Tarrifs

[Paulsdodge]

I'm all for saving any American job I can. I am willing to pay higher prices for quality products. I simply refuse to buy products that are made in Mexico for example. This included my truck. I told the dealership if its not assembled in the US, has an American made transmission , and engine I would not but it. I realize this may seem extreme to some people. But I want someone to answer this, if most of the people working in the foriegn countries are making at or around a dollar or two an hour or day, how can they afford any products or services we (Americans) make or preform? I honestly believe we must perserve our American jobs. I alos read one comment about one person disaggreed with the steel tarrifs because he thought the consumer would suffer. My reply is this, price two Dodge trucks, one made in Mexico, one made in the US, with the same equipment, which is cheaper?? The correct answer is they are the same price. So the savings to the consumer is nothing. :--) :--)

 

[The patriot]

I agree. The job you save might be your own.

Eric

 

[Steve M]

Expanding Markets for American Products

The Clinton Administration forged a bipartisan coalition to pass NAFTA, after concluding tough negotiations on side agreements covering workers' rights, the environment, and import surges. Exports to Mexico rose 23 percent in the first 11 months of 1994.



President Clinton led the fight to pass GATT, which lowers tariffs worldwide by $744 billion over ten years -- the largest international tax cut in history. GATT cuts tariffs on manufactured goods by more than one-third overall and eliminates tariffs in major markets in a number of sectors in which the U. S. is particularly competitive.



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Our democratic worker friendly pro union two term president at his best. I can only assume that's 23% of our jobs going to Mexico in the first eleven months.

Not to forGATT the Nike savings by using cheap child labor.

 

[Jeff H]

I don't see the tarrifs doing much help. Some countries can drop the price of there steel 30 % and we will not have gained any ground. Thats one of many loop holes in the bill.

We could buy steel from a country that does not have a tarrif slapped on it. Where do you think they got the metal. From a country we would have slapped a tarrif on.

Steel is not cheap to produce in this country. You have to mine it. Haul it to a taconite plant they have to process it. Then it is railroaded to the ships on the great lakes. Then from there to a customer too produce any thing you can build with that steel. It is a dying bussuness in this state. Iron ranges are a neat thing to see in operation. I'm not trying to start an arguiment. But reallity bites.

Now only if they could do something for the farmer. They are the one who need help with low prices.

 

[homeka45]

I agree we need to protect and preserve american jobs. The red chinese plan to increase their military by nearly 18% this year. This is their 13th consecutive year of double digit increases. We buy chinese instead of american and we give them the means to challenge us and possibly succeed. On second thought we could get rid of a few american jobs, the ones belonging to julia roberts, barbra streisand and lets not forget the over supply of baldwins.

 

[Sled Puller]

Steve,

Did you ever see what the IMPORTS from Mexico did after NAFTA?





Japan and China will subsidize their steels industries to put ours out of business. Letting them sell below cost. Keep in mind they have NO EPA regs to run their plants on either. Big savings there.



AS far as I'm concerned, that may be considered an act of war from China, and the feds had better do something about it.





And I beleive the farmer is the only business that sells below wholesale, but buys everything he needs to run the business retail!



That is ok though, because the small farms are being paved over,and the big farms are being bought by corporations



Where do you think that is leading?



Gene

 

[illflem]

Originally posted by phumerick

But I want someone to answer this, if most of the people working in the foriegn countries are making at or around a dollar or two an hour or day, how can they afford any products or services we (Americans) make or perform?

They can afford them because our major exports are agricultural products sold below cost that are forcing many American farmers into bankruptcy. The increased tariffs that foreign countries are threatening on ag exports in retaliation for our new steel tariffs will only make it worse.

 

[Sled Puller]

Now that is funny- how about we just pay our farmers to burn the export food and let them eat camel dung?



You guys keep your oil,electronics, and steel-we keep our food- fair?

LOL!

 

[Champane Flight]

NAFTA

Gee, and I always thought that the person responsible for the idea was a Bush and his buddy Perot? Sure is funny how Clinton catchs the blame for everthing on a Republican platform. I thought that he was only in office for eight years, I don't know how the economy did so well, with him being so worthless? Oh, yea, that was Regans doing ? RLMAO... ... ... ... ... ...

 

[KMC]

Re: NAFTA

Originally posted by Champane Flight

Gee, and I always thought that the person responsible for the idea was a Bush and his buddy Perot? Sure is funny how Clinton catchs the blame for everthing on a Republican platform. I thought that he was only in office for eight years, I don't know how the economy did so well, with him being so worthless? Oh, yea, that was Regans doing ? RLMAO... ... ... ... ... ...

Yeah, kind of like the Democrat's try to blame Bush for the economy tanking the last couple of years? Give me a break, it started tanking 9 mos. before Bush was sworn in under Clinton's watch... Yet the media had the gall to say "the Bush economy continues to slide, etc... . even before he had taken office. Now thanks to Bush's tax cuts and other variables it looks like recovery is coming. But of course we can't give Bush credit for that can we? It must be because of something Tom Daschle and his circus are doing. Yeah right, ROLMAO even harder!



If you take the simplistic approach of assuming the economy lives and dies by who the president is then here's the bottom line:



Clinton inherited a mildly growing economy and enjoyed the ride only to crash it in the end. Bush inherited a divebombing economy and is seeing it turn around. The rest of the story is still untold.



But we all know (don't we?) that the economy is much more complex and responds to many many variables the least of which is probably who the president is. So the blame game on both sides is a bit silly at times, wouldn't you say? Most of it is political opportunism at it's best.

 

[The patriot]

Steve M,

Youre post sounds like a democrap commercial.

I mean that in a nice way.

Eric

 

[Champane Flight]

OK

I do not have any respect for Clinton, for in my opinion he was a scoundrel and had no basic morals. I do however vaguely remember a budget plan that put this country closer to being out of dept than any other time in history. I do realize that economy is based on too many varibles to give just a president credit for any ups and downs the economy may have. We as Americans should be appalled by the partisan crap going on in Washington. They seem to argue along party lines 75% of the time we are paying them for. Then we seem to buy the argument and carry it over to our own opinion.



The tarrifs are needed. They are not a permanant solution. We have to realize that trade imbalance will not only cut some buisness, but also put some new ones in. For every door that closes a new one opens. The quality of foreign steel is far below that of American and quality costs. If you have ever compared a Polish nail to an American, you would know what I mean. We as consumers have to make the choice between cheap and quality.

And we have to be more vigilant and know where are goods are coming from. We have become more dependant on price and less on quality. Is this a sign of the times? I guess we have to ask ourselves if we want the best and support the USA or the cheapest and support some foreign country.

 

[Sled Puller]

We as consumers have to make the choice between cheap and quality.







That is a problem.



Given the choice on pipe fittings, nails, etc, I would buy quality over price every time, if I could find quality.

Gene

 

[Steve M]

Clinton signed NAFTA December 8,1993. He could have trashed it for the sake of American jobs but he signed it. He gave foreigners a $744 billion dollar tax break with GATT. If the Republicans favor corporations, Clinton must favor foreign corporations.

If the family medical leave act suposed to make up for that? Slick Willy was definately a fitting name for him. I don't give a rat's ax about Monica. I like a big butt in a T-back too. It's the important stuff that peaced me off about him. He sold us out.

It's our choice though. We can support it or boycott foreign made products. I don't deny that Japanese cars are well built but so are ours and there's no reason to trash American made products to justify your Honda. If there's no qualified American made whatever it is you want, then by foreign. Just my humble opinion.

Here's a copy of an e-mail I received from my mom.



Regarding job layoffs in the U. S.

Joe Smith started the day early having set his alarm

clock (MADE IN JAPAN)

for 6 a. m. While his coffeepot

(MADE IN CHINA)

was perking, he shaved with his electric razor

(MADE IN HONG KONG).

He put on a dress shirt

(MADE IN SRI LANKA),

designer jeans

(MADE IN SINGAPORE)

and tennis shoes

(MADE IN KOREA).

After cooking his breakfast in his new electric

skillet (MADE IN INDIA)

he sat down with his calculator

(MADE IN MEXICO)

to see how much he could spend today.

After setting his watch

(MADE IN TAIWAN)

to the radio

(MADE IN INDIA)

he got in his car

(MADE IN GERMANY)

and continued his search for a good paying

AMERICAN JOB.

At the end of yet another discouraging and fruitless

day, Joe decided to relax for a while. He put

on his sandals

(MADE IN BRAZIL)

poured himself a glass of wine

(MADE IN FRANCE)

and turned on his TV

(MADE IN INDONESIA),

and then wondered why he can't find a good paying

job in..... AMERICA.....

 

[illflem]

How many Americans really want to make alarm clocks, coffee pots etc? Many Americans would prefer unemployment and welfare over minimum wage assembly line work. Just try to get a citizen to dig a ditch by hand.

 

[Steve M]

I've dug ditches by hand and done alot of manual labor. While I was in highschool I cleaned 18 restrooms every night for minimum wage at the telephone company building. Making alarm clocks or coffee pots would have been a step up. If a person gets hungry enough, they'll work for their existance and they might even lose a few extra pounds in the process. What did people do before welfare?

 

[Champane Flight]

Still digging.

I still dig, sometimes (like next week ) 40+ hours a week. Not afraid of a shovel. We have to dig (by hand) when excavating pipeline, within twelve inches. I cannot for the life of me understand some of the younger people I have met. One lasted four weeks with us, he told me he couldn't take the shoveling! He was only 21 years old! I am fifty+ and still work with these kids. I don't know how much longer though. After a 12 hour day of shoveling, I feel it now. Live on a diet of Motrin... ..... Four years of this to go. It is a good thing we rotate in and of out three different jobs every week. The younger generation better fiqure out that no one is going to hand them a living... .....



The whole world economy thing just burns my butt. Like favored trade status to China. And then they take our people hostage. Go figure. BOTH partys are guilty of stupid trade decisions. It all depends on who is buttering their bread at the time I guess.

 

[illflem]

I like digging ditches also, but we're a rare breed. My solution to unemployment would be to ban the backhoe. Just think of all the jobs making shovels in Korea it would create.

 

[weatherbyman]

Mexican Made RAM

I am still waiting for my Mexican made RAM to be deivered to the dealership. I understand the comments and opinions on this post, but... ... I have read several posts that state the Mexican made trucks are of better build quality than the Anerican ones. Why is that????? Why, does it seem, we cannot find Americans willing to produce a quality product anymore? The American Auto Workers, IMHO, expect to be paid a large amount of money for an inferior product... ...compared to the Mexicans who probably need to do the best they can because there are 500 out-of-work individuals waiting to replace them outside the factory walls at a moments notice.

I work for a company that has a VERY large union presence, and they are paid by seniority, not individual performance! It doesn't pay to be a Hard Charging worker, when you will not reap the benefits... ... therefore, inferior products are produced because there is no motivation to do a better than average job!

 

[Sled Puller]

Yunz guys likeing that ditch digging, are not wrapped too tight!



As a Union Operator, I don't HAVE to dig ditches by hand, although I help the Laborers out whenever I can, or am allowed.

We strive for minimal hand work, but around utilitys, sometimes ya gotta.





What ticks me off, is if I get in the ditch to help, they light smokes and sit back! Ferget that! Punks!



Good laborers are hard to come by, and worth much more than the $18/hr they get.



Gene