Re: The DEN -- Heal thyself

[John <jsdwd@ispwest.com>]

On 6/24/03 11:50 PM, "Van Putten, Dirk [ETP/SAN]" <Dvanputten@lodanwest.com>
wrote:
> 
> I would disagree with John's statement that the climate in America has not
> changed. It has clearly changed for many of the reasons that John
> identified. The American dream is going away. And I believe John forgot to
> add another possible break down in the loss of the American Dream. I agree
> that our country's leadership is opportunistic. Sending jobs to other
> countries provides the opportunity for short term gain. We are selling out
> for the short term gain. In manufacturing, all of the assembly, design,
> etc.. is going to foreign countries.

Mr. Van Putten misunderstood my post.  I did say the climate in America has
changed (and I think dramatically).  My point was that, with the exception
of the Middle-east and, I suppose, Central Asia, I don't think it's changed
that much elsewhere.

With regard to jobs going off-shore, I don't think trying to protect jobs is
any more effective in the long run than trying to shore up prices with
tariffs.  More many years now there has been a world-wide market for
unskilled and semi-skilled labor (assemblers, shippers, receivers, etc.) and
it pays a little more than $1 per hour currently.  Any product that has
significant labor content whose manufacturer is paying, say, $5 an hour has
a significant gap. 

Unfortunately while the market for labor has been broadening, Americans
ability to compete in the 'higher end' jobs of software design, technicians,
simple engineering, etc., has been eroding because of our deteriorating
educational system which continues to produce students who are well behind
there international counterparts in science and math and many of whom are,
in the high-tech, verbal information-age jobs, essentially illiterate.