15 Articles Worth Reading
15 Articles Worth Reading
Date: Sunday, March 06, 2005 2:37 PM
JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER
by Rob Sanchez
March 06, 2005 No. 1209
Note from Rob: Notice that in #4 there are more layoffs than hires -
and yet John Challenger praised this situation as "a sign of economic
growth"!
Article 1:
http://newsobserver.com/opinion/story/2169027p-8550132c.html
Who's in charge?
Liberty-minded Europeans are waking up to the reality that the European
Union is overriding their national constitutions and courts. Those
nations are now mired in a web. Americans, to avoid the same fate, must
recognize that free trade deals are more about political union than
economics, more about regulation than freedom. In the bad old days of
the Cold War, we had words for those who placed globalist ideologies
before our Constitution and the good of the American people. Words like
un-American and traitor.
Article 2:
http://www.localtechwire.com/article.cfm?u=10767
Cap on Foreign Works With Advanced Degrees To Increase This Year - and
So Do the Fees
Provisions of recently enacted legislation have increased the fiscal
year 2005 cap on H-1B visas by 20,000 visas for foreign workers with
advanced degrees from U.S. schools. The effective date for the
increase is March 8, 2005.
Article 3:
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/3/prweb214455.php
Tech Group Grants "Weasel Award" to Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY)
The IT Professionals Association of America (ITPAA) has awarded its
first Weasel Award of 2005 to Senator Hillary Clinton for her recent
remarks supporting outsourcing. The ITPAA based its award on Indian
press reports of Sen. Clinton supporting outsourcing and assuring
political and business leaders in India that the US would not attempt
to save the jobs lost. "Outsourcing will continue," Clinton said in
Delhi on Feb 28, according to a report by the Asia Times. "There is no
way to legislate against reality. We are not in favor of putting up
fences."
Article 4:
http://money.cnn.com/2005/03/02/news/economy/jobs_challenger/index.htm
Layoff, hiring plans both gain
Challenger survey: Employers announced plans for 108K layoffs and
almost 42K hires in February.
Article 5:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7044314
20,000 new H-1B visas coming in March
Applicants still likely to outnumber recipients
But starting March 8, certain provisions of the 2005 Omnibus
Appropriations Bill (HR 4818) make available an additional 20,000 H-1B
visas each fiscal year to aliens who have earned a master's degree or
higher from a U.S. institution. "When you think of Pitt and CMU, this
is ideal for them," Mr. Castrodale said. David Clubb, director of the
office of international services at the University of Pittsburgh, said,
"As an educational institution that trains and gives advanced degrees,
we want our graduates to have the opportunity to enter the U.S. labor
market."
Article 6:
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/11029338.htm
As jobs are outsourced, honest debate is needed
It's time to ask whether the rise of tech powerhouses in Asia and the
movement of tech jobs there will do to Silicon Valley what the rise of
the Japanese car industry did to places like Flint, Mich.
Article 7:
http://magic-city-news.com/article_3212.shtml
Two Senators from New Delhi
Are Senators Christopher Dodd and Joseph Lieberman representing New
Britain, New London and New Canaan, Connecticut. Or, are they
representing New Delhi? When you see all those Indian computer
programmers going into the insurance companies in Hartford, who have
replaced American workers, they thank Lieberman and Dodd for their
efforts on their behalf.
Article 8:
http://www.straitstimes.com/sub/asia/story/0,5562,303324,00.html?
KL volunteers help hunt down illegals
A HOUSEWIFE, a construction contractor, a security guard and a teacher
were among 450 Rela volunteers who set out yesterday to nab illegal
foreign workers as Malaysia got tough after four months of soft talk.
Called vigilantes by some and 'bounty hunters' by British newspaper The
Guardian, these men and women were anything but the tough gun-toting
mavericks out to make a quick buck by nabbing illegals for a reward.
'We are here to serve the country and I don't even know what is the
allowance that will be paid to me,' said Corporal Omar Din, 55, who is
a security guard.
Article 9:
http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~61~2739429,00.html
Senate GOP delays vote on outsourcing
Democrats in the Colorado Senate declared Tuesday that the state should
no longer hire companies that use service workers outside the United
States. The Keep Jobs in America Act won unanimous support from the 18
Democratic senators in an early vote, but the bill was knocked off
track late Tuesday afternoon when Republicans asked for a review of the
financial impact of the bill.
Article 10:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/03/03/cafta.push/index.html
Free trade at all costs?
The Bush administration is trying to push the Central American Free
Trade Agreement through Congress quickly and quietly. The White House,
however, couldn't find the votes for this so-called free trade
agreement before his re-election in the fall, and the president likely
doesn't have the votes for it now. And that's a good thing for American
workers.
Article 11:
http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au/story.jsp?sectionid=1274&storyid=2758279
Japan considers unskilled migrants
JAPAN is considering revising its immigration policy, making it easier
for unskilled foreign workers to enter the country, to address a
looming labour shortage.
Article 12:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-03/ioea-ute030305.php
US technical employment falls by more than 220,000 workers from 2000 to
2004
Article 13:
http://www.vdare.com/rubenstein/050305_nd.htm
Good News On Jobs? Not For Americans
The government announced Friday that payroll employment rose a "robust"
262,000 in February - more than economists had expected and enough to
trigger a stock market rally that took the Dow Jones Industrial Average
to its highest close for four years. But the household survey, which is
the source of employment data by race and ethnicity, paints a very
different picture. According to that survey, household employment fell
by 97,000 positions in February, or by 0.7 percent.
Article 14:
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/opinion/archive/s_307156.html
Mexican trucks: 'Sovereignty' vs. safety
Before 9/11, Mexican long-haul truckers were banned in the United
States. After 9/11 and amid renewed questions about truck inspections
and safety, it's argued that Mexico's 18-wheelers should be free to
travel anywhere north of the border. The mere recommendation that
trucks be inspected by U.S. officials before crossing the border
irritates Mexican authorities, who say that would impinge on their
sovereignty. If that's the case, let them preserve their sovereignty --
and keep their trucks off U.S. highways.
Article 15:
http://www.vdare.com/roberts/050228_america.htm
America's Superpower Status Coming To An End
The U.S. economy is failing. The afflictions are serious. They could be
fatal even if diagnosed and treated. America is losing the purchasing
power of its currency and its ability to create middle-class jobs.
Moreover, the composition of jobs has changed away from
high-value-added, high-productivity jobs in tradable goods and services
toward lower productivity domestic service jobs that cannot be
outsourced. Even here, in this last remaining area of employment for
Americans, the U.S. workforce is losing job opportunities to foreign
nurses and schoolteachers brought in on H-1b work visas as a result of
budgetary pressures on local school budgets and hospitals.
1. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://newsobserver.com/opinion/story/2169027p-8550132c.html
Who's in charge?
By ROXANE PREMONT
DURHAM -- Liberty-minded Europeans are waking up to the reality that
the European Union is overriding their national constitutions and
courts. Those nations are now mired in a web. Americans, to avoid the
same fate, must recognize that free trade deals are more about
political union than economics, more about regulation than freedom.
The North American Free Trade Agreement created myriad regulatory
bodies. They were modeled after Europe's "High Authority." In 1950, the
France's foreign minister proposed integrating the coal and steel
industries of Western Europe. The European Coal and Steel Community was
set up in 1951. The power to make decisions about the coal and steel
industry in six member countries was placed in the hands of the
supranational High Authority.
From such tiny acorns, overarching trees can grow. Over 50 years and
additional trade agreements, this original High Authority is now the
European Court, the judicial arm of the European meta-state.
The proposed DR-CAFTA (Dominican Republic-Central American Free Trade
Agreement) proposes a similar tribunal. Even U.S. companies that do no
business in Central America will be required to comply with
international (read United Nations') environmental and labor standards.
Obviously, compliance requires enforcement, so these unelected,
constitutionally unaccountable regulatory bodies will have authority to
levy fines or take other actions.
Sara Lee and Altria Group, the parent company of Kraft and Philip
Morris, support CAFTA. Why would any large corporation support more
burdensome regulation? They see markets to expand into and can afford
specialists to comply with the regulatory burden. Small business owners
who cannot afford the cost of compliance would be driven out of
business. The net effect of killing small businesses is to destroy the
middle class throughout the Americas.
CAFTA is but a stepping stone to an even larger merger with all of
Latin America called FTAA (Free Trade Area of the Americas). The size
of this hemispheric-spanning bureaucracy has local officials in Miami
and Atlanta actively competing to become the home of the FTAA
Secretariat. Attempts to generate public support for this new "Brussels
of the Americas" mention 27,000 new bureaucrats and a half billion
dollars a year in revenue. "Free" trade indeed!
The tribunals created by NAFTA, CAFTA and FTAA are part of a growing
web of supranational organizations that we are making ourselves subject
to, in violation of our Constitution. Article 1 section 8 mandates that
Congress shall "regulate commerce with foreign nations." It does not
say that international organizations can dictate our trade, labor and
environmental practices.
In the words of a Wall Street Journal piece, "For the U.S., a collapse
in (FTAA talks) would be a big defeat in Washington's efforts to build
new export markets and to weave together the hemisphere politically."
Shall we then weave our political structure into harmony with the likes
of Nicaragua and Guatemala?
My heart ached recently as former U.S. Rep. Cass Ballenger told textile
executives in Raleigh that "there really is no choice." Noting that
restrictions on Chinese textile imports were recently lifted by the
WTO, he emphasized, "A vote against DR-CAFTA is a vote for China."
Scare tactics aside, the real deal is that the North Carolina textile
industry is one of the main injured parties of past trade deals, and
likely to be injured in this one as well.
In the bad old days of the Cold War, we had words for those who placed
globalist ideologies before our Constitution and the good of the
American people. Words like un-American and traitor. When leaders in
both political parties seem intent of destroying our livelihoods and
transferring our sovereignty to layer after layer of unaccountable
meta-governmental bureaucracy, it is hard to imagine what other
descriptions might apply to their actions. Where are they leading us,
and why won't they tell us what the end of this road will look like?
Let us not end up like those Europeans witnessing the deliberate loss
of their national independence. Kill CAFTA and FTAA in their cradles.
(Roxane Premont is a board member of the North Carolina chapter of
Citizens Committee to Stop the FTAA.)
2. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.localtechwire.com/article.cfm?u=10767
Printed from LocalTechWire.com
Posted: 03/02/2005 07:36 AM
Cap on Foreign Works With Advanced Degrees To Increase This Year - and
So Do the Fees
By John Lindsey, Special To LTW
Editors Note: John Lindsey is a member of the Research Triangle Park
law firm of Daniels Daniels & Verdonik, P.A. TechLaw is a regular
weekly feature in LTW.
________________________________________________________________________
_______________
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK - Provisions of recently enacted legislation
have increased the fiscal year 2005 cap on H-1B visas by 20,000 visas
for foreign workers with advanced degrees from U.S. schools. The
effective date for the increase is March 8, 2005.
To take advantage of this increase in the cap for fiscal year 2005,
employers will need to act quickly, because the available slots are
expected to be oversubscribed. Other changes to the H1-B visa rules,
such as fee increases, were enacted in the same legislation.
An H1-B visa is the form of nonimmigrant visa issued to individuals who
have a college degree (or equivalent) and seek temporary employment in
the U.S. in a specialty occupation or as a professional, such as
computer analyst, engineer, scientist, or teacher. The H-1B visa
program began in the early 1950s, and H-1B professionals now work in
all sectors of the U.S. economy.
Historically, workers on H-1B visas have been concentrated in
information technology fields, primarily in computer related
occupations. In the past year, however, more H-1B visas were approved
for occupations in fields other than information technology, primarily
in education and health care.
Congress has placed limitations (the "caps") on the number of new H-1B
visas that may be approved each fiscal year (October 1 to September 30
of each year). The current cap is 65,000 visas, down from 195,000
visas in fiscal year 2003. As a result of trade treaties, 6,800 H-1B
visas are reserved for applicants from Chile and Singapore, reducing to
58,200 the number of H-1B visas available under the cap each year for
persons from other countries. Visas not utilized by beneficiaries from
Chile or Singapore are added back into the cap to be used by persons
from other countries.
Increasing the Cap
Under provisions of the Omnibus Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2005
(the Act), up to 20,000 petitions to employ H-1B beneficiaries who have
earned a masters or higher degree from a U.S. institution of higher
education will be exempt each fiscal year from the H-1B visa cap,
effectively raising the cap by this number.
Once the available slots for these exempt beneficiaries are filled,
additional petitions for beneficiaries with advanced degrees will apply
against the 65,000 worker annual cap on H-1B visas. The exemptions are
expected to relieve some of the shortfall in available visas under the
existing H-1B visa program.
Although the annual cap has already been met for fiscal year 2005, the
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) will accept new H-1B
petitions for fiscal year 2005 for up to 20,000 beneficiaries with
advanced degrees once USCIS releases guidance on when and where these
petitions may be filed.
Higher Fees Now in Effect
Provisions in the Act also reinstituted and raised fees on H-1B
petitions that had expired in October 2003. Employers who employ more
than 25 full-time equivalent employees (including affiliates and
subsidiaries) must now pay an additional $1,500 fee to file an H-1B
petition or an extension of stay under an existing H-1B visa for an
employee. For employers who employ no more than 25 full-time
employees, the fee is only $750. These fees are in addition to the
$185 processing fee for the H-1B petition.
Exemptions from the fee requirements remain the same as in October
2003. The additional fees are to be used in part to pay for U.S.
citizens and other U.S. workers to attend job training and to receive
scholarships for certain education courses.
The Acts provisions also impose a new $500 "fraud detection and
prevention" fee on all petitioners under the H-1B program for the
initial petition or for a petition to change employers. The fee must
be paid with all petitions filed on or after March 8, 2005. Monies
from the fraud fee will be split among the Departments of State,
Homeland Security and Labor to fund initiatives to detect and prevent
visa fraud.
3. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/3/prweb214455.php
Tech Group Grants "Weasel Award" to Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY)
The IT Professionals Association of America (ITPAA) has awarded its
first Weasel Award of 2005 to Senator Hillary Clinton for her recent
remarks supporting outsourcing.
(PRWEB) March 4, 2005 -- The Information Technology Professionals
Association of America (ITPAA), an advocacy group based in Wilmington,
Delaware representing professionals in the high-tech field has handed
out its first Weasel Award of 2005 to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D
- NY). The organization, representing over 1,200 IT professionals
nationwide, presents this award to business and political leaders that
it believes betrays the trust of the American people.
Scott Kirwin, founder of the organization, states, "We are tired of
Democrats pretending they care about the problems facing average
Americans. Senator Clintons actions prove they clearly do not."
The ITPAA based its award on Indian press reports of Sen. Clinton
supporting outsourcing and assuring political and business leaders in
India that the US would not attempt to save the jobs lost. "Outsourcing
will continue," Clinton said in Delhi on Feb 28, according to a report
by the Asia Times. "There is no way to legislate against reality. We
are not in favor of putting up fences."
"Her statements got little press here but were splashed all over the
Indian media," Kirwin says. "Does she think we arent going to find
out about it?" Kirwin says that the India media is the best source of
information about outsourcing and what he terms "labor dumping" - using
immigration policies to dampen wages.
Kirwin says the Senators position supporting outsourcing is nothing
new. He noted that in March 2004 Clinton appeared on CNNs Lou Dobbs
show and criticized offshoring and the Bush administration support of
the practice. Host of the program Lou Dobbs then pointed out that
Clinton was closely allied with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), an
Indian offshoring giant which set up its US headquarters in upstate New
York - an area Clinton represents. Clinton then justified her position
by saying that TCS created 10 jobs.
Kirwin laughed, saying that TCS was responsible for the loss of
thousands of last year alone. "It took 500 out of San Antonio when USAA
outsourced its IT department to TCS." He also noted the senators
support of increases in the H-1b program which Kirwin believes
contributes to declining wages in the tech sector. "When theres too
much of something, its price goes down," he says. "Right now there are
too many tech professionals in the USA, which is why salaries have been
declining for the past five years. (Senator) Clintons policy of
throwing open the doors to foreign workers using the H-1b visa program
just makes a bad situation worse."
"Politicians like Clinton dont live in the real world," Kirwin
added. "They say that offshoring works both ways and support the
practice based on two hundred year old economic theories that have
never been proven. Then they wonder why America has the largest trade
deficit in its history."
He notes that attempts to force nations to buy American goods and
services have always failed. "I lived in Japan for five years, and the
Japanese instinctively knew that purchasing a foreign product or
service meant a lost job in Japan." He believes that Clinton and the
other free-trade supporters are naove. "American pride may be dead in
the salons and boardrooms Clinton frequents, but nationalism isnt
dead in Tokyo or Delhi. Even if our products and services are better
and cheaper, foreigners arent going to buy them because they know
that to do so someone in their country will be out of a job."
Kirwin also cited Clintons position as co-chair of the "Friends of
India Caucus" in the Senate, a group of senators that supports issues
important to India, including outsourcing and H-1b and L-1 visas, as
another reason behind the ITPAAs decision to grant the award to the
prospective Democratic presidential nominee.
"It would be nice if she co-chaired the Friends of America Caucus
instead," Kirwin noted dryly. "India doesnt need representation in
the Senate - America does."
"Politicians have forgotten that people in Delhi dont vote for them,
but those in Dallas do. That was a lesson that (former Presidential
hopeful Senator John) Kerry learned in Ohio," Kirwin said, referring to
the candidates loss of that state in the 2004 election by 100,000.
Kirwin added that the ITPAA has a very strong base in Ohio.
When asked about Senator Hillarys concern about Americans who "feel
left behind and might stir up negative feelings about India", Kirwin
replied, "We dont hold Indians responsible for taking our jobs; we
hold leaders like Clinton responsible for giving them to them."
He also bristled at Senator Clintons use of the term feeling left
behind to refer to people angry about seeing their jobs offshored.
"Feel left behind? These are people who work harder for less money, who
see their standard of living being better in the past than it is today.
These are people feel betrayed by their leaders," Kirwin says, "Leaders
like Senator Clinton who arent concerned to see Americans leave
their jobs to fight wars on the other side of the planet but are afraid
to keep the jobs here for when they return." He also noted that India
has refused to send troops to Iraq, noting bitterly, "They are more
than willing to take our jobs - but not our responsibilities."
Previous winners of the award include Van B. Honeycutt, Chairman of the
Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC), for his outsourcing of jobs to
India at taxpayers expense, Richard D. Fairbank, Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer Capital One, for his closing of call centers in the
USA to cut costs while receiving hundreds of millions of dollars in
stock options, and Senator John Kerry (D - MA) for his statements
supporting outsourcing on a trip to India while publicly criticizing it
at home.
# # #
Contact Information
Scott Kirwin
IT PROFESSIONALS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, INC.
http://www.itpaa.org302-545-4959
4. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://money.cnn.com/2005/03/02/news/economy/jobs_challenger/index.htm
Layoff, hiring plans both gain
Challenger survey: Employers announced plans for 108K layoffs and
almost 42K hires in February.
March 2, 2005: 2:07 PM EST
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Layoff announcements bounced back above the
100,000 mark in February, according to a survey by job outplacement
firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, but hiring plans also accelerated.
The monthly survey showed 108,387 job cuts announced during the month.
That's up 17 percent from January levels and up 43 percent compared to
February of 2004.
But employers also announced plans in February to hire 41,984
employees. That's up 41 percent from January's hiring announcements and
it marked the fifth consecutive month of increased hiring plans.
Firm CEO John Challenger said the pickup in both hiring and layoff
plans is not that unique, and is a sign of economic growth overall.
"In a situation where the economy is gaining traction and companies are
preparing for expansion, there is a unique labor market environment
where both job creation and job destruction occur simultaneously," he
said. "Improving economic conditions have made mergers and acquisitions
far more desirable and companies are in a better position to gobble up
competitors or other companies that will expand their product
offerings. However, a typical byproduct of these deals is...job cuts."
A number of big corporate couplings already announced in 2005 have been
a major driver of job cut announcements. Challenger's survey says that
mergers and acquisitions are responsible for plans to lay off 64,343
employees so far this year, or just less than one in three job cuts
announced the first two months. That total almost equals the
merger-related job cuts announced in all of 2004.
The survey report comes ahead of Friday's closely watched February
employment report from the Labor Department. Economists surveyed by
Briefing.com forecast that February saw a net gain of 225,000 in U.S.
payrolls during the month, up from the 146,000 job gain in January.
The unemployment rate is forecast to remain at 5.2 percent.
5. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7044314
20,000 new H-1B visas coming in March
Applicants still likely to outnumber recipients
By Candy Gola
Pittsburgh Business Times
Updated: 7:00 p.m. ET Feb. 27, 2005
When working visas were issued last October, new applicants didn't have
a chance. Instead, every H-1B visa went to one of the backlog of
applicants who applied during the early filing period the year before
but didn't make the cut.
This has been common for the past couple years, ever since a post-9/11
cap, intended to protect national security, reduced the number of H-1B
visas issued nationally by a third.
H-1B visas allow non-U.S. citizens to seek temporary entry into this
country to work in "specialty occupations," including positions as
accountants, computer analysts, programmers, database administrators,
Web designers, engineers, financial analysts, doctors, nurses,
scientists, architects and lawyers. From October 2000 to September
2001, 195,000 H-1B visas were issued. The following fiscal years,
65,000 H-1B visas were issued.
"They're snapped up immediately," said Alex Castrodale, immigration
lawyer at Cohen & Grigsby, a Downtown firm specializing in immigration
law.
But starting March 8, certain provisions of the 2005 Omnibus
Appropriations Bill (HR 4818) make available an additional 20,000 H-1B
visas each fiscal year to aliens who have earned a master's degree or
higher from a U.S. institution.
"When you think of Pitt and CMU, this is ideal for them," Mr.
Castrodale said.
But Lisa Krieg, isn't getting her hopes up just yet. As director of the
office of international education at Carnegie Mellon University, Ms.
Krieg has been watching this closely but finds it "a little concerning"
that some rules haven't been set, such as when the additional 20,000
visas will be effective.
Though she couldn't quote an exact number, she said several hundred
foreign students graduate from CMU each year with master's degrees or
higher.
"So I think if we have several hundred here alone, the 20,000 will go
pretty fast," she said, "and essentially we'll be right back where we
are now, in an employment gap."
Ms. Krieg said her office has tried to bridge the gap by making
announcements through CMU's Web site about application deadlines,
hosting work sessions focused on providing information about the
process and counseling students individually.
David Clubb, director of the office of international services at the
University of Pittsburgh, is watching this closely too.
While Pitt is a nonprofit and is thus exempt from limitations, visa
restrictions are of concern for other reasons, he said.
"As an educational institution that trains and gives advanced degrees,
we want our graduates to have the opportunity to enter the U.S. labor
market," Mr. Clubb said. "We know a lot of the rankings weigh heavily
on where graduates are placed, and we want them placed well."
Pitt's Katz Graduate School of Business made it easier for U.S.
employers to hire its international students by launching Katzport last
year -- a partnership among Katz, Pitt's Office of International
Services and Cohen & Grigsby, Katzport is designed to streamline the
immigration process for grad students entering the work force.
6. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/11029338.htm
Posted on Wed, Mar. 02, 2005
As jobs are outsourced, honest debate is needed
By Miguel Helft
It's time to ask whether the rise of tech powerhouses in Asia and the
movement of tech jobs there will do to Silicon Valley what the rise of
the Japanese car industry did to places like Flint, Mich.
Not because it's likely to happen -- at least not anytime soon. But
because it may be the only way to have a frank conversation about the
profound changes these trends will mean for the economy of the valley
and the country as a whole.
That conversation has been elusive. Whenever it does take place, it's
polarized and not terribly constructive.
Consider the following: When a group of prominent tech CEOs was asked
about outsourcing at a recent meeting, their reaction was pretty much
unanimous: The political storm over outsourcing has blown over, and
that's a good thing.
It's an understandable reaction. A year ago, tech CEOs were being
demonized. They were branded as Benedict Arnolds. Their businesses were
threatened with ill-conceived protectionist legislation that would only
further erode America's capacity to compete. So they're happy to see
the issue off the front pages.
But when leaders in business, government or academia seek to downplay
the impact of outsourcing, they're doing everyone a disservice. Over
the past year, arguments seeking to do just that have proliferated:
The current wave of job migration is the latest in a succession of
similar waves that have benefited the valley. As chip manufacturing
jobs were replaced by computer jobs, then by software jobs, Internet
jobs and so on, the valley has only prospered.
True. But that ignores the unprecedented influx of about 300 million
skilled workers into the global workforce in the past decade or so.
Their hunger for employment will translate into the biggest challenge
that this country's workforce has seen in generations.
Only lower-level jobs are going to India and China.
That's simply untrue. The kinds of jobs being exported are rapidly
moving up the skill ladder. Tech titans such as Oracle, Intel,
Microsoft and IBM aren't building campuses overseas to fill them with
grunts.
Few tech jobs have been lost to outsourcing, far fewer than those
lost to a deflating tech bubble.
That may be true, at least so far. But it ignores the fact that
virtually every start-up that is funded in Silicon Valley today is
hiring some of its workers overseas. It is start-ups -- not large,
established firms -- that historically have generated job growth in the
valley. So the issue is not so much about the jobs lost, but about
those that will never be created here.
We'll be fine, because countries like China and India don't have a
culture of innovation and risk-taking.
Really? How, then, can we explain that foreigners, including many from
China and India, were behind a third of the start-ups launched here
during the tech boom? When those innovators and entrepreneurs can start
the next generation of firms without having to emigrate, they will. VCs
will gladly bankroll them. And experienced American executives will
head overseas to fill whatever gaps those countries may have in
management and marketing know-how.
To be sure, many valley leaders have long advocated policies aimed at
boosting American competitiveness. If adopted, they would help blunt
some of these challenges.
But they represent only a fraction of what's needed to prepare us for
the changes that will be wrought by the leveling of the technology
playing field across the globe. Unless we can talk honestly about those
impending changes, we'll fail. We may not turn into Flint. But we won't
be able to sustain either our standard of living or this valley's
quality of life.
MIGUEL HELFT is a Mercury News editorial writer. His column on
technology policy appears on the first and third Wednesdays of each
month.
7. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://magic-city-news.com/article_3212.shtml
Paul Streitz
Two Senators from New Delhi
By Paul Streitz
Feb 26, 2005, 22:33
Are Senators Christopher Dodd and Joseph Lieberman representing New
Britain, New London and New Canaan, Connecticut. Or, are they
representing New Delhi?
The two Senators have among the worst records on immigration in the
United States Senate. Americans for Better Immigration gives Dodd a D+,
while it gives Lieberman a solid F.
Senator Christopher Dodd is now a co-sponsor of the AgBill to let
another 50,000 agricultural workers flood the Midwest. He voted for a
huge increase in immigration in 1990. He voted in 1996 to continue
chain migration (family members invite relatives in the USA). He voted
to increase the number for foreign high-tech workers in 1998 and again
in 2000. In 2002, Dodd co-sponsored legislation to grant amnesties
under Senate Bill 2493. Senator Lieberman had his face on television at
the end of the year touting the passage of the Intelligence Reform
Bill. However, Lieberman was a key Democrat keeping the House
provisions for drivers license fraud out of the final bill. His
comment was that "immigration reform can wait." Wait for what Senator?
Another 3,000 dead?
Senator Lieberman is a member of the Senates India Caucus, so he can
more effectively represent the citizens of New Delhi. The good Senator
has written to INPAC (the political action committee for India) telling
them he supports more H-1B visa holders coming in from India.
When you see all those Indian computer programmers going into the
insurance companies in Hartford, who have replaced American workers,
they thank Lieberman and Dodd for their efforts on their behalf.
According to TORAW (the CT computer programmer organization), 70,000
computer programmers in Connecticut have been put out of work by this
influx of foreign workers.
The impact of excessive legal and massive illegal immigration on
citizens of the State is not slight. It is estimated that there is a
minimum of 50,000 illegals in the State of Connecticut. The Federation
of American Immigration Reform estimates that it costs the citizens of
Connecticut $59 million dollars a year to educate the illegal children
brought into the State. This does not count the children of illegals
born here and deemed to be citizens of the USA. About 20% of the 16,000
prisoners in Connecticut are Hispanic, but the number of illegals is
not known. This is a cost of $80 million per year.
The illegals hurt the economy three ways. First, they do not pay any
taxes for illegal work costing the State revenue. Second, they have
high costs for education, welfare, housing and crime. Third, they
unemploy greatest on low-income Americans and especially low-income
African-Americans. Connecticut would not have a budget problem, if it
did not have an immigration problem.
But, the good Senators dont seem to notice. One can only conclude
that Senator Dodd and Senator Lieberman have done an excellent job of
protecting the jobs of the people they represent: illegals and workers
from New Delhi.
Paul Streitz
8. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
March 2, 2005
http://www.straitstimes.com/sub/asia/story/0,5562,303324,00.html?
KL volunteers help hunt down illegals
Plan for cash rewards sparks concern about potential for human rights
abuses
By Reme Ahmad
Malaysia Bureau Chief
KUALA LUMPUR - A HOUSEWIFE, a construction contractor, a security guard
and a teacher were among 450 Rela volunteers who set out yesterday to
nab illegal foreign workers as Malaysia got tough after four months of
soft talk.
Called vigilantes by some and 'bounty hunters' by British newspaper The
Guardian, these men and women were anything but the tough gun-toting
mavericks out to make a quick buck by nabbing illegals for a reward.
'We are here to serve the country and I don't even know what is the
allowance that will be paid to me,' said Corporal Omar Din, 55, who is
a security guard.
When asked, Rela director Mahadi Archad said volunteers will be paid
RM6 (S$2.50) for yesterday morning's work. He is also backing a plan to
get the government to pay RM80 for every illegal worker caught, as an
incentive to his 300,000 Rela men and women.
But the plan has backfired as human rights groups, concerned about the
huge scale of the operation to catch 400,000 illegal workers, recoiled
upon hearing about the cash reward.
'There is a high potential for human rights abuses to occur,
considering the magnitude of the operation,' said National Human Rights
Society and the Malaysian People's Voice rights group in a joint
statement yesterday.
But, in the moonlight, the monetary considerations and the debate meant
little to the Rela officers as they rushed into a hilly and muddy
construction site to rouse foreign workers asleep in their huts.
In their plain green fatigues, smart yellow berets and shiny black
boots, Rela officers are more often seen providing security or marching
smartly at public events attended by ministers.
So, many of them baulked when they had to wade through thick mud to
surround a kongsi (workers' quarters) at the Cheras construction site,
about 10km from the KL city centre.
Others shouted to friends or blew whistles as they chased migrants who
ran off and went into hiding.
'This is dangerous work and I am worried for my men. But we are all
unarmed except for a few officers,' said Rela Lieutenant Noor, who is
in charge of 200 men.
He works as a small contractor and fumes every time he sees big
companies use illegal workers while he has to pay a levy of RM1,000 a
year to get one foreign worker.
Corporal Mohana Anamalai said she has been serving in the 32-year-old
corps for 23 years. Asked why, the 40-year-old housewife and mother of
two young children said: 'It is better than sitting at home.'
Another Rela corporal, a teacher, asked what time it was. When told it
was 2.30am, he sighed and said: 'Oh dear. I have to send my three
children to school at 6am.'
9. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~61~2739429,00.html
Senate GOP delays vote on outsourcing
By Mark P. Couch
Denver Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 02, 2005 -
Democrats in the Colorado Senate declared Tuesday that the state should
no longer hire companies that use service workers outside the United
States.
The Keep Jobs in America Act won unanimous support from the 18
Democratic senators in an early vote, but the bill was knocked off
track late Tuesday afternoon when Republicans asked for a review of the
financial impact of the bill.
Sen. Tom Wiens, R-Castle Rock, submitted a request signed by four other
Republican senators that delayed a vote on Senate Bill 23 for at least
a day.
"I think the fiscal note was inadequate to begin with, but after all
the amendments, the members did not know the cost of the bill," Wiens
said.
The bill would cost the state at least $28 million to $73 million,
according to a memo written last month by Timothy Murphy, budget
director of the state's Department of Personnel and Administration.
But that document was not used by legislative financial experts to
figure out the cost of the bill. The official analysis concluded that
the bill would require no new state spending.
The bill's sponsor Sen. Deanna Hanna, D-Lakewood, said Senate Bill 23
was necessary to protect Colorado jobs.
"Why on Earth would we send our tax dollars out of Colorado?" she asked
during a hotly contested hour-and-a-half- long debate on the Senate
floor.
Republicans lined up to answer.
Protectionist policies ultimately end up hurting workers, said Sen.
Steve Johnson, R-Fort Collins.
Foreign-based companies employ 76,000 people in Colorado and they might
close their operations in the state as a result of the policy, said
Sen. Doug Lamborn, R-Colorado Springs.
Senate Minority Leader Mark Hillman, R-Burlington, repeatedly asked
whether the state should hire U.S. companies when the state could save
money hiring non-U.S. firms.
Hanna failed to answer the question.
"It appears that to a fairly simple and straightforward question about
costs, I am not going to get an answer," Hillman said.
Democrats protected Hanna from nearly every attempt to amend the bill.
When Hanna struggled to answer questions, other senators stepped
forward to respond on her behalf.
Other times, senators whispered to Hanna before she replied. Sometimes,
she read previously written statements to answer questions.
Hanna often said the bill would allow state agencies to waive the
restriction if state officials can prove that the company it is hiring
provides a "unique" service.
Sen. Andy McElhany, R-Colorado Springs, said that provision would not
let the state hire Microsoft or other big software companies to
maintain the products the state buys from them.
Staff writer Mark P. Couch can be reached at 303-820-1794 or
mcouch@denverpost.com.
10. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/03/03/cafta.push/index.html
Free trade at all costs?
By Lou Dobbs
CNN
(CNN) -- The Bush administration is trying to push the Central American
Free Trade Agreement through Congress quickly and quietly.
The White House, however, couldn't find the votes for this so-called
free trade agreement before his re-election in the fall, and the
president likely doesn't have the votes for it now. And that's a good
thing for American workers.
CAFTA advocates say the agreement would open up free trade between the
United States and the Dominican Republic and five countries in Central
America: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.
But this agreement represents the same free trade at all costs policy
that has led to a 70 percent increase in the trade deficit since 2001.
We're not signing trade agreements to open new markets for our exports.
Instead we're continuing to enter into outsourcing agreements with
countries that cannot possibly buy our goods.
If you add up the gross domestic products of the six CAFTA economies,
the total market comes to about $85 billion, according to the latest
available figures. That's only slightly larger than the economy of New
Haven, Connecticut and less than a fifth of the size of New York City.
As such, expanding trade with this bloc cannot possibly be a serious
growth driver for the $11 trillion U.S. economy.
The CAFTA trading partners are simply too poor and too small to serve
as major consumer markets for anything made in America, if indeed we
still are manufacturing anything in this country. But with 40 percent
of workers in Central America earning less than $2 a day, CAFTA will
pit the working poor of these countries against American workers,
especially textile workers and small farmers. U.S. multinationals don't
exactly have a great track record when it comes to keeping jobs at home
in the face of cheaper labor overseas.
More than 35 percent of all U.S. goods exports to the six CAFTA
countries consist of turnaround exports, which are unfinished textile,
apparel and other materials that are not ultimately consumed in these
countries. These "round-trip" imports are assembled by low-wage workers
and exported right back to the American marketplace.
As a result, U.S. exports to CAFTA countries generally produce greater
imports to our market, which further swells the worsening record trade
deficit. In fact, turnaround exports have contributed to the U.S. trade
deficit with the six CAFTA nations rising by nearly 60 percent from
1997-2004, according to the U.S. Business & Industry Council.
And at least three of the six CAFTA countries are in such a weak
financial position they couldn't possibly boost imports. The Dominican
Republic is currently receiving a $665 million standby loan from the
International Monetary Fund to help the country emerge from its
economic crisis of 2003. The program is set to last until mid-2007, and
the country will be under pressure to increase exports and curb
imports. Unless, of course, those imports are turnaround imports that
are shipped right back into the U.S. market.
Honduras and Nicaragua are also receiving special debt relief from the
IMF because of their great indebtedness and high poverty rates. While
they're not austerity programs like the Dominican Republic's, neither
country has much capacity to sharply increase net imports.
"Americans know a bad trade deal when they see one," says Ernest
Baynard, executive director of Americans for Fair Trade. "They've
already had to live through one for 10 years under NAFTA."
U.S. workers have lost nearly 900,000 jobs as a result of the North
American Free Trade Agreement, most of them in the higher-paying
manufacturing sector, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
But NAFTA's effects are even more evident in our exploding trade
deficit. Exports to Canada and Mexico have more than doubled since
1993, but imports to our neighboring countries have risen by 173
percent, from $151 billion to $412 billion. As a result, the trade
deficit with Canada and Mexico has ballooned from $9.1 billion in 1993
to $110.8 billion last year.
CAFTA may bring lower prices to consumers, but it would most likely
lead to more jobs being shipped to cheap foreign labor markets. And a
new poll on CAFTA shows American consumers do not want to give up their
jobs for lower prices, according to the nonprofit organization
Americans for Fair Trade. In fact, 74 percent of those polled said they
would oppose CAFTA if it reduces consumer prices but eliminates jobs
for American workers.
"The only people who stand to gain from CAFTA," Baynard adds, "are
people who are offshoring jobs already or want to offshore jobs."
That is something we simply cannot afford. Working Americans know all
too well the high cost of free trade. I can only hope Congress has
learned that lesson as well.
11. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au/story.jsp?sectionid=1274&storyid=2758279
Japan considers unskilled migrants
From correspondents in Tokyo
March 4, 2005
JAPAN is considering revising its immigration policy, making it easier
for unskilled foreign workers to enter the country, to address a
looming labour shortage.
With estimates that one in four Japanese will be over the age of 65 by
2020, experts say Japan will need a large number of immigrants to
maintain productivity.
But authorities have been wary because they believe foreigners may take
with them crime and terrorism.
A Justice Ministry official said today, however, that Japan would
consider letting more unskilled foreign workers into the country as
part of an immigration reform proposal to be drawn up by the end of
this month or early next.
"There's a definite need for dealing with the labour shortage that
could develop as a result of low birthrates and an ageing society," the
official said.
"Changing policy would also help tackle the problem of illegal
immigrants."
Japanese immigration policy has long been tough on foreign workers.
But steps have recently been taken to ease this, such as increasing the
number of areas in which non-Japanese can enter the country for
training.
Current immigration policy favours foreigners with expertise in
specialised fields, including some high-tech sectors, academia and
journalism.
But immigrants, both legal and illegal, have for some years performed
the manual labour shunned by many Japanese, working in jobs considered
dangerous or dirty, such as construction.
"Given the falling population, policies in various areas are needed,"
the ministry said in a policy outline on its website.
"We need to consider accepting workers in fields other than those we
have rated as skilled while taking into account the need to maintain
our nation's economic activity and standard of living."
The outline also said the ministry would consider extending the
duration of visas issued for skilled workers, and making it easier to
obtain permanent resident status.
Foreigners living legally in Japan totalled 1.85 million in 2003, or
about 2 per cent of the population.
12. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-03/ioea-ute030305.php
Public release date: 3-Mar-2005
Contact: Chris McManes
c.mcmanes@ieee.org
IEEE-USA-Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
US technical employment falls by more than 220,000 workers from 2000 to
2004
WASHINGTON (3 March 2005) -- The number of employed U.S. technical
workers has fallen by 221,000 in six major computer and engineering job
classifications from 2000 to 2004, according to data compiled by the
U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The largest drops occurred among computer programmers, followed by
electrical and electronics engineers, then computer scientists and
systems analysts. These declines were offset by substantial employment
increases for computer and information systems managers, computer
hardware engineers and computer software engineers.
"The drop in computer programmers and rise in managers reflects the
trend toward offshoring of programming jobs and the resulting need for
professionals to manage outsourced projects," IEEE-USA President Gerard
A. Alphonse said.
According to the BLS, computer programmers have taken the biggest hit,
with a drop of more than 24 percent -- from 745,000 in 2000 to 564,000
in 2004. In addition, the number of employed electrical and electronics
engineers shrunk by 101,000, from 444,000 in 2000 to 343,000 last year,
a decrease of nearly 23 percent. Computer scientists and systems
analysts have experienced similar losses, dropping more than 16
percent, from 835,000 in 2000 to 700,000 in 2004.
However, employed computer and information systems managers have jumped
from 228,000 in 2000 to 337,000 last year, a dramatic increase of
almost 48 percent. Computer hardware engineers rose from 83,000 in 2000
to 96,000 in 2004, a nearly 16 percent increase. Employed computer
software engineers have risen by 74,000, from 739,000 in 2000 to
813,000 in 2004, a 10 percent increase.
The table below summarizes the BLS data:
Job Classification 2000 2004 Change Pct.
Computer Hardware Engineers 83,000 96,000 +13,000 +15.7
Computer & Info. Systems Managers 228,000 337,000 +109,000 +47.8
Computer Programmers 745,000 564,000 -181,000 -24.3
Comp Scientists & Sys Analysts 835,000 700,000 -135,000 -16.2
Computer Software Engineers 739,000 813,000 +74,000 +10.0
Electrical/Electronics Engineers 444,000 343,000 -101,000 -22.7
Total 3,074,000 2,853,000 -221,000 -7.2
13. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.vdare.com/rubenstein/050305_nd.htm
March 05, 2005
National Data, By Edwin S. Rubenstein
Good News On Jobs? Not For Americans
The government announced Friday that payroll employment rose a "robust"
262,000 in February - more than economists had expected and enough to
trigger a stock market rally that took the Dow Jones Industrial Average
to its highest close for four years.
But the household survey, which is the source of employment data by
race and ethnicity, paints a very different picture.
According to that survey, household employment fell by 97,000 positions
in February, or by 0.7 percent.
More importantly, this loss was not spread evenly: Non-Hispanics bore
the entire brunt of Februarys household job loss, losing 110,000
positions. Hispanic employment rose by 13,000, or 0.7 percent.
Februarys skewed job market is not an anomaly. It mirrors conditions
that have prevailed throughout the Bush Administration, and which we
track in the VDARE.COM American Worker Displacement Index (VDAWDI).
From the start of the Bush Administration in January 2001 through
February 2005:
Total household employment rose 2,373,000, or 1.7 percent
Hispanic employment rose by 2,098,000, or by 13.0 percent
Non-Hispanic employment rose by 275,000, or by 0.2 percent
Because so many Hispanics are immigrants and the children of
immigrants, Hispanic employment is the best proxy we have for the
impact of immigration on employment.
The ratio of Hispanic to non-Hispanic employment growth is a strong
indication of how immigrants have fared relative to native-born workers
in a particular month.
VDAWDI the ratio of Hispanic to non-Hispanic job indexes rose
to 112.8 (=113.0/100.2) in February, up from 112.6 in January.
Although our primary interest is immigration and its impact on American
living standards, there are other reasons to worry about the validity
of the widely cited payroll employment figures.
Figures released Friday showed that worker productivity grew faster in
the last three years than in any comparable period over the last fifty
years.
But the governments productivity figures are based on payroll
employment, which has barely budged in recent years. Had household
employment been used to calculate productivity growth, it would be
anemic - and the specter of inflation and economic stagnation far more
noticeable.
Both in terms of immigration policy and macroeconomic policy, its
likely that things are not as good as they appear to be - and that
Washington is not as worried as it should be.
14. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/opinion/archive/s_307156.html
Mexican trucks: 'Sovereignty' vs. safety
Saturday, February 26, 2005
Before 9/11, Mexican long-haul truckers were banned in the United
States. After 9/11 and amid renewed questions about truck inspections
and safety, it's argued that Mexico's 18-wheelers should be free to
travel anywhere north of the border.
Holding Mexican truckers to 25 miles within the United States -- where
their loads are transferred to U.S. long-haul trucks -- is a waste of
time and money, proponents say.
And allowing Mexican trucks to pass the border willy-nilly hauling
heaven knows what is the epitome of "efficiency"?
It would be for terrorists. Experts repeatedly warn that the Mexican
border is a prime gateway into the United States for those harboring
deadly intentions.
And although 1994's North American Free Trade Agreement stipulates
highway access to Mexican long-haulers, that was long before lunatics
flew jetliners into U.S. skyscrapers.
National security aside, there are legitimate questions about the
safety of Mexican trucks. A January report from the U.S. Department of
Transportation found that inspecting Mexican long-haul trucks,
identifying high-risk carriers, verifying insurance and testing drivers
for drugs or alcohol would be, at best, problematic.
The mere recommendation that trucks be inspected by U.S. officials
before crossing the border irritates Mexican authorities, who say that
would impinge on their sovereignty.
If that's the case, let them preserve their sovereignty -- and keep
their trucks off U.S. highways.
15. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.vdare.com/roberts/050228_america.htm
February 28, 2005
America's Superpower Status Coming To An End
By Paul Craig Roberts
The U.S. economy is headed toward crisis, and the political leadership
of the country - if it can be called leadership - is preoccupied with
nonexistent weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East.
The U.S. economy is failing. The afflictions are serious. They could be
fatal even if diagnosed and treated. America is losing the purchasing
power of its currency and its ability to create middle-class jobs.
The dollar's sharp decline and projections of continuing trade and
budgetary red ink are undermining the dollar's role as reserve
currency. A number of central banks have announced that they will be
diversifying their currency holdings and will not be buying dollars at
the same rate as in the past.
This will put more pressure on the dollar. At some point, the flight
will begin. Instead of buying fewer dollars, central banks will sell
dollars, hoping to get out before the dollar hits bottom.
Suddenly, the advantage of being the reserve currency becomes a
nightmare, as the world's accumulations of dollars are brought to
market. An enormous supply and weak demand mean a very low exchange
rate for the once almighty U.S. dollar.
Overnight, those cheap goods in Wal-Mart, which are the no-think
economist's facile justification for Wal-Mart's decimation of
communities, small businesses and employment, shoot up in price.
Interest rates will escalate, as the government struggles to finance
its endless red ink. Heavily indebted Americans with adjustable rate
mortgages will attempt to sell homes just as rising mortgage rates
reduce buyers. Real estate assets, the rising value of which have been
keeping the economy going, will give back gains.
The United States has lost its ability to create middle-class jobs, or
for that matter, any jobs. During the last four years, the United
States has experienced a net loss of 760,000 private sector jobs
(January 2001 to January 2005). Think what this means for graduating
classes and people coming of age to enter the workforce.
Moreover, the composition of jobs has changed away from
high-value-added, high-productivity jobs in tradable goods and services
toward lower productivity domestic service jobs that cannot be
outsourced.
Even here, in this last remaining area of employment for Americans, the
U.S. workforce is losing job opportunities to foreign nurses and
schoolteachers brought in on H-1b work visas as a result of budgetary
pressures on local school budgets and hospitals.
No-think economists and politicians continue to propose unemployment
insurance and education as remedies for the jobs problem. These
proposals are mindless, to say the least. The same incentive to
outsource holds for all tradable skills. If truth be known, job
outsourcing and offshore production sound the death bell for U.S.
higher education.
Americans unable to find jobs in export and import-competitive sectors
find themselves searching for jobs in nontradable domestic services,
where their inflow into those labor markets is augmented by illegal
immigrants and foreigners on H-1b visas. Obviously, the pressure on
wages is downward.
No-think economists explain away the difficulties as a "globalization
adjustment" that will require Americans to curtail their consumption of
imported goods. These economists are ignorant of American's dependence
on imported manufactured goods. Even American brand-name goods are made
abroad in whole or in part. Tightening the belt will mean much more
than cutting out foreign-made luxuries.
The dollars' decline will drive up the price of all inputs except U.S.
labor, which is being substituted out of production functions and
replaced with foreign labor.
Oblivious to reality, the Bush administration has proposed a Social
Security privatization that will cost $4.5 trillion in borrowing over
the next 10 years alone! America has no domestic savings to absorb this
debt, and foreigners will not lend such enormous sums to a country with
a collapsing currency - especially a country mired in a Middle East war
running up hundreds of billions of dollars in war debt.
A venal and self-important Washington establishment combined with a
globalized corporate mentality have brought an end to America's rising
living standards. America's days as a superpower are rapidly coming to
an end. Isolated by the nationalistic unilateralism of the
neoconservatives who control the Bush administration, the United States
can expect no sympathy or help from former allies and rising new
powers.
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