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- Manlobbi
Halls of Shrewd'm / US Policy❤
No. of Recommendations: 3
Courtesy of Bill Maher's show:
https://x.com/EricAbbenante/status/190074327511776...Batya Ungar-Sargon stuns Bill Maher into submission when talking about Trump's rationale on tariffs:
BUS: "The 70's the largest share of our GDP was in the middle class. Now the top 20% controls over 50% of the GDP.
That manufacturing is still being done: It's just being done in other countries."
Maher: "For wages we will not work for."
BUS: "That's what the tariffs are for. They are to make American workers more competitive in the global market.
Why are we accepting that there should be a race to the bottom?
China: What is its competitive advantage over us? They pay slave wages.
It's important that we have a stake in the manufacturing of the things that we need as a nation, so that when China goes to war against us we're not relying on them for steel and aluminum in order to fight them."
Maher: "At least that's an answer."
Her point about "why should we accept a race to the bottom" is one that isn't raised enough.
No. of Recommendations: 3
The left always bemoans about the death of the middle class and how The Rich own everything. Only they have no idea what to do about it.
The answer is simple: make stuff here in the United States.
No. of Recommendations: 6
The left always bemoans about the death of the middle class and how The Rich own everything. Only they have no idea what to do about it.
The answer is simple: make stuff here in the United States.
Back before the tern "race to the bottom" came about, I was talking to people who were telling me about how cheaply China could produce motorcycle helmets and watches, it became apparent that a lot of American produced goods were moving overseas, and the odds of them returning were very low. Republicans touted that this was a good thing as it would inevitably democratize China. Nixon (a Republican)opened up China, and the forces turned loose would result in Democracy.
Hasn't turned out that way has it? I'm sure that some retconning is being done to blame all of that on Libtards. Nobody had any answers about what would happen in the USA, but it was a little obvious we were losing a lot of jobs for people who liked to work with their hands. We manufactured the Model T in Mexico (~1925?), so near shoring is nothing new, and all of this is about competitive labor cost. NAFTA was supposed to help and after all the bruhaha Trump's renegotiation was a fizzle.
So at the behest of the wealthy, the Republicans have lead us down this road and are now upset about the trade agreements they made during Trump's term. Libs may have their flaws, but no one knows where the hell this MAGA crew is leading us. It doesn't look good, and if the past is any indicator, we're in the process of losing some of America again, and Dope and Jedi will blame and resent libs all the more.
Meanwhile, WTF is happening and what happens next?
No. of Recommendations: 2
and Dope and Jedi own people who can’t avoid making it all about other posters.
Finished that for you.
PS. Nixon opened up China as a way to flank the Soviets. Bill Clinton gave them Most Favored Nation status.
No. of Recommendations: 17
The left always bemoans about the death of the middle class and how The Rich own everything. Only they have no idea what to do about it.
The answer is simple: make stuff here in the United States.Unfortunately, the answer isn’t as simple as that.
Corporations manufacture products in foreign countries because it’s cheaper. If we move those manufacturing jobs back to the U.S., the same products will cost more.
Families have limited dollars to spend. If they spend more money on product X, they will have fewer dollars to spend on other products, which will have a negative impact on those workers.
Here in an excerpt from the link below, which goes into more detail:
In 2020, researchers from Harvard University and the University of California, Davis, found that the tariffs created 1,000 jobs – but reduced employment elsewhere by 75,000. When the tariffs hit seven years ago, Mitchell Metal Products employed a peak of 102 workers. It had to cut its payrolls by leaving openings unfilled and weeding out some workers. The company now employs about 75 people.I think some tariffs can be useful, especially for strategic and national security reasons. But just slapping on tariffs is no panacea. In fact, it’s downright counter productive.
As we are starting to find out.
https://apnews.com/article/trump-tariffs-steel-alu...
No. of Recommendations: 9
"If we move those manufacturing jobs back to the U.S., the same products will cost more."
Where are the skilled manufacturing workers going to come from ?
I'm pretty sure Industrial Arts curriculum has been gutted in the USA school system for
at least this century. I'm not saying there aren't skill centers that are available
for HS kids, but it is nowhere near like it was back in the 60s and 70s. The kids are
pushed toward college prep, not industrial arts. So how long does it take the USA school
system to start pumping out kids skilled in machine arts ? Especially with Trump
gutting the Dept of Ed.
It's like we are watching a Keystone Kops movie. Trump admin hasn't dug down into what is
necessary to have a workforce ready to put out worldclass products.
And the biggest IF to me is: why would any sane person think that Trump has any
answers in regards to rebuilding American manufacturing ?? Trump sure as hell is not
an Engineer, he has no experience at anything he says he is trying to do. He sure
ain't an economist. The Golden Age of Tariffs in America never existed. It sucked for
the vast majority of citizens.
I never watched a single episode of The Apprentice, but he must have been an
incredibly good actor in it. Cause all he knows is how to bullshit people,
and he's got 40% of American adults thinking he's a genius. Man, are we going to
pay a wicked price for our stupidity.
No. of Recommendations: 3
I'm not saying there aren't skill centers that are available
for HS kids, but it is nowhere near like it was back in the 60s and 70s.
When I was in High School in the late 1970s, there were several different shop classes - wood shop, metal shop, auto shop. I actually took the auto shop class. The shop was reasonably well outfitted. There were two vehicle lifts, plenty of various hand and power tools, a wheel balancer, and even a scope to look at the ignition system. We learned how to use all of those pieces of equipment safely and correctly.
In the late 2010s, my son was in high school. There were no shop classes at all.
--Peter
No. of Recommendations: 3
It is possible that the shop classes have moved to a regional program rather than each high school having its own. This is how 4 counties plus part of another in south central Indiana are doing career education.
https://c4.bcscschools.org/about/frequently-asked-...C4 Columbus Area Career Connection provides career and technical education to high school students in Bartholomew, Brown, Decatur, Jackson and portions of Johnson counties in Indiana. Facilities for C4 classes are located at Columbus East and Columbus North High Schools as well as the McDowell Adult Education Center. C4 program offerings are organized in a career cluster format and include: Agricultural Science/Business, Business Management and Finance, Communications, Computer Technology, Construction Engineering Technology, Engineering Manufacturing Technology, Health Careers, Human Services (including Early Childhood Education, Cosmetology, and Culinary Arts), Protective Services, and Transportation.
What types of career fields and technical skills does C4 offer?
C4 offers a flexible curriculum with one, two, and three-hour classes within ten career clusters. There are currently 123 course options and more than 300 community school-to-work opportunities. The C4 curriculum is competency based, aligned with state language arts and math standards, is up-to-date with current economic needs, and provides an opportunity for students to earn between three and thirty-three college credits. C4 program offerings are organized in a career cluster format which can be viewed by clicking on this link: https://c4.bcscschools.org/clustersclasses/cluster...
No. of Recommendations: 1
It is possible that the shop classes have moved to a regional program rather than each high school having its own.
I just hunted down any shop classes in my son's school district. Auto shop was added for the current school year, and is the only shop class available. As you suggest, it's only offered at a couple of the high schools. There are several classes offered, intended to be preparation for ASE training after high school.
Interestingly, it's administered in the same department as things like computer programming, business, and CAD.
--Peter
No. of Recommendations: 3
"It is possible that the shop classes have moved to a regional program rather than each high school having its own."
for my area:
"**** **** is a career and technical education school serving more than twenty high schools and over 1,100 juniors and seniors in the five-county"
( 1100 jr's and sr's )/ ( 20 high schools )= 55 students per HS.
I graduated in the late 70s, sure seemed like there were a whole lot more than 55 kids
taking shop classes in my HS. And I totally get that with automation, not as many are
needed. But a lot of those kids will wash out, also. I took some woodshop classes
via local college, and it was half older people, and half actual college age students
in the classes. I was kind of blown away with how for the majority of the youngsters,
it looked like the first time they had ever ran a tablesaw, or a planer or a jointer, or a router.
A couple of them were right at home with it all. Most were much, much more adept at using
their i-phones. And the youngsters were all going for either certificates in construction/building related areas, or going for Associates Degrees in it. So they should have had some background.
Oh well, I'm not in the workforce, this is all MAGA's problem to fix, since they're the
ones breaking everything.
No. of Recommendations: 1
I think several things were going on that made the regional approach to vocational education grow in popularity. With the hollowing out of industrial America, fewer students were interested in going into that type of schooling. Also the facilities and materials for these programs, especially with declining enrollments, were very expensive for every school to build, staff, and maintain. Then by consolidating all the career ed. programs in one location it allows the students to have greater choice than auto, wood, or metal shop. I have been treated by a a few of my former students who began their healthcare training through the program that I mentioned up thread.
