posted 02-26-2004 07:33 AM         

Pro sports can be done in some instances by someone in a foreign country, but they have to come to the USA to do it. Pro basketball has that Chinese fellow, major league baseball has Japanese, Korean, Dutch and a host of Latin Americans, but they work in the USA.

posted 02-26-2004 07:37 AM         

Ed's job,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

my position at the Prowler Museum,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

why?,,,,,, we are not taking application!

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On the serious side, its called outsourcing. Finding a way to make it cheaper elsewhere,,,eliminating U.S. production and manufacturing workers' jobs. Fueled by the efforts of WAL-MART,,,,,Always lower wages, ALWAYS!

JMO

posted 02-26-2004 08:13 AM         

Obviously, some government jobs can't be shipped out. But there are a lot that could be, in theory. Just like most any other industry. Some of our military equipment is being made offshore already. Why not all of it?

Bob, why couldn't movies be filmed overseas?
Yes, professional sports probably falls into the import proof category. Then again, there's a lot of aspects that I don't see as being exempt.

I'm not trying to be argumentative. Just looking toward the future.

quote:

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Originally posted by Bob Miller:
The entertainment industry. American movies are in demand almost everyplace I've lived and worked overseas, and so is the latest American pop music.

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Uh, you haven't been following the hollyweird crowd to closely then. Filmmakers and studios are migrating movie shoots and production studios to Canada, and South of the border more then in the USA, in droves. Why? Cost and no unions. Tim Robinson even made a speech at the last Golden Globes to the directors and studios to, "Stop exporting our jobs".

Anything that can be made, can be made cheaper in a 3rd world country. Any type of service industry (bookkeeping, help desk, accounting, software development, phone support) can be exported and done alot cheaper overseas.

While I am all for a free market, I see this latest wave as detrimental to the USA. Once a great country that everyone looked up to, we are going to end up being a country that produces nothing, makes nothing, and all our talent comes from abroad.

It's one thing to make tennis shoes in Taiwan but, when they start wholesale exporting white collar jobs where folks over here were making $60-$150K a year, there is a massive trickle down effect with it. These are the backbone of this country, they are the conspicuous consumers, they buy homes and nice cars, etc. Now this is going to effect the nicer home market, the car industry, and so on.

I was talking to a guy at a Ford dealership just yesterday. He was displaced years ago from the oil patch and said he could sell 35-45 units a month and make a decent living. Nowadays, he says he works twice as long, and is very lucky to sell 5-7 units a month.

posted 02-26-2004 11:20 AM         

Office workers better worry many companies are looking to send your work overseas. This all started when Carter was president and is really starting to snowball. Florida has a law that all state government work outsourced can't be sent out of the country. Should have the same law in the US.

Factory workers it's too late for the most part. Building products is what produces wealth for the masses and we have sent most of the manufacturing to Third World Countries with only the management getting wealthy.

Make it worth their while to want to stay. Think of it like the "empowerment zones" where businesses get tax breaks and differments on city/state taxes for building businesses in disadvantaged neighborhoods.

On the other hand, some companies are already seeing the pitfalls of this. Dell recently pulled back it's phone support from India because of too much complaining. Companies know the bottom line and if customers are going elsewhere because of exportation and lack of command of the english language, it makes sense to bring it all home.

posted 02-26-2004 01:40 PM         

I understand Dell's problems. I was living in south Asia for four years before returning home in August of last year. I have encountered all sorts of English speakers around the globe and I find the Indian dialect the most difficult to understand.

posted 02-26-2004 08:13 PM         

My concern is that the globalization of the world economy is at the expense of the American family. It should not be hurting one economy to enrich another. Not only do we loose jobs in the USA but the Federal Government pays the costs associated with transfer of the jobs including identifying the jobs to send, cost of the machinery, etc. In fact another friend was a controller of a clothing manufacturing plant in the USA and when the feds found a third world country to send the work to the plant had to shut down because they lost the contracts. Guess what happened next? The Feds then bought the idle equipment at less than half of what it originally cost and sent it overseas!!

The American tax payer not only lost his job but his taxes also paid for it to be eliminated. Bob, you may not think it is political but that sure sounds like liberalism to me!
Don't get me wrong I am a very conservative Republican, but this topic really get me fired up!

Please don't take what I say the wrong way. There are so many aspects to this topic....well enough said. Can't wait for warm sunny days to put the top down and go crusing and forgetting about the crap that bugs me!!!! :-)

posted 02-27-2004 07:56 PM         

how insistent are YOU that the products you buy are made in the USA/Canada whenever possible? When's the last time you really looked to see if that t-shirt...or whatever... was made here before you bought it? Or was it the least expensive/most convenient thing for you to get?

We do not help the 'big picture' if we dont stop to look at all the small decisions that we make that contribute to the larger ones.

Here's a challenge for ya... walk into "Any Mall USA" and start shopping for American Made products only.... and then question the store owners.....

After WONDERFUL experiences with Nissans & Toyotas for many years and many models, I made a Personal Decision 20 years ago to never buy another foreign car... so far so good. One small step....

posted 02-27-2004 07:59 PM         

quote:

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Originally posted by enduro:
Ed, \ Just re-grouping for the next round.

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Cruise on up to the Fondy area... I picked up a half dozen new bottles last week... Split one with ya

quote:

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Originally posted by GenoTex:
and along these lines..........
the 'tough' question...

how insistent are YOU that the products you buy are made in the USA/Canada whenever possible? When's the last time you really looked to see if that t-shirt...or whatever... was made here before you bought it? Or was it the least expensive/most convenient thing for you to get?

You may have to look long and hard to find one that is made here. And when you do, it may not be what you were looking for or wanted.

After WONDERFUL experiences with Nissans & Toyotas for many years and many models, I made a Personal Decision 20 years ago to never buy another foreign car... so far so good. One small step....

Actually, is it? That is the question we all have been raising. O.K., you stop buying the Nissan's and Toyota's but, both have factories in the USA. So who are you hurting?

You instead by Ford or Chevy or... and they have plants in Mexico or abroad. So who are you helping?

I don't think it is so black and white any more.

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