failure of marginal return on complexity. translation: we went into iraq but didnt get the oil. now we are doomed.
We really need to take a look a how Germany manages to be the 2nd largest exporter in the world. Like us, they have powerful unions and a very strong ‘green’ movement. Also, like us they have something similar to NAFTA to deal with - ie: the EU. They also face the same pressure to relocate their business to low cost countries... and have been (to the low wage countries of eastern Europe).
Yet despite all that, they still have a large manufacturing industry that sets them as the 2nd largest exporter on earth.
So why can’t the US be #1, then?
This is the hidden problem most can't see.
First you have a Government backed entity that puts upward pressure on wages for the sake of filling Union Coffers. Next you have a host of government employees that a new business must pay to get started in business and then must continue to pay to keep doing business. (Government regulation and taxes are used to pay government employees)
So before the first actual employee is hired to work and produce a product millions of dollars are spent to pay people who have nothing to do with actually producing the product. So in essence we have priced ourselves out of the market before the plant is opened.
And what do the protectionists/unionists want for a remedy? They want even more government regulation to fix the problem created by government regulation.
hole + /digging
How about national defense?
Do you think that it might be a little difficult to fight a war against China when they make most of what we would need?
I’m not saying that we should not embrace automation and service skills but we should not let ourselves get into the position that we are unable to defend ourselves.
You have any backup for this claim? Or did you just pull it out of your ear?
80 to 100 years ago a good portion of the "service" economy was house maids and butlers.
not sure on that but i would bet that we still make our own weps pretty much except for the small stuff. the Abrams tank plant is in Ohio where i was referencing.
not sure ont hat though but as dumb as the govt is i hope they arent that dumb.
shoulda checked hot air as well
I have read that a large portion of the electronics that go into our military equipment is sourced from China. Although we assemble the equipment here we have put us into a position that we would quickly run out of parts and material if it came down to it. Steel making, casting and forging skills are not being maintained.
Yes, it’s obvious you have no backup for your claim.
The key being that the Chinese “union” has negotiated a rate of only about $20 a day for its skilled workers. That’s the kind of union that management can’t help but want to work with.
The Constitution says that one of it's purposes is to "insure domestic tranquility" (it would be "ensure" in 21st century English). Not "promote.". The language is much stronger than you claim.
One big reason is that Germany does not tax items that its companies produce for export, and does not tax the profits that its companies earn overseas.
I have read that a large portion of the electronics that go into our military equipment is sourced from China”
Thank Bill Clinton & that Congress for that dumb move.
Clinton wanted to find the cheapest supplies!
He instead gave away our technology to our enemies.
An excellent set of posts here!
“Or am I just crazy?”
No, our government is crazy.
Manufacturing and industry is the root of wealth.
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