Free Trade:

[Talon]

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Here is Al Gore arguing for NAFTA against Ross Perot in the 90's. He brings up "Smoot Holly" Cruz also brought it up the other night while debating Trump. These bastards (Democraps & Republicrats) want to destroy the middle class, and have for over 2 decades.

[TheRabbit]

Of course they do. Think about it; the middle class are the only ones that don't want the govt in their lives. The poor want free shit and the rich want to control the lawmakers.

[Steve28]

What have you guys got against free trade? You really want to put tariffs in place and wind up paying twice as much for snowshoes and maple syrup? Well, do ya? Yeah, I didn't think so.

[TheRabbit]

Most of the guys I know make syrup. It's kinda the thing to do here.

[mattmuttsmith]

I concur. Fuck all politicians.


You should get Abs in here. She is an expert on pretty much everything. Especially free trade and capitalism and socialism and all the other isms.

[Talon]

The thing about "free trade" is that it ISN'T. You pay for it with jobs leaving the country so that they can make their products cheaper, but still sell them to the US market. The problem with that model, as we have seen, is that you reach a point of diminishing returns, and before long your working class can't even afford the cheap Chinese goods, because they don't have jobs.

[mattmuttsmith]

The thing about "free trade" is that it ISN'T. You pay for it with jobs leaving the country so that they can make their products cheaper, but still sell them to the US market. The problem with that model, as we have seen, is that you reach a point of diminishing returns, and before long your working class can't even afford the cheap Chinese goods, because they don't have jobs.

the truth. You speak it.

[Steve28]

The thing about "free trade" is that it ISN'T. You pay for it with jobs leaving the country so that they can make their products cheaper, but still sell them to the US market. The problem with that model, as we have seen, is that you reach a point of diminishing returns, and before long your working class can't even afford the cheap Chinese goods, because they don't have jobs.

But when you put up trade barriers then other countries respond in kind. Bear in mind that the US is the second largest exporting nation on the planet. People have the idea all the jobs have all moved overseas and the US only imports stuff now. Not even close. You export over 1.6 trillion dollars annually. More than any other country except China. If that dried up because of trade wars, what effect would that have on the working class?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...ies_by_exports

[Talon]

That's always been what our "free traders" here in the states have told us, but it just doesn't bear out in practice. NAFTA, GATT and our entrance into the WTO has cost us millions of jobs, and a weakening of our middle class, because they were all high paying, but are now replaced with service type jobs. TPP will be NAFTA on steroids, and another nail in the coffin of the US working class.


A good article I found.

http://www.epi.org/blog/fast-track-to-lost-jobs-and-lower-wages/

But when you put up trade barriers then other countries respond in kind. Bear in mind that the US is the second largest exporting nation on the planet. People have the idea all the jobs have all moved overseas and the US only imports stuff now. Not even close. You export over 1.6 trillion dollars annually. More than any other country except China. If that dried up because of trade wars, what effect would that have on the working class?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...ies_by_exports

[dudeman]

What have you guys got against free trade? You really want to put tariffs in place and wind up paying twice as much for snowshoes and maple syrup? Well, do ya? Yeah, I didn't think so.

What would I do with snow shoes? And maple syrup, meh it ain't got nuttin on Aunt Jemima.

[Steve28]

You know, a bit of selfish self-interest here, but I'm glad some of the crap we consume is produced in China rather than here in North America. We're exporting the poisonous industries elsewhere. All this technology we consume and the plastic crap we consume is utterly toxic to produce. The forests rivers and streams are rebounding in North America while China turns itself into a toxic landfill so we can have our Android phones and iPods and Dollar Store crap shit. We don't even send them useless paper money as compensation anymore, just ones and zeros in a computer system that makes them feel rich while their kids glow in the dark.

[Steve28]

So to sum up, China is turning much of itself, East Asia and Africa(where a lot of the rare earth minerals are extracted) into a toxic wasteland so we can have what we want. And we basically give them back nothing other than IOUs with a winkie smilie that they can never collect on.

You need to realize when we have it good and STFU.

[TheRabbit]

You know, a bit of selfish self-interest here, but I'm glad some of the crap we consume is produced in China rather than here in North America. We're exporting the poisonous industries elsewhere. All this technology we consume and the plastic crap we consume is utterly toxic to produce. The forests rivers and streams are rebounding in North America while China turns itself into a toxic landfill so we can have our Android phones and iPods and Dollar Store crap shit. We don't even send them useless paper money as compensation anymore, just ones and zeros in a computer system that makes them feel rich while their kids glow in the dark.

That is a very good point. However, someone will come to collect at some point in time. That will be interesting.

[Steve28]

That is a very good point. However, someone will come to collect at some point in time. That will be interesting.

They collect all right. All our shit that outlives it's usefulness is sent back to them, to recycle (cause we're green! Yay liberals!). Those massive container ships that come here from China full of crap leave with crap we've already used up for them to recycle and sell back to us. We get ice cubes trays for $1 they get kids with an extra arm growing out of their forehead.

[Night]

Of course they do. Think about it; the middle class are the only ones that don't want the govt in their lives. The poor want free shit and the rich want to control the lawmakers.

Who do they think goes to work and pays for the poor to have their free shit?