Chinese are people too. On balance, moving the jobs overseas brought more Earthlings out of poverty than would have been helped had the jobs remained here. Now one thing we *can* do is end the wars and use that money to reinvest in our own infrastructure so that businesses here can compete on something other than wage.
34
It may sound conspiratory but strengthening the pockets of of local workers and communities is considered dangerous by rich industrialists. Keeping factories in China, rising the very poor to just poor over there, or to lower middle-class, helps keeping that danger overseas. The rich don't want to be threatened in their own backyard. Keeping people poor at home pays not only in security but also assures the maintenance of a status-quo, a society in which the few with privilege can control the many hungry poor of their surroundings.
41
The problem is systemic, not personal. It's natural for a businessman or company to increase the bottom-line, for that's why they're in business. People and companies will go the way of the system, which ever way it directs them, in order to make money. The system is what needs to change, and that is done by changing the laws that provide for it.
Joseph in Missoula
Joseph in Missoula
18
Tim Cook, a son of Alabama, now leads Apple and is on the board of Nike, both of which have moved jobs overseas while cities like Selma suffer. Theroux's observations are just as applicable to Ohio, where outsourcing to cheap labor markets has literally destroyed numerous communities in Ohio. These largely indivisible displaced workers and their families have no where to go except dead-end minimum wage jobs with no benefits, no future. Think warehouses, fast food, small non-union shops. Last week, Nike was trading at an all-time high on the NYSE, and Apple has been a star performer, making Tim Cook an extremely wealthy man.
30
We've been hearing Ross Perot's "giant sucking sound" for some years now. Almost all economists worship at Adam Smith's free trade altar, and everyone is terrified of an escalating war of protective tariffs. But there must be a better way, which will allow for the differing standards of worker and environmental protection to be considered in establishing an new paradigm of "controlled trade". Adam Smith himself would surely have moderated his tract if he'd foreseen its effects, applied with such religious fervor, in our modern world.
26
Finally! Thank you Paul Theroux! At last an opinion that destroys the myth of the not-so-great trade agreements foisted upon us by the elitist politicians and yes, by the New York Times (and the Wall Street Journal too).
For years and years I have strongly condemned the outsourcing of American jobs and the destruction of the former American Middle Class. Few have agreed with my assertions. Now, at last here it is in great detail and incredible truth. And the NYT has finally published it! I hope that the NYT can finally admit that NAFTA and other trade agreements and political appeasement and agreement of trade with China foisted upon the American people in the false hope that we can bring Democratic principles and increase human rights.
I hope too that the NYT will call for all the presidential candidates and the Congress to revisit those trade agreements. We MUST restore jobs and manufacturing to the United States at all costs.
I greatly oppose the candidacy of Hillary Clinton because of her approval and support of NAFTA. The political elite still don't get it.
America is drowning in poverty! I'll say it again. America is drowning in poverty and unemployment. We decry inequality in wages, employment and limited access to good and decent education. Higher education is out of reach of too many.
Let's hear it from all sides. Bring back American jobs! Bring back American industry!
Bring back research, development and education to America.
End American poverty. Jobs!
For years and years I have strongly condemned the outsourcing of American jobs and the destruction of the former American Middle Class. Few have agreed with my assertions. Now, at last here it is in great detail and incredible truth. And the NYT has finally published it! I hope that the NYT can finally admit that NAFTA and other trade agreements and political appeasement and agreement of trade with China foisted upon the American people in the false hope that we can bring Democratic principles and increase human rights.
I hope too that the NYT will call for all the presidential candidates and the Congress to revisit those trade agreements. We MUST restore jobs and manufacturing to the United States at all costs.
I greatly oppose the candidacy of Hillary Clinton because of her approval and support of NAFTA. The political elite still don't get it.
America is drowning in poverty! I'll say it again. America is drowning in poverty and unemployment. We decry inequality in wages, employment and limited access to good and decent education. Higher education is out of reach of too many.
Let's hear it from all sides. Bring back American jobs! Bring back American industry!
Bring back research, development and education to America.
End American poverty. Jobs!
52
Mr. Theroux vilifies Tim Cook of Apple and other CEOs for manufacturing products in China, not the Deep South. “It seems obvious,” (to Mr. Theroux) “that executives of American companies should invest in the Deep South as they did in China.”
There is really nothing obvious about this at all. As an employee of Apple, Mr. Cook’s job is to maximize the profits of the company for its worldwide shareholders. If he were to direct Apple to use more expensive workers in a part of the world without the infrastructure to support high-tech manufacturing, he would no doubt be dismissed by the board of directors for improper stewardship of the organization.
The owners of Apple, comprised of individuals, institutions and pension funds, are looking for the highest return on their money. That is called capitalism. Please do not blame Mr. Cook.
There is really nothing obvious about this at all. As an employee of Apple, Mr. Cook’s job is to maximize the profits of the company for its worldwide shareholders. If he were to direct Apple to use more expensive workers in a part of the world without the infrastructure to support high-tech manufacturing, he would no doubt be dismissed by the board of directors for improper stewardship of the organization.
The owners of Apple, comprised of individuals, institutions and pension funds, are looking for the highest return on their money. That is called capitalism. Please do not blame Mr. Cook.
15
After seeing our very successful business that did high volume contract screenprinting for brands like Tommy, Nike and Gap be destroyed by NAFTA I realized that there was more to a business than a bottom line. The global market does not address negative external cost and why we ended up in Bangladesh a few years ago when over 1,000 people died making .26 per hour. I personally had to layoff the majority of our 100 person staff that were making a living wage and getting great benefits. I saw our community and our state's textile and apparel business collapse. I believe if you go out of your market for a product or service that your community offers solely based on price then it is not sustainable. We changed our vision at TS Designs to be built on a triple bottom line philosophy of people, planet and profit starting in the late 90's and never looked back. It has been a very difficult journey competing in a world that does not address negative external cost and is why today over 98% of the apparel we buy and wear is made offshore. I think one of the solutions is to demand transparency and is what we did with the brand Cotton of the Carolinas, connecting the consumer to the farmer via www.whereyourclothing.com. We are not 100% domestically made yet, but getting pretty darn close. Vote with your dollar for the community you want.
45
Absolutely, except don't demonize Clinton's work with African elephants. At the rate they're being slaughtered we could well have an extinct species in a few years. Tragic loss for the world.
21
America's major threat is not from abroad. It is internal. It is greed.
32
recall Dacca incident of rana plaza fire? how many millions of $$$ company has to pay even though legally it was responsibility of owner of plaza to maintain fire escapes & fire fighting equipments ?
Once it was sure for quality to buy made in USA product( next to made in Germany) but I do not get any made in USA jeans by Levi strauss or a GE electrical product to take back to my country in USA ?In India we steer clear of Made in China products ( Toys especially as baby puts them in mouth & paint from toy paints their lips)
Once it was sure for quality to buy made in USA product( next to made in Germany) but I do not get any made in USA jeans by Levi strauss or a GE electrical product to take back to my country in USA ?In India we steer clear of Made in China products ( Toys especially as baby puts them in mouth & paint from toy paints their lips)
13
WOW....the truth plainly spoken and well said.
20
The problem is not that corporations don't want to pay living wages they don't want to provide safe working conditions or protect the environment by controlling emissions or effluents.
They treat people and the earth- cut and burn and move on.
They treat people and the earth- cut and burn and move on.
13
A good friend of mine who works at IBM just told me that she will be out of a job soon -- but only after she retrains her replacements in Costa Rica. There you have it.
37
The only groups CEOs are beholden to are investors and shareholders. If corporations are profitable and those groups are happy, CEOs get rewarded with an obscene amount of compensation. Nothing else matters. Period.
13
I couldn't have said it better myself. The modern desire to canonize billionaires because they deign to allow a few crumbs to fall from their table is infuriating. The canonizers overlook the facts about these tainted "saints" including but certainly not limited to: they made their money by robbing their employees; they continue to make money by firing their employees and exporting American jobs to countries where employees are not much more than slaves; they make more money by importing workers who are trained by existing employees so that their jobs can be exported to India and elsewhere. These "saints" now own our government and our education system. It's about time the American people, the humans not the legal fictions, woke up to the fact that all this "billionaire charity" is nothing more than a PR some screen so that these guys, whatever their gender, can continue treating the rest of us like fools while they float above us not paying taxes and telling us how we should live.
32
CEOs who engage in social projects, rather than profit and revenue growth maximization get fired by Boards of Directors who are held accountable by the company shareholders. Ironically, much of the pressure that is put on Boards comes from fund managers whose investors are union pension funds and large college endowments. Oh, what a tangled web we weave.
7
Brilliant. But don't forget places like Detroit, Rust Belt cities in the Midwest and Upstate New York. What say you, National Association of Manufacturers and Corporate Roundtable? We need greed control. What are you thinking, Bible Belt Tea Partiers? These are your constituents! Republican "populist" base, Donald Trump offers tax cuts for hedge fund managers and the ultra-wealthy. Is that you?
17
A few thoughts. First, when a company like Disney pulls the H1b scam, write them and tell them you will not buy their products, and do not buy them. Note that they changed their position on hiring Indian replacements. Second, try to really understand cause and effect. If we bring in tons of low skilled immigrants, wages go down. It may, or may not, be the right thing to do, but understand. If we let high skilled immigrants stay, instead of sending them home, we will be better off, because many will start businesses. Support things that help permanent job creation. Better infrastructure does that. Try to remove barriers to starting businesses. There are a myriad of rules that can cause would be employers to throw up their hands and not hire anyone. Change the tax laws so that U.S. Based companies bring offshore cash home. Finally, invest in reducing the cost of education. In this world, you need education. Cost should not be a barrier.
15
Capitalism, by its very nature, is all about competition as well as a dehumanization process that ignores its opposite system, socialism.
This article may be more about the decline of our blue collar population than about any form of "hypocrisy". Do our counterparts in northern Europe or in India bemoan the success of millionaires and billionaires? I doubt it; our challenge is to educate, adapt, and to enable every American to reach his/her potential.
This article may be more about the decline of our blue collar population than about any form of "hypocrisy". Do our counterparts in northern Europe or in India bemoan the success of millionaires and billionaires? I doubt it; our challenge is to educate, adapt, and to enable every American to reach his/her potential.
4
Blaming the executives for the decisions they make may feel good, but it won't solve the problem. We must change our laws. I seem to remember that when Nancy Pelosi was House Speaker a bill was passed that would have rewarded bringing manufacturing jobs back to the US and taxed companies who outsource. The bill was filibustered by Republicans in the Senate.
We should elect Bernie Sanders and Democratic majorities in the house and Senate if we want to change this situation.
Then start electing Democrats in state legislatures.
We should elect Bernie Sanders and Democratic majorities in the house and Senate if we want to change this situation.
Then start electing Democrats in state legislatures.
25
As long as "we the people" continue to vote in ignorance of the actual actions our elected representatives intend to take in office, the poor and their suffering will increase. We need to look beyond the tales, half-truths, embellishments, and flat-out lies told on the campaign trail to the actual stated goals of the parties before casting votes. It would help, too, if people would get wise and vote in their OVERALL interest, instead of letting a single issue (or two) determine their electoral choice. If this were to (miraculously) occur, the USA might actually get something other than the same old oligarchs directing a "corpocracy" -- government favoring corporations, big shareholders, and the wealthiest few individuals.
I do not hold out much hope for such a radical change in our nation's electoral culture anytime soon. Most people try way too hard to believe what they are told on TV, even though, after all, the only way to tell when a politician is lying is when his/her lips move.
I do not hold out much hope for such a radical change in our nation's electoral culture anytime soon. Most people try way too hard to believe what they are told on TV, even though, after all, the only way to tell when a politician is lying is when his/her lips move.
7
The example of Apple is a good one to illustrate a lack of understanding of global trade.
In the average iPhone, costs are distributed around the globe and only 2% - 5% of that is the Chinese labor component. As it happens, Germany gets the lion's share of the costs, with Japan #2.
Yes we could bring the low tech component of assembly back to the US, but most of the value will still go countries that have developed advanced design and manufacturing facilities - much of which is automated.
In the average iPhone, costs are distributed around the globe and only 2% - 5% of that is the Chinese labor component. As it happens, Germany gets the lion's share of the costs, with Japan #2.
Yes we could bring the low tech component of assembly back to the US, but most of the value will still go countries that have developed advanced design and manufacturing facilities - much of which is automated.
4
Consumers demand the lowet prices which requires corporations to outsource. The fault dear Brutus lies not in our corporations but in ourselves.
8
It is ironic that some here would justify the hollowing out of America, and the poverty that results, arguing that the victims are still better off than than the poorest of the poor in Asia and Africa. Mrs. Jellyby, a famous character in Dickens' "Bleak House" took a similar attitude in Victorian England. I wish Charles Dickens were here today to chronicle the abuses of today's race to the bottom.
18
The Confederates were fond of saying that if they lost their war against the North, then the United States would inevitably become a republic of money-grubbing, money-worshipping mudsills, incapable of higher aspirations. And in this they were right. The ravages of unbridled capitalism have made themselves abundantly evident throughout the unhappy South, as they have elsewhere in our constantly self-apostrophising nation of greatness. In this case, great greed and disregard for the common good.
10
Amazing bunch of tripe. Business is not a charitable enterprise. It is a profit making enterprise. No business owes you or anyone a job. Many of the shutdowns and outsourcing the author talks about were in fact brought about by over regulation which makes the cost of doing business here prohibitive. You can't have it both ways. Either you create a redistribution society and watch business go overseas or you accept that it is the role of government to make if easier not harder to do business here.
3
"None of those automakers have said that it is their intention to lift people out of poverty..."
This is an interesting statement, Mr Theroux, but a job with an automaker like MB, BMW or Kia is exactly what will lift people out of poverty.
This is an interesting statement, Mr Theroux, but a job with an automaker like MB, BMW or Kia is exactly what will lift people out of poverty.
2
Marx said it best - workers of the world unite....it is not the government that will fix this situation. Afterall, we are the government, or should be..and when we realize it, take it back and create a society that is fair, compassionate, and "equal."
7
The article misses an even larger point, 'The Hypocrisy of America'. It might go something like this:
First they came for the factory workers job job, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a factory worker.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for my neighbors job, and I did not speak out—
Because it was not my job.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
The fact is all of us bear responsibility. We traded cheap junk for other people's jobs and with it we traded away the strength of the nation. It is also worth remembering those who sent our jobs overseas weren't just outsourcing for the cheap labor but also - and perhaps even more so - to outsource our pollution and the costs of regulation that protected the environmental and the rights of workers.
If you or I gave away the technology and expertise to a foreign country that corporate America gave away to China we would be shot for treason and rightfully so. In the process it was all just legalized corruption and a means to avoid paying American Taxes. Even today, Corporate America is demanding to pay little or no taxes to bring their obscene profits back to America.
First they came for the factory workers job job, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a factory worker.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for my neighbors job, and I did not speak out—
Because it was not my job.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
The fact is all of us bear responsibility. We traded cheap junk for other people's jobs and with it we traded away the strength of the nation. It is also worth remembering those who sent our jobs overseas weren't just outsourcing for the cheap labor but also - and perhaps even more so - to outsource our pollution and the costs of regulation that protected the environmental and the rights of workers.
If you or I gave away the technology and expertise to a foreign country that corporate America gave away to China we would be shot for treason and rightfully so. In the process it was all just legalized corruption and a means to avoid paying American Taxes. Even today, Corporate America is demanding to pay little or no taxes to bring their obscene profits back to America.
12
Well.... the offshoring crazy has help lift a huge number of people out of poverty, just not in the US.
3
Rich people are greedy. They look out for their own self interest. G, isn't that like the rest of us? How many of us turn down a raise because we don't really need it?
Anyone who buys anything at Walmart appreciates the cheap prices because the manufacturers have hammered the cost of their goods down as far as they can. Everybody complains, but they keep buying cheap things instead of going to the stores across a few cents more.
Enough of the holier than thou attitude already.
Anyone who buys anything at Walmart appreciates the cheap prices because the manufacturers have hammered the cost of their goods down as far as they can. Everybody complains, but they keep buying cheap things instead of going to the stores across a few cents more.
Enough of the holier than thou attitude already.
6
hold the manufacturers of the goods exported to this country to the same standards we apply in our country to manufacturers
1
Another commenter reminds us of Ross Perot:
"I remember when Ross Perot ran for president he was dead set against NAFTA using a swooshing sound to describe all those jobs leaving the USA if it was passed, sounds like he was right."
Like Ross Perot or not, I too remember his comments on NAFTA. He warned us of a "giant sucking sound," the sound of jobs being sucked down to Mexico. Many people disagreed with him at the time, arguing that NAFTA's main effect would be to create a new large group of consumers of American products (Mexicans). I remember thinking at the time: "Of course Perot is right about this. Everyone and his brother will close down US production facilities and move them to Mexico (though many moved quickly to Asia, where productivity turned out to be higher, and wages lower). I live in California. It's virtually impossible these days to buy strawberries grown in the US. They're all (as in "all") grown in Mexico and shipped here.
Perot told us it would happen, and he was right. What struck me most, though, is not that his predictions seemed sound but that they seemed so obvious I had a hard time believing anyone would really believe those who argued otherwise.
Workers are also consumers, and low prices at Walmart help them as consumers, so it's not so easy to conclude that "offshoring" jobs to low-wage countries is a bad thing. But to pretend that US companies won't do that at the first opportunity is astonishingly naive. Of course they will.
"I remember when Ross Perot ran for president he was dead set against NAFTA using a swooshing sound to describe all those jobs leaving the USA if it was passed, sounds like he was right."
Like Ross Perot or not, I too remember his comments on NAFTA. He warned us of a "giant sucking sound," the sound of jobs being sucked down to Mexico. Many people disagreed with him at the time, arguing that NAFTA's main effect would be to create a new large group of consumers of American products (Mexicans). I remember thinking at the time: "Of course Perot is right about this. Everyone and his brother will close down US production facilities and move them to Mexico (though many moved quickly to Asia, where productivity turned out to be higher, and wages lower). I live in California. It's virtually impossible these days to buy strawberries grown in the US. They're all (as in "all") grown in Mexico and shipped here.
Perot told us it would happen, and he was right. What struck me most, though, is not that his predictions seemed sound but that they seemed so obvious I had a hard time believing anyone would really believe those who argued otherwise.
Workers are also consumers, and low prices at Walmart help them as consumers, so it's not so easy to conclude that "offshoring" jobs to low-wage countries is a bad thing. But to pretend that US companies won't do that at the first opportunity is astonishingly naive. Of course they will.
7
Thousand of years of poverty. Thousands of years of Church and government caritas. There is no need for poverty, it does no one any good it impovershes everyone. A union of world wide workers demanding, striking for a living wage for everyone would be a great first step.
6
there are so many things employers could do to make jobs better for the employees and more reliable for both employer and employee. as far as i'm concerned, this article could have been written about rural michigan.
we are all global citizens.
the challenge is to make goods that are durable and repairable, to form relationships like co-ops that work for everyone, and to create a governmental safety net for the way people experience gig employment.
i would wish the references to the clintons had been omitted so that the actual topic could be explored. or, in the interests of balance, a reference to how the romneys fit into this notion.
we are all global citizens.
the challenge is to make goods that are durable and repairable, to form relationships like co-ops that work for everyone, and to create a governmental safety net for the way people experience gig employment.
i would wish the references to the clintons had been omitted so that the actual topic could be explored. or, in the interests of balance, a reference to how the romneys fit into this notion.
4
Sometimes I think the corporate leaders actually want a class of poor in the US so they can look good when they make those donations.
Yes the corporations are to blame. But so is the US government. If American industry hadn't been castrated by so many rules and regulations, a lot of jobs might have stayed here.
I wonder...if you ask an unemployed worker whether they would accept a bit more risk on the job for the promise of having a job, what their answer would be.
Yes the corporations are to blame. But so is the US government. If American industry hadn't been castrated by so many rules and regulations, a lot of jobs might have stayed here.
I wonder...if you ask an unemployed worker whether they would accept a bit more risk on the job for the promise of having a job, what their answer would be.
1
The mega-rich rule this world. To the detriment of everyone but themselves. We need a revolution.. Along the lines of MLK or Ghandi. No worker - no matter where they were born - should be treated like Kleenex.
6
The Corporation has all the privileges and rights of an individual. It has none of the responsibilities.
Morality, conscience, personal honour and shame... none of these things matter in the corporate world. Everything is disappeared.
Morality, conscience, personal honour and shame... none of these things matter in the corporate world. Everything is disappeared.
8
A few years ago I had an opportunity to drive down the famous "Blues Highway" south from Memphis into Mississippi and stopped in two of the towns mentioned in this article, Tunica and Clarksdale. Yes, the poverty and overall condition of the building stock was alarming. Many abandoned, crumbling buildings. The inspirations of blues music is etched deep into the fabric of daily life. In Binghamton NY, where IBM once had large factories, the scene is very similar. In the Research Triangle of North Carolina, you can see the gigantic campus where IBM once employed over 40,000. I've traveled a bit, and all over this country you find abandoned factories, hollowed out cities, depressed people. This industrialization game...it IS just a race to the bottom, leaving in its wake declining cities, polluted land and air, and impoverished people. Time to change the rules.
15
There is no hypocrisy here. And there are no "American" jobs, as there are no "Chinese" jobs, "German" jobs, or "Mexican" jobs. All those jobs, regardless of location, belong to the employer, period. The number of employees needed is determined by a host of economic conditions. All of those decisions are made for the sole purpose of keeping the company as profitable as possible. Companies are not charities, yet most of the liberal press wants them to be just that.
For those who think that American companies should keep their jobs here, then you should not mind telling Honda, BMW, Subaru, and a host of other foreign companies to go back to their own countries. After all, don't they "outsource" their jobs here? Talk about hypocrisy...
For those who think that American companies should keep their jobs here, then you should not mind telling Honda, BMW, Subaru, and a host of other foreign companies to go back to their own countries. After all, don't they "outsource" their jobs here? Talk about hypocrisy...
9
As Americans we idolize corporate titans like the late Steve Jobs even while they sell out the nation that launched and nurtured them for a better bottom line.
Simply put, it's time to Buy American again ... even if ... shudder the thought ... the Walmarts of our corporate sector take a hit.
Simply put, it's time to Buy American again ... even if ... shudder the thought ... the Walmarts of our corporate sector take a hit.
8
Brilliant essay, absolutely right on the money, so to speak. Thank you to the Times for having the guts to print it and especially to Mr. Theroux for having the guts--and wisdom--to write it.
6
I am surprised by complete lack of recognition of why companies ship jobs outside. They are responding to demand for financial returns for their investors - our mutual funds, our stock market and our pension plans. The push for this growth pushes companies to increase profit margins at all costs. Profit margins are higher when jobs are done in place with lower costs. So we need to ask ourselves about expectations that we have created and how to change that to modify that pressure.
5
A corollary: Big business is shipping jobs out of the country to a less-educated and cheaper workorce, yet how often have we heard business complain that schools are not preparing U.S. students to take a place in the workforce?
7
Sometimes I think these extravagant gestures of philanthropy are seen by the very wealthy as a kind of insurance policy against the onslaught of the torch-bearing, pitchfork-wielding hordes.
7
Globalism was supposed to make the rest of the world more like America. Instead, it is making America more like the rest of the world...
14
When billionaires start talking about how their kids will work for a living and won't inherit vast fortunes, they are lying through their teeth. Oh sure, there's a big public outlay of cash upfront for a slate of political advantageous organizations-most of which could not care less about poor or middle class Americans and many of which deliberately send money to other countries while children here starve-but there's also protected trust funds, stock options and personal property that will accrue assets so the little darlings won't have to sully their complexions working as a car porter for a Volvo dealership-as my college educated son does, or working as a retail manager for about $12 an hour like my college educated daughter or as a part time driver, as my 59 year old husband who was a sales rep and should be working at his peak, but who can't find a job is doing. Face it, the Oprahization of American with folks thinking that they are entitled to the latest fad, the biggest trend or the most desireable cell phone of the moment has created an artificial appetite for cheap stuff. That's why the storage industry is growing while the manufacturing industries wither on the vine.
8
During his first two years as head of Apple, Tim Cook pocketed 382 million dollars (according Robert Reich in his new book, "Saving Capitalism"). Presumably, Mr. Cook will one day step down from his job with a billion dollars or more and to a life of extreme comfort, his own private jet aircraft and, if in good health, the ability to fly around the world to find amusements and make the pronouncements expected of a retired mega-corp, tech executive. He will be in demand. He will be able to visit any nation on earth and be received royally.
At the end of this life, Mr. Cook will be faced with the necessity of throwing that money in the direction of something. It will not matter that he participated in the hollowing out of American jobs, he will congratulate himself, no doubt, on having employed thousands of people in China and across Asia.
As a child, I wondered why certain people, like the movie stars and other entertainers of that day, kept amassing money after they had more than they could ever possibly spend. Wasn't 50 million enough? The answer is, no. There is no human limit to how much is enough. Whatever you can get, take.
Former president Jimmy Carter has done more to "save the world" than a truck load of billionaires. He did not have a great fortune to start, only his good name and the intensity of the desires he and his wife Rosalynn Carter felt about changing the world for the better.
Money is not the answer. Good ideas and hard work are.
At the end of this life, Mr. Cook will be faced with the necessity of throwing that money in the direction of something. It will not matter that he participated in the hollowing out of American jobs, he will congratulate himself, no doubt, on having employed thousands of people in China and across Asia.
As a child, I wondered why certain people, like the movie stars and other entertainers of that day, kept amassing money after they had more than they could ever possibly spend. Wasn't 50 million enough? The answer is, no. There is no human limit to how much is enough. Whatever you can get, take.
Former president Jimmy Carter has done more to "save the world" than a truck load of billionaires. He did not have a great fortune to start, only his good name and the intensity of the desires he and his wife Rosalynn Carter felt about changing the world for the better.
Money is not the answer. Good ideas and hard work are.
10
When this all started, the ratio of labor costs in manufacturing between the US and China was more than 20 to 1. This was of course because China was beginning its mass migration of people making 200 dollars a YEAR from the countryside to cities where they could easily quadruple their income by getting into unskilled work.
So if you are a firm in a competitive industry where labour costs are a significant part of total cost, then you HAD to relocate production. There was no other way, if Nike did not do it, a competitor would and basically corner the market.
Developed economies primarily enjoyed supremacy in manufacturing industries up until the 80s because they could easily match the optimal amount of capital with labour. Some countries like Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea caught up relatively early, then came the deluge of China and a host of other latecomers in the 90s. Once you remove the capital advantage, the emperor has no clothes, the sneaker that can be produced by an American worker in Mississippi can be produced by a Chinese worker as well, once you equalise the capital employed.
The task was immense, moving hundreds of millions of semi-skilled workers in the developed world to service sector jobs and up to skilled manufacturing. Training and education was key, and my hunch is that countries like the US and UK are behind Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Scandinavian countries in that regard, though they did not do a terrible job, either.
So if you are a firm in a competitive industry where labour costs are a significant part of total cost, then you HAD to relocate production. There was no other way, if Nike did not do it, a competitor would and basically corner the market.
Developed economies primarily enjoyed supremacy in manufacturing industries up until the 80s because they could easily match the optimal amount of capital with labour. Some countries like Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea caught up relatively early, then came the deluge of China and a host of other latecomers in the 90s. Once you remove the capital advantage, the emperor has no clothes, the sneaker that can be produced by an American worker in Mississippi can be produced by a Chinese worker as well, once you equalise the capital employed.
The task was immense, moving hundreds of millions of semi-skilled workers in the developed world to service sector jobs and up to skilled manufacturing. Training and education was key, and my hunch is that countries like the US and UK are behind Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Scandinavian countries in that regard, though they did not do a terrible job, either.
2
It's not simple profitability that drives companies overseas; It's unregulated profitability and unmitigated greed, without regard to the consequences of humanity, that is the cause the demise of the U.S. middle class. As a result, Americans will continue to owe their soul to the company store.
3
I stopped by Walmart to pick up a few things this morning. I apologize if this sounds judgmental or stereotyping...but I did not see bankers, lawyers, neurosurgeons or programmer types there. No, they were.people from lower socioeconomic status.
The digitization and complexity in the world has presented us with a new set of problems, not unlike those of the industrial revolution, where wages of untrained labor were stagnant for decades. I grieve for thse people. They are like my own blue collar parents in appalachia who never went to college but worked in the coal mines or the railroads (but who wanted better for their children). Mr. Obama whines about the income disparity, but he has single handedly been the architect of destroying the jobs machine for so many untrained labor that shoots them to the middle class. I am talking about extractive industries..mining, fracking, welders, diesel mechanics. For all his talk about jobs and all the feigned concern of liberals about income disparity, it is the implementation of their philosophy and religion of climate change...changes that even experts say won't really matter. But to them, i tis all that matters...their pride and pomposity at cocktail parties. It reminds me of Jack Kemps comment about those arguing about race, many of whom had no personal relationships with people of another race. Kemp commented that he had showered with more blacks than they knew.
The digitization and complexity in the world has presented us with a new set of problems, not unlike those of the industrial revolution, where wages of untrained labor were stagnant for decades. I grieve for thse people. They are like my own blue collar parents in appalachia who never went to college but worked in the coal mines or the railroads (but who wanted better for their children). Mr. Obama whines about the income disparity, but he has single handedly been the architect of destroying the jobs machine for so many untrained labor that shoots them to the middle class. I am talking about extractive industries..mining, fracking, welders, diesel mechanics. For all his talk about jobs and all the feigned concern of liberals about income disparity, it is the implementation of their philosophy and religion of climate change...changes that even experts say won't really matter. But to them, i tis all that matters...their pride and pomposity at cocktail parties. It reminds me of Jack Kemps comment about those arguing about race, many of whom had no personal relationships with people of another race. Kemp commented that he had showered with more blacks than they knew.
5
Why is the outsourcing/loss of manufacturing anger aimed only at executives?
Our Treasury Department has, for the last 20 years, pushed strong dollar policies, which makes our exports less competitive,
Our Presidents push hard for free trade agreements. It has been noted that President Obama has lobbied harder for the TPP than he has for ANYTHING during his term.
With Washington leadership like this, who can blame executives whose job it is to maximize profits?
Our Treasury Department has, for the last 20 years, pushed strong dollar policies, which makes our exports less competitive,
Our Presidents push hard for free trade agreements. It has been noted that President Obama has lobbied harder for the TPP than he has for ANYTHING during his term.
With Washington leadership like this, who can blame executives whose job it is to maximize profits?
3
Publicly traded companies are required by law to seek the highest possible return by any and all legal means for their shareholders. CEO's and senior executives have a fiduciary interest that makes them liable to legal action on behalf of shareholders if they do not put profits above every other corporate value. So you can blame Tim Cook or Bill Gates or their companions among the CEO elites of our society, but they are just actors on a stage we created called American capitalism. China, Singapore, Indonesia, etc, dollar matched American investments in offshoring manufacturing and associated technology sectors. The American government is on the hook to make the investments that will put the southern states and the rest of the country on competitive footing with global competition. Good luck ever getting that to happen.
1
Kudos to Paul Theroux!
Our country's uber-rich are destroying the remaining population here, while bolstering economies everywhere else in the world.
Is it un-American to be wealthy in the USA? For shame that the wealthiest are our downfall. Traitors!
Our country's uber-rich are destroying the remaining population here, while bolstering economies everywhere else in the world.
Is it un-American to be wealthy in the USA? For shame that the wealthiest are our downfall. Traitors!
2
Yes. And then those workers still with jobs are urged by their corporate employers to "give back": picking the employees' pockets for handouts to the community in order to assuage the corporate conscience.
5
The premise of this piece is false. Theroux has adopted xenophobic, anti-free-trade sentiments. America has not become an impoverished country. And the improved circumstances of hundreds of millions of Chinese, albeit at some cost, has not caused the impoverishment of an equal or proportional number of Americans. It has improved the standard of living of most Americans. Theroux is surprised to find poor people in America. Guess what - they've always been there. Yes, we need to improve some things at home, especially in some places, and yes, we've taken some steps back in the past 15 years. But overall, things are still better in America, and the West, than at any point in history. We do need to keep moving forward.
5
Thank you for this wonderful article. One of the best treatise on the dark side of capitalism I've read in a while. We in the U.S. have been brain-washed into believing that capitalism is some sacred religion that can never be altered without God's wrath. In reality it is simply an increasingly antiquated economic system with downsides as great as any other, including communism. In fact, unbridled capitalism (i.e. one without stringent government intervention) always leads to unsustainable economic inequity, which is what we are seeing today. It is a great system for creating wealth but a bad one for distributing it. This is econ 101. It isn't even a moral issue. It is our very survival that is at stake.
Think about it. The very system our society rests upon is based on an obsession; the never satisfied, all-consuming need to accumulate wealth. This is the fuel that drives capitalism. The fact that left unchecked it is a system that ensures its own destruction should scare anybody.
By refusing to admit that our current economic system has no inherent mechanism for ensuring the equitable distribution of wealth we are blindly walking off a cliff. And as we are falling, the very last thought of even the most strident capitalist will be, "Oh my God, Karl Marx' predictions were right."
Think about it. The very system our society rests upon is based on an obsession; the never satisfied, all-consuming need to accumulate wealth. This is the fuel that drives capitalism. The fact that left unchecked it is a system that ensures its own destruction should scare anybody.
By refusing to admit that our current economic system has no inherent mechanism for ensuring the equitable distribution of wealth we are blindly walking off a cliff. And as we are falling, the very last thought of even the most strident capitalist will be, "Oh my God, Karl Marx' predictions were right."
8
I have been reading Paul Theroux's output for decades and he's given me quite an education about the world in specific, rather than general ways. My wife and I drove through every New England state recently on our way back from Quebec. We saw the closed factories, the idle workers, the forlorn everywhere, shame on us. Being the richest country in the world and failing in so many categories is heartbreaking. I'd liken the U.S. to that set of bone china you've gotten ages ago as a wedding present, but have never used for fear of chipping a plate or cup. The profiteers proliferate, the poor proliferate. Theroux is long overdue for a Pulitzer, the multimillionaire journalist who made his fortune fighting the rich for the benefit of himself AND the impoverished. His fountain trickles down proudly where his statue stands iin front of Trump's old Plaza in New York City.
I'm sorry, there's nothing particularly special about the American worker. They've been proven to be easily replaceable, by the poorest of the poor of developing countries. Just because there was a golden moment for American labor in the 1950s and 1960s as the rest of the world climbed out of the wreckage of World War II doesn't mean the good times were going to go on forever and that there was a God given right to a living wage for low skilled workers whose jobs were vulnerable to moving abroad. Perhaps it's time to try to train people in jobs that won't be as outsourcable.
4
You have no idea what you're talking about. Yes, China has gone from having an economy the size of Italy fifteen years ago, to today having the largest economy in the world, but not at our expense! Leaving a billion people in desperate poverty would only have made us poorer as well. Think of all of the new jobs and companies that have been created by the ubiquitous and inexpensive technology in everyone's hands, and our better abilities to work and compete with the rest of the world that they provide. To give just one figure, Apple pays about a billion dollars a *month* to US developers for the apps they sell on their iPhone/iPad app store. This is an entirely new industry that didn't exist seven years ago. Yes, change makes some people worse off, but the solution is not to never change, but to help those hurt by the change make the transition!
6
In Tamil, this is called pinching the baby and claiming credit for rocking the cradle to cam the crying baby.
3
Excellent op-ed. I have often wondered why (seen the hypocrisy in how) millionaire and billionaire "philanthropists" are so eager to help both a) when they are done reaping massive profits off backs of others and b) in countires other than their own. One should not expect other countries to have their house in order if they cannot do so with their own.
I was following Mr. Theroux until he mentioned the elephants. Does he want their extinction? Can we not help both American industry and the elephant?
1
We can blame government, corporations, unions (for advocating for unreasonable conditions) or anyone else we choose. The reality is we see the problem every day when we look in the mirror. We are to blame - our constant desire to get the lowest price on everything from socks to food drives corporations to also seek the lowest cost. If we truly valued jobs we would be prepared to pay a premium for American or Australian made goods, it is clear we are not.
The Australian car industry has COMPLETELY disappeared in the last five years, two reasons - cheap, and now well made Asian imports at prices we cannot match in addition to unreasonable demands from unions. In 2013 the Australian Government subsidized the car industry to the tune of $48,000 for every person directly employed in the industry. Not sustainable and in the end something that all taxpayers foot the bill for.
The Australian car industry has COMPLETELY disappeared in the last five years, two reasons - cheap, and now well made Asian imports at prices we cannot match in addition to unreasonable demands from unions. In 2013 the Australian Government subsidized the car industry to the tune of $48,000 for every person directly employed in the industry. Not sustainable and in the end something that all taxpayers foot the bill for.
5
Amazing essay. Where is the outrage, in our country? I so hope, voters will mobilize, in the next election.
3
If Apple opened a factory in a San Francisco suburb (assuming it even passes the myriad of regulations, environmental impact studies and legal battles,) in a union shop and with locally sourced components, how much would an iPhone cost?
7
This has been discussed over and over. The basic facts both parties tries to hide (you figure out why) follows.
1. Our borders were broken and flood of immigration begun in the mid 70's, creating high unemployment by displacing American farm workers to start with, who moved to the cities looking for work and became our first homeless.
2. Federal Reserve adopted the NAIRU policy (Permanent High Unemployment) to halt any wage increases (called "Inflation") in 1979. To do this they created the Great Recession of 1979-1984, and periodically create smaller recessions to keep unemployment above NAIRU level.
The Federal Reserve uses the unemployment of Americans caused by immigrants to help minimize the recessions it might otherwise have to induce.
3. Trade Treaties such as GATT and others passed and signed in the 1990's caused the loss of our manufacturing to oversea competitors, as well as the outsourcing of very many jobs in service and various professions.
On the flip side the same trade treaties greatly boosted our farmers and overseas agricultural sales, creating many jobs for more immigrant farm-workers (now that American farm workers have been driven from the rural areas).
Sir James Goldsmith US Senate Testimony on GATT (1995)
https://archive.org/details/SirJamesGoldsmithUsSenateTestimonyOnGatt1995
1. Our borders were broken and flood of immigration begun in the mid 70's, creating high unemployment by displacing American farm workers to start with, who moved to the cities looking for work and became our first homeless.
2. Federal Reserve adopted the NAIRU policy (Permanent High Unemployment) to halt any wage increases (called "Inflation") in 1979. To do this they created the Great Recession of 1979-1984, and periodically create smaller recessions to keep unemployment above NAIRU level.
The Federal Reserve uses the unemployment of Americans caused by immigrants to help minimize the recessions it might otherwise have to induce.
3. Trade Treaties such as GATT and others passed and signed in the 1990's caused the loss of our manufacturing to oversea competitors, as well as the outsourcing of very many jobs in service and various professions.
On the flip side the same trade treaties greatly boosted our farmers and overseas agricultural sales, creating many jobs for more immigrant farm-workers (now that American farm workers have been driven from the rural areas).
Sir James Goldsmith US Senate Testimony on GATT (1995)
https://archive.org/details/SirJamesGoldsmithUsSenateTestimonyOnGatt1995
3
It is painful to read this article because it gives such a vivid picture of the problem (loss of manufacturing jobs in America) while offering nothing stronger than moral outrage as a possible cure.
Businesses are amoral. They cannot be criticized for making efforts to cut costs within the law ( although limits should certainly be placed on their lobbying for changes in legislation). They act instinctively, like cats hunting birds. We can deplore the effects of their cost cutting efforts but not deny that they will cut costs by their very nature.
So the only possible solution is to change the rules under which they operate. Meaning government regulation.
Two things are required. One, the political will to effect change. And two, the insight to invent changes that would benefit us. Our political will is weak (witness all those who either do not vote or vote against their own interests), and a system of regulations that would work is devilishly difficult to invent.
So, I have to admit a certain grim fatalism as I look at all this. Maybe having open borders dooms us to having a distribution of wealth that mirrors the rest of the world.
Businesses are amoral. They cannot be criticized for making efforts to cut costs within the law ( although limits should certainly be placed on their lobbying for changes in legislation). They act instinctively, like cats hunting birds. We can deplore the effects of their cost cutting efforts but not deny that they will cut costs by their very nature.
So the only possible solution is to change the rules under which they operate. Meaning government regulation.
Two things are required. One, the political will to effect change. And two, the insight to invent changes that would benefit us. Our political will is weak (witness all those who either do not vote or vote against their own interests), and a system of regulations that would work is devilishly difficult to invent.
So, I have to admit a certain grim fatalism as I look at all this. Maybe having open borders dooms us to having a distribution of wealth that mirrors the rest of the world.
1
All true but why is the South so addicted to Republican outsourcing business policies instead of government initiatives to provide jobs? There are many industries that I saw in Italy last summer, that came from a governing consensus on the value of building a quality environment that had jobs tied to culture rather than simple trade. Trade followed as quality and expectations rose but comparative advantage the codeword of so many economists, is impossible if the people are broken. Education is the beginning and serious culture building is the way of sustaining it. Most Americans don't even know what I'm talking about but the Europeans do. That was the most depressing part of my first serious encounter with Europe this summer as I worked there teaching in their cultural programs. Americans can do that, but we don't seem to be able to imagine it for ourselves. We just seem addicted to ugly for profit and loud noises at rifle ranges for fun, until it gets transferred to the local schoolroom. Performing Arts Teacher NYCity.
2
I looked for exaggerations/distortions, but frankly I don't know much more than what I consume from mass media but may forget thereafter.
It is a sad as h essay, because I fear true enough: When I go to the "dollar stores," I am there to buy the cheapest.
Many retail merchants and their wholesale distributors are economically obsolete, if the phrase connotes what I think it does in austerity context.
If it can be corrugated/card-boarded, and sent by way of those versatile
ship/train/truck containers from overseas, I existentially choose to buy them.
We are seemingly descending economically overall and have been I suppose
starting perhaps when I almost completely believed Milton's and our pundit Tom Friedman's ideas/ideals of win-win by economic advantage.
Because it's a long, complex transitional process, I could not say we've pretty much lost, though I perceive most of us believe we've indeed been had.
And we're generally apparently addicted lowest price junkies.
Econ profs could intellectually probably say so on the one hand we're hurting/bad-off here in the Southeast, though do note our thriving, leading industries that manage to withstand their competition.
Me and President Truman, whom I am plagiarizing but re-phrasing, want us to succeed on both hands.
It is a sad as h essay, because I fear true enough: When I go to the "dollar stores," I am there to buy the cheapest.
Many retail merchants and their wholesale distributors are economically obsolete, if the phrase connotes what I think it does in austerity context.
If it can be corrugated/card-boarded, and sent by way of those versatile
ship/train/truck containers from overseas, I existentially choose to buy them.
We are seemingly descending economically overall and have been I suppose
starting perhaps when I almost completely believed Milton's and our pundit Tom Friedman's ideas/ideals of win-win by economic advantage.
Because it's a long, complex transitional process, I could not say we've pretty much lost, though I perceive most of us believe we've indeed been had.
And we're generally apparently addicted lowest price junkies.
Econ profs could intellectually probably say so on the one hand we're hurting/bad-off here in the Southeast, though do note our thriving, leading industries that manage to withstand their competition.
Me and President Truman, whom I am plagiarizing but re-phrasing, want us to succeed on both hands.
1
This is one of the more sensible articles from NY Times. I dont think enouugh attention has been paid to EPA regulations from the 90s that made manufacturing in America difficult. I am not implying these regulations should not have been there, they are there for a reason. But one needs to realize that if consumption continues as today, where a Nike shoe can be afforded to be thrown away at the slight scratch or tear -- production will be required, and these things will be manufactured somewhere on our planet. Yes of course, we love pristine commmunities, freshwater, preserved land and perfection -- so yeah definitely NIMBY, take the manufacturing elsewhere where it doesnt affect me and mine.
People dont realize sometimes that this is our world. Manufacturing in China under horrible EPA conditions does not keep global oceans and air and cancer rates low, and very much affects me in organic USA. Sometimes I feel some manufacturing bought back to US, but under responsible and informed conditions, would be much better. If there is a cost to pay anyway, I hope someone more responsible does this. We have better regulations and better technology, and I hope we can afford to be more responsible
People dont realize sometimes that this is our world. Manufacturing in China under horrible EPA conditions does not keep global oceans and air and cancer rates low, and very much affects me in organic USA. Sometimes I feel some manufacturing bought back to US, but under responsible and informed conditions, would be much better. If there is a cost to pay anyway, I hope someone more responsible does this. We have better regulations and better technology, and I hope we can afford to be more responsible
A lot of people make the comment that globalization is impoverishing Americans in favor of enriching Chinese. This criticism is unfair in a lot of ways: poor people benefit more than the rich from cheaper, made in China goods. For example, it is pretty difficult to find a poor family that doesn't own a refrigerator (only 2.2% do not) while this would have been fairly normal 30 years ago.
But most unfair of all is the implicit charge that poor Americans "deserve" manufacturing jobs more than poor Chinese do. If a village boy from China is willing to work the same hours for a fraction of the wage that unionized worker in America is asking for, because he needs to send his sister to school and nobody is going to give his parents food stamps to stop them from starving, what gives middle-class Americans the right to tell him that he should go back to the farms?
The thing that one must always remember is that, while poor Americans are disadvantaged in many ways, and absolutely deserve the assistance of the state and of society as a whole, they are still relatively well-off by global standards. A typical American on welfare, after all, is still well-above the average income in India, and is in no real danger of starvation thanks to food stamps. If an American billionaire helps the truly poor at the expense of a small cost to the poor in America, and at no benefit to themselves, how is that not philanthropy?
But most unfair of all is the implicit charge that poor Americans "deserve" manufacturing jobs more than poor Chinese do. If a village boy from China is willing to work the same hours for a fraction of the wage that unionized worker in America is asking for, because he needs to send his sister to school and nobody is going to give his parents food stamps to stop them from starving, what gives middle-class Americans the right to tell him that he should go back to the farms?
The thing that one must always remember is that, while poor Americans are disadvantaged in many ways, and absolutely deserve the assistance of the state and of society as a whole, they are still relatively well-off by global standards. A typical American on welfare, after all, is still well-above the average income in India, and is in no real danger of starvation thanks to food stamps. If an American billionaire helps the truly poor at the expense of a small cost to the poor in America, and at no benefit to themselves, how is that not philanthropy?
7
People and goods have been moving around the world since the beginning of time. A developed economy has a bigger problem of why it still has uneducated people incapable of moving forward in an advanced economy rather than why technological innovation displaces workers. Why should a domestic worker have a greater right for economic advancement over a person in another country, where said occupation uplifts out of absolute subsistence poverty? The providers of capital have plenty of opportunity of say on how the users of capital use funds to run an enterprise. In the aggregate, both domestically and internationally, the voting of dollars has affirmed that globalization is here to stay. Thus there will be a normalization of wages across all regions over time based on occupation and value added to the society. Sorry, but I believe your thesis of your subject matter is erroneous.
4
Very interesting piece. I look forward to your book.
The message of your piece that came through loud and clear is that capitalism in the US has failed. Our form of free-market capitalism has proved to be unable to provide a solid economic foundation for good paying jobs. And from reading the commentary has failed to supply basic education and health services, the so-called welfare state. Reading between the lines of your piece, governments both Federal and State have failed to provide decent protections to people from the destructive pursuit of return on invested capital, i.e., the core of capitalism. Government has also not intervened to protect people from uneven distribution of wages, our policies have worked to make the rich, richer and the poor, poorer.
The great egalitarian growth that occurred in WWII and the three decades afterwards have been lost to government polices that have ignored the fair distribution of incomes and wealth. Government, Federal, State taxing authorities have gone along with this unfavorable transition to a low performing economy and there has been no penalty exacted at the ballot box.
This did not need to happen. It can be reversed. One of your commentators cites the performance of Germany, which is better than the U.S. This does not have to be, we, collectively, by government, can create a much stronger economy by creating products in food, transportation, housing, sanitation, energy & communication for the US and the World.
The message of your piece that came through loud and clear is that capitalism in the US has failed. Our form of free-market capitalism has proved to be unable to provide a solid economic foundation for good paying jobs. And from reading the commentary has failed to supply basic education and health services, the so-called welfare state. Reading between the lines of your piece, governments both Federal and State have failed to provide decent protections to people from the destructive pursuit of return on invested capital, i.e., the core of capitalism. Government has also not intervened to protect people from uneven distribution of wages, our policies have worked to make the rich, richer and the poor, poorer.
The great egalitarian growth that occurred in WWII and the three decades afterwards have been lost to government polices that have ignored the fair distribution of incomes and wealth. Government, Federal, State taxing authorities have gone along with this unfavorable transition to a low performing economy and there has been no penalty exacted at the ballot box.
This did not need to happen. It can be reversed. One of your commentators cites the performance of Germany, which is better than the U.S. This does not have to be, we, collectively, by government, can create a much stronger economy by creating products in food, transportation, housing, sanitation, energy & communication for the US and the World.
3
It is time for a rework of EPA regulations, which, by requiring new installations and expansions to meet the best possible emissions standards, have prevented the replacement of aging plants. The regulations are perverse in that if a plant wanted to increase its production by 20 or 30% with no addition to emissions, it is not allowed.
Further, the proposed carbon rules will result in additional energy costs of half a trillion dollars per year, and will result in a worldwide temperature reduction in the year 2100 of 0.1 degrees Celsius. That is based on the reduction in US produced carbon dioxide: it doesn't count the increase that will result from moving manufacturing operations to third world countries.
Although China is making politically correct statements about increasing their commitment to reducing greenhouse gases, and are shutting down two large coal fired electric generators, they continues to start up a new coal fired electric plant every week and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. To do otherwise would be to deprive their population of electricity. But their "restraint" consists of tripling their production of carbon dioxide between now and 2030 and then to stop increasing.
American businesses and individuals bear a burden of $1 trillion in regulatory cost much of which yield negative benefits to the population.
Further, the proposed carbon rules will result in additional energy costs of half a trillion dollars per year, and will result in a worldwide temperature reduction in the year 2100 of 0.1 degrees Celsius. That is based on the reduction in US produced carbon dioxide: it doesn't count the increase that will result from moving manufacturing operations to third world countries.
Although China is making politically correct statements about increasing their commitment to reducing greenhouse gases, and are shutting down two large coal fired electric generators, they continues to start up a new coal fired electric plant every week and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. To do otherwise would be to deprive their population of electricity. But their "restraint" consists of tripling their production of carbon dioxide between now and 2030 and then to stop increasing.
American businesses and individuals bear a burden of $1 trillion in regulatory cost much of which yield negative benefits to the population.
We're trapped in a self-perpetuating vacuum: as many economists instruct us that "there is no alternative to capitalism as there is no alternative to weather", then all that has been created by the hard toil of individuals has been in itself the imaginative product of the ones educating us that actually, "there is no alternative to capitalism" in the end. Globalization is a case in point: we were told globalization was good and so many fell for it. Decades later, and look at what we've achieved: more poverty instead of the expected wealth we were dreaming of; outsourcing as the alternative instead of localized productivity that would bring more jobs; underachievement as the way out. Granted, Americans do a lot of charity compared to other nations, but is this generosity always well-meant? Luckily it is in most cases, but as many do, there are as many that exploit people's gullibility as we were duped into believing globalization was the only way.
I read this article and felt perplexed. Of all the for profit corporate mis-deeds that could be focused on the writer, instead, chooses to focus on the not for profit Clinton Foundation. A quick trip to the Clinton Fdn website does indeed demonstrate a pretty robust set of programs (some specifically focused on job creation) here in the United States. And why shouldn't their global donations do good around the globe - we really are all connected. This article, sadly, is a lost opportunity to connect the outsourcing of jobs in the for profit sector with the huge corporate welfare benefits and tax relief these corporations receive and instead, obliquely attacks the front runner in the Democratic primary. Perhaps the author thought the NYT would only be interested in his opinion piece if he did so - thank frankly has me a lot more concerned than the Clinton Foundation trying to improve conditions around the world.
2
In the past America was always changing, with workers and whole families moving to embrace better jobs. In the 19th century we moved to the West to farm on free land. When New England textile mills moved to the South, New Englanders went into electronic and other tech plants--or moved to find new jobs.
Today there seems to be grossly less job mobility. Those coal miners throughout Appalachia left jobless by mine closings will probably stay there indefinitely, rocking on their front porches. Meanwhile, job openings here abound--for those with needed skills.
But for all his harsh poetry Theroux is basically unethical: like Trump he values Chinese (and Mexican) lives as less worthy than American lives. He
concedes that globalization has lifted 600-million out of poverty. This should be the cause of rejoicing not tears. Indeed, in the last 100 years we've probably done more to lessen poverty than in the two millennia before. Yes, there is a lot of personal tragedy in any economic change. And government should do much more to help the dislocated adapt.
But we cannot Canute-like command the tides of globalization to halt. Nor, ethically, should we. Foreign lives do count.
Would Theroux revert to protective tariffs like those which deepened the Great Recession and helped bring on World War II?
Globalization is here. We must adapt.
Today there seems to be grossly less job mobility. Those coal miners throughout Appalachia left jobless by mine closings will probably stay there indefinitely, rocking on their front porches. Meanwhile, job openings here abound--for those with needed skills.
But for all his harsh poetry Theroux is basically unethical: like Trump he values Chinese (and Mexican) lives as less worthy than American lives. He
concedes that globalization has lifted 600-million out of poverty. This should be the cause of rejoicing not tears. Indeed, in the last 100 years we've probably done more to lessen poverty than in the two millennia before. Yes, there is a lot of personal tragedy in any economic change. And government should do much more to help the dislocated adapt.
But we cannot Canute-like command the tides of globalization to halt. Nor, ethically, should we. Foreign lives do count.
Would Theroux revert to protective tariffs like those which deepened the Great Recession and helped bring on World War II?
Globalization is here. We must adapt.
5
Just as a point of fact, the first wave of outsourcing jobs in the US came as manufacturing jobs were moved from New England to the South, as capital followed cheap labor and lax environmental regulations. Shuttered sheet metal shells of abandoned Southern manufacturing companies were preceded by abandoned brick factory complexes of the North that have by now been rehabbed or raised.
More than a century ago, Andrew Carnegie was convinced that it was better for him to pay his labor as little as possible so that he could give away the money he made off laborers' toil. He was certain his judgement was superior, and his projects would ultimately benefit his workers more than supplying them with a better living wage. Luckily, he also believed a man should spend the first half of his life making a fortune and the second half giving it away. Now the norm, with a few notable exceptions, is to spend an entire lifetime building a fortune that can be devoted to buying political influence through lobbying and paying for propaganda. Capitalism, as it has matured, has begun rotting from within.
More than a century ago, Andrew Carnegie was convinced that it was better for him to pay his labor as little as possible so that he could give away the money he made off laborers' toil. He was certain his judgement was superior, and his projects would ultimately benefit his workers more than supplying them with a better living wage. Luckily, he also believed a man should spend the first half of his life making a fortune and the second half giving it away. Now the norm, with a few notable exceptions, is to spend an entire lifetime building a fortune that can be devoted to buying political influence through lobbying and paying for propaganda. Capitalism, as it has matured, has begun rotting from within.
2
Hmm... lifting 600M people out of poverty... and how many unemployed in developed countries? No more than 100M surely even counting indirect effects. Companies are amoral -- true enough -- but that mean there are no collateral gains from overall efficiency improvements. The author is right that the owners of these companies should be giving back, but the answer is not necessarily keeping inefficient factories running. As changing designs becomes ever cheaper, companies will move from mass manufacturing to mass customization. In the future manufacturing employment will shrink worldwide just as farming employment has shrunk in the US; in return there will be many more service jobs. Smoothing this transition must primarily be the task of governments. The answer is taxes, not wishing the rich would make different decisions.
1
I agree with Bohemienne and Nomad. The article fails to recognize the benefit to the entire world of globalization, we are so arrogant to think everyone else should live in absolute misery and squalor while we only have a 32in Flatscreen and an Iphone with only 1 GB of data. Yes, let's have those jobs in USA so we can pay $4000 for the flat screen and $2000 for the Iphone, just like 50 yrs ago when only the elite could afford such luxuries or take a plane flight. Most USA companies have 70% of their customers outside of our borders, so let's make it here only and sell it for twice the price overthere?? People have limited understanding of basic economics and how the world actually works. The USA will ultimately benefit most when the world has more money to spend for our higher added-value work. I agree we can tax the rich more than today, but do the math! There aren't enough rich to tax to make a big difference except make everyone feel better
4
Great article. This is a national not just southern epidemic. It has been going on for decades with hardly a peep - weak opposition and no sustained effort to re-industrialize the country. The media presents us daily with the parade of horribles, the terrible human toll on our people - drug addiction, poor education, crumbling infrastructure, desolation and despair - caused by our devastating loss of decent jobs but does so in a totally disconnected manner without a hint of the real cause. The extinction of decent living wage jobs lies at the root of the terrible conditions we find in all our working class communities especially in our cities and communities of color. We need a Marshal Plan, a national public jobs campaign, to green America. We desperately need to deal with our neglected and outdated infrastructure to protect us from the extreme weather of climate change. Who cares about debt when our nation's people are suffering and dying? What steps have we taken to avoid another Katrina or Sandy? And while doing this we should stop granting celebrity status to the "philanthropists" and honor those who step up to invest to restore and protect our nation. Those who refuse and insist on benefiting from the flight of jobs overseas contributing to the desolation of our communities should feel the public's shame for their grotesque profits rather than feted as heroes.
3
It seems to me that one way to justify corporate and individual greed is to demonize the victims, a la Mitt Romney. Thus we have the commenter who said that nobidy would want to employ anybody in the Delta, even though the free labor of the Delta produced America's riches, or Americans don't want to make shoes. The job of the U.S. Government is to look out for Americans first. That why a certain group we all know would like to drown government in the bathtub. If we are strong we can help the rest of the world. I suspect that some of these companies that have off shored could have stayed here and made it work. But they took the easy way out, blaming Americans for their troubles, including unions. Are we so shortsighted that we cannot see the value of an economy that works for everybody and putting money into things that make the economy strong, infrastructure and education. I am sure there are a good percentage of those out there that think they made it on their own. I invite them to decamp to somewhere where that is actually true and do their oligarch thing without roads, bridges, tunnels, airports, law enforcement and education and public health.
5
Mr. Theroux, you are barking up the wrong tree. Your solutions are out of step with the way the real world works.
The invention and deployment of efficiencies and mechanization of production have always been a part of the economic picture. Technological growth has always taken away jobs, whether from harvesting wheat with a hand sickle to the Mccormick Harvester or from hand welding to robot welding. Adoption of available technology has always been necessary to and stay competitive.
And so it is with paying labor costs. A non-competitive business goes out of business. Business people who want to pay a good local wage for production find we cannot do that and stay in business. This is not a theoretical excuse for globalization. It is a reality that business people deal with every day.
The efficiencies of globalization have occurred as incremental steps over a long period of time. Business people, both here and worldwide, will quite logically continue to try to reduce costs.
How is this for a formulation of the problem:
Since it takes only some 50% of people in society to produce the goods and services we all need, can we foster a society that gives everyone a sustainable income, if spent reasonably, and allow those who want to "get ahead" to work hard or be inventive or take entrepreneurial risks and accrue the natural benefits? This would have to be done, of course, in a world of environmentally sustainable production.
The invention and deployment of efficiencies and mechanization of production have always been a part of the economic picture. Technological growth has always taken away jobs, whether from harvesting wheat with a hand sickle to the Mccormick Harvester or from hand welding to robot welding. Adoption of available technology has always been necessary to and stay competitive.
And so it is with paying labor costs. A non-competitive business goes out of business. Business people who want to pay a good local wage for production find we cannot do that and stay in business. This is not a theoretical excuse for globalization. It is a reality that business people deal with every day.
The efficiencies of globalization have occurred as incremental steps over a long period of time. Business people, both here and worldwide, will quite logically continue to try to reduce costs.
How is this for a formulation of the problem:
Since it takes only some 50% of people in society to produce the goods and services we all need, can we foster a society that gives everyone a sustainable income, if spent reasonably, and allow those who want to "get ahead" to work hard or be inventive or take entrepreneurial risks and accrue the natural benefits? This would have to be done, of course, in a world of environmentally sustainable production.
22
There is no way around outsized greed other than to tax it to death.
Which is why the 91% tax rate and higher corporate and estate taxes were so vital to our post WWII economic growth.
And why the era of the Republican tax cut such an economic disaster.
Which is why the 91% tax rate and higher corporate and estate taxes were so vital to our post WWII economic growth.
And why the era of the Republican tax cut such an economic disaster.
13
Before the money men enslaved Africans so they could make more money. Now they enslave Asians, Latin Americans, all the while taking food and jobs from American mouths. They pay off politicians we vote for so they can continue this ruse. We continue to vote for the same politicians that humiliate us. The same politicians that destroy our communities and our families. We praise them! But they support our causes! Abortion, gun rights, right to life, right to die! Causes of our downfall and the smoke and mirror dividing tactics that keep us cast as sheep. To the slaughter! God Bless America! Wake up America!
11
ALSO, PLEASE LET'S NOT FORGET THE GREAT DAMAGE ...
... done to the poor and underclass blacks, "Hispanics" and whites by Liberal well intentioned policies from the 1960s on ... which destroyed many intact families and making them dysfunctional via leading to few male role models, out of wedlock births (which more than tripled) and left whole "communities" totally helpless.
This led to male hyper sexuality and aggression and dissing education as a route to escape, treating women and girls awfully and using "gangsta" stuff to replace healthy development.
The cultural values must be upgraded by bringing "social worker types" into the schools pronto to act as mentors to replace the "so-called" parents who are more than often grandmas and aunts ... which now act as surrogates.
This problem is n=multi faceted and must be recognized as such with both government actions which actually work and the people in the community and those who have escaped it.
PC can serve a positive function or can obscure the root causes of major problems by using denial and make Liberals feel good about themselves.
... done to the poor and underclass blacks, "Hispanics" and whites by Liberal well intentioned policies from the 1960s on ... which destroyed many intact families and making them dysfunctional via leading to few male role models, out of wedlock births (which more than tripled) and left whole "communities" totally helpless.
This led to male hyper sexuality and aggression and dissing education as a route to escape, treating women and girls awfully and using "gangsta" stuff to replace healthy development.
The cultural values must be upgraded by bringing "social worker types" into the schools pronto to act as mentors to replace the "so-called" parents who are more than often grandmas and aunts ... which now act as surrogates.
This problem is n=multi faceted and must be recognized as such with both government actions which actually work and the people in the community and those who have escaped it.
PC can serve a positive function or can obscure the root causes of major problems by using denial and make Liberals feel good about themselves.
4
"Liberal policies" such as welfare aren't the cause of joblessness and poverty. The problem isn't "cultural", requiring some kind of "reprogramming of values".
The problem is a lack of jobs, and pay for low end jobs which is not sufficient to sustain individual families.
Create an economy with well paying jobs for everyone who wants one, and you will see dramatic reduction in expenditures for TANF, unemployment insurance, Medicaid, and other forms of assistance.
In the 1960's, one breadwinner could support a family, even with a low skilled job. Efficiency was one factor making this possible. But it was also due to 40 hour work week laws, high minimum wages, government spending programs, unions, and balanced trade.
Adjusted for productivity and inflation, the *minimum* wage of 1969 would be over $18 per hour today. And back then, the vast majority of workers made *way* more than minimum wage.
Productivity (efficiency) has increased by more then 70% since 1969. So, why should we all be poorer? We shouldn't. In fact, low wages reduce buying power and consumption - reducing demand, and jobs - while forcing each low end worker to work more hours to survive.
Low wages and high unemployment are not culture based, and are not inevitable. They are the result of macro-economic policy choices we make as a nation.
The problem is a lack of jobs, and pay for low end jobs which is not sufficient to sustain individual families.
Create an economy with well paying jobs for everyone who wants one, and you will see dramatic reduction in expenditures for TANF, unemployment insurance, Medicaid, and other forms of assistance.
In the 1960's, one breadwinner could support a family, even with a low skilled job. Efficiency was one factor making this possible. But it was also due to 40 hour work week laws, high minimum wages, government spending programs, unions, and balanced trade.
Adjusted for productivity and inflation, the *minimum* wage of 1969 would be over $18 per hour today. And back then, the vast majority of workers made *way* more than minimum wage.
Productivity (efficiency) has increased by more then 70% since 1969. So, why should we all be poorer? We shouldn't. In fact, low wages reduce buying power and consumption - reducing demand, and jobs - while forcing each low end worker to work more hours to survive.
Low wages and high unemployment are not culture based, and are not inevitable. They are the result of macro-economic policy choices we make as a nation.
2
Job loss and industrial restructuring have created poverty where there were once hopes of prosperity.
But outsourcing is so 20th century - it's now mechanization / automation. The ripple effects of these are going to be much greater than those of outsourcing were.
The "great brains" in Silicon valley are using their enormous talent, energy, and resources, to make human involvement in manufacturing and transporting anything more and more obsolete (robots, driverless cars, drones ... etc.... ). Wonder who they think are going to be consumers for what's produced under that system.
Wish they could or would actually think innovate / disrupt about how to keep humans involved and invested in a functioning economic system.
But outsourcing is so 20th century - it's now mechanization / automation. The ripple effects of these are going to be much greater than those of outsourcing were.
The "great brains" in Silicon valley are using their enormous talent, energy, and resources, to make human involvement in manufacturing and transporting anything more and more obsolete (robots, driverless cars, drones ... etc.... ). Wonder who they think are going to be consumers for what's produced under that system.
Wish they could or would actually think innovate / disrupt about how to keep humans involved and invested in a functioning economic system.
3
From the Californian perspective it would seem that Mr. Theroux might travel, a little more, say around the rest of the USA, considering the way the South has plundered aerospace and motion picture production away from the loci of their origins. The industrial Midwest and Northeast were similarly stripped of manufacturing jobs by the promise of union-free labor in the same way. He also seems to sport a newly minted tin ear when he complains about "new plantations" overseas, when in fact it is the old plantation mind-set of indentured labor, one step up from slavery, of the American South that is precisely the source for the self-righteous race to the bottom that many "right to work"southern states have been cheer-leaders for, along with paying "tax incentives" to already highly profitable corporations. National economic policy, not state by state boosterism, should be the basis for economic recovery and progress.
7
Perhaps the author would prefer the rich folks that he denigrates not give to charity? I do hope his own checkbook is open since he judges others so harshly even when they are giving generously. Fascinating how we are entitled to tell others how to give and how to run their businesses. Be the change, buy items made domestically?
6
I didn't get to the "Deep South", but I did travel through North Carolina, and South Carolina, and witnessed towns and communities with little to no traffic, shuttered businesses, large and small, homes in a general state of disrepair, all evidence of the killing of the American dream, by our corporate owned and run government.
Friends all over America report the same conditions, California to New York, from the Canadian border to the Mexican border, the rare exception being large cities the size of New York, San Francisco and Boston, and even in those cities, the outer burroughs show the same devastion.
It's a living nightmare, with the .01%ters willfully ignoring the damage they have wrought, in their insatiable avaricious drive to beggar us all, as they fill their already overflowing coffers.
The American Dream, as George Carlin once said in one of his shows, "You have to be asleep to believe it"
Friends all over America report the same conditions, California to New York, from the Canadian border to the Mexican border, the rare exception being large cities the size of New York, San Francisco and Boston, and even in those cities, the outer burroughs show the same devastion.
It's a living nightmare, with the .01%ters willfully ignoring the damage they have wrought, in their insatiable avaricious drive to beggar us all, as they fill their already overflowing coffers.
The American Dream, as George Carlin once said in one of his shows, "You have to be asleep to believe it"
12
Mr. Theroux courageously points out the obvious.
Billionaire philanthropists are a sure sign of a sick society and the more you have the sicker it gets.
It is a sad commentary on America that many of the biggest names in the history of US philanthropy either ran crushing monopolies or were outright criminals or both.
Better to spread the wealth by paying fair wages in the USA, while producing better products and services, rather than crushing competition through fraud and collusion.
An educated, healthy and employed society has no need for philanthropy.
Billionaire philanthropists are a sure sign of a sick society and the more you have the sicker it gets.
It is a sad commentary on America that many of the biggest names in the history of US philanthropy either ran crushing monopolies or were outright criminals or both.
Better to spread the wealth by paying fair wages in the USA, while producing better products and services, rather than crushing competition through fraud and collusion.
An educated, healthy and employed society has no need for philanthropy.
7
"Some companies have brought manufacturing jobs back to the United States..."
what is so special about manufacturing? manufacturing what? i hope not something that requires dirty work. other things equal, i would rather have a service job. would you want to work in a dirty factory, a sweat shop or a cotton field:
"When Hollandale’s citizens lost their jobs in the cotton fields to mechanization they found work nearby, in Greenville and elsewhere, in factories that made clothes, bikes, tools and much else — for big brands like Fruit of the Loom and Schwinn."
unemployment is not higher now than it was in the 1970s or the 1980s (officially at 5.1%). and if price-adjusted incomes are the same or higher, i would prefer to live in 2015 with a greater number of service jobs.
what is so special about manufacturing? manufacturing what? i hope not something that requires dirty work. other things equal, i would rather have a service job. would you want to work in a dirty factory, a sweat shop or a cotton field:
"When Hollandale’s citizens lost their jobs in the cotton fields to mechanization they found work nearby, in Greenville and elsewhere, in factories that made clothes, bikes, tools and much else — for big brands like Fruit of the Loom and Schwinn."
unemployment is not higher now than it was in the 1970s or the 1980s (officially at 5.1%). and if price-adjusted incomes are the same or higher, i would prefer to live in 2015 with a greater number of service jobs.
1
And the wages of "service jobs", many of which if not most are part-time, minimum wage, no benefits such as pensions or health care which unions bargain for. Theroux notes that.
1
The article is a good one, thanks.
The multitude of comments touch on the issue of greed, poor people acting against their own interests, and other aspects of a dysfunctional society.
The question - how to change this - is raised by some.
Part of an answer, I believe, lies in making a significant attempt to understand how human biology contributes to human affairs and how to improve human affairs.
Most of our research monies go not to understanding the normal workings of individuals and societies, but into how to "fix" things when they have broken.
Why? Perhaps because we reward those who fix things with money, adulation and power rather than honoring those who help our societies work better
Partially as a result of that, we understand pathetically little about ourselves, making it easy for "gonifs" to act to maximize their status even as it damages many others.
Perhaps, with the spread of electronic tools connected to a common Internet, we may accidentally and serendipitously gain an understanding of the "button-pushing" that leads to so many social problems and ways to control it for the benefit of all (even the "gonifs").
Obviously, if understanding is needed to improve things, it is likely to be decades before we see significant benefit.
.
The multitude of comments touch on the issue of greed, poor people acting against their own interests, and other aspects of a dysfunctional society.
The question - how to change this - is raised by some.
Part of an answer, I believe, lies in making a significant attempt to understand how human biology contributes to human affairs and how to improve human affairs.
Most of our research monies go not to understanding the normal workings of individuals and societies, but into how to "fix" things when they have broken.
Why? Perhaps because we reward those who fix things with money, adulation and power rather than honoring those who help our societies work better
Partially as a result of that, we understand pathetically little about ourselves, making it easy for "gonifs" to act to maximize their status even as it damages many others.
Perhaps, with the spread of electronic tools connected to a common Internet, we may accidentally and serendipitously gain an understanding of the "button-pushing" that leads to so many social problems and ways to control it for the benefit of all (even the "gonifs").
Obviously, if understanding is needed to improve things, it is likely to be decades before we see significant benefit.
.
If you think the lives or well-being of foreigners are worth less than those of Americans, go ahead and say so. Don't just imply or assume it.
And when you say or imply this, you are endorsing the views of those who think that the lives and well-being of some Americans are worth more than those of others.
"Black lives matter." But, only in America? How about Somalia or Nigeria? Or is it "America First?"
And when you say or imply this, you are endorsing the views of those who think that the lives and well-being of some Americans are worth more than those of others.
"Black lives matter." But, only in America? How about Somalia or Nigeria? Or is it "America First?"
2
I read recently that the customs duty on a pair of Nikes made overseas is around $2.50. Then they are sold here for $100, $200, $300. Seems to me Nike could pay workers in the Deep South or Maine (or Manhattan, even) a decent living wage and STILL be hugely profitable.
7
Your theory was tested by the jeans maker, Levi Strauss. It continued to operate some plants in the US. It also refused to source from China on human rights grounds. In 2007 Its total annual sales, of just over $4 billion, were $3 billion less than during its peak performance in the mid-1990s. In 2007 it finally became profitable again after declining sales in nine of the previous ten years.
Beautiful column. One point: VW had intended for their Tenn factory to be union, but the future workers themselves voted to NOT become unionized. the perfect example of Americans voting against their own self interest. The ignorance of the southern people is broad, deep, and historic; it cannot be overlooked in any analysis.
17
A sidebar comment: the "Vote No" movement had the fullest backing of Tennessee state government. I don't know whether to call it irony, or just plain stupidity: the state offers up millions in tax relief and land acquisition-development-improvement funds to capture a business that pays chicken feed wages to its employees, and those employees (and many many others) keep returning the same people to state government jobs. It appears that self-government isn't for everyone.
1
The problem is not the CEOs, but the current US capitalist system. A CEO who does not maximize profits by off-shoring will be fired. Changes need to be made to the system to so that the interests of workers and the public are better protected. The evidence clear that, contrary to the beliefs of free market absolutists, the current system does not benefit everyone.
7
If you never contribute to saving elephants because there are still poor people in the US, you will never contribute to anything. Give here, give there. Every hour of time, every dollar helps whether it's the environment or people. Choose your charity carefully though. How much is spent on salaries and admin?
3
Are Americans willing to pay more for domestically manufactured goods? I don't think so..
1
Paul, I love your books, but you don't have to go to the deep south to see the effects of offshoring. Just come up to Endicott, NY, the birthplace of IBM. When I started working there 30 years ago, IBM employed 11,000 people in the area. Now it employs about 500. The jobs were sent to India and China, mostly. Another industry in this area that was sent overseas was shoe manufacturing. Endicott is also home to Endicott Johnson shoes. This area is totally destitute. Empty factory buildings everywhere.
What really angers me though is that this doesn't just happen by accident or because foreign wages are so low, but because our government seems to actually encourage jobs to be sent overseas.
I remember in 2012, during the first debate between Obama and Romney, Obama said that Romney took advantage of laws that give companies tax incentives to move overseas. So my question is this: Did Obama and the Democrats change that law? No, they did not. In fact, there are lots of examples of simple changes that could be made to tax and other laws that would encourage companies to keep jobs here, but the Democrats are just as guilty of doing nothing as the Republicans. Don't forget, Obama had a super majority of Democrats in congress for two years and chose to do nothing about these laws. Americans need to wake up and demand change. Simply voting for the status quo will not bring back jobs.
What really angers me though is that this doesn't just happen by accident or because foreign wages are so low, but because our government seems to actually encourage jobs to be sent overseas.
I remember in 2012, during the first debate between Obama and Romney, Obama said that Romney took advantage of laws that give companies tax incentives to move overseas. So my question is this: Did Obama and the Democrats change that law? No, they did not. In fact, there are lots of examples of simple changes that could be made to tax and other laws that would encourage companies to keep jobs here, but the Democrats are just as guilty of doing nothing as the Republicans. Don't forget, Obama had a super majority of Democrats in congress for two years and chose to do nothing about these laws. Americans need to wake up and demand change. Simply voting for the status quo will not bring back jobs.
71
why we oppose tpp, why we continue to demand that democrats renounce these practices; in the 2008 primary, they were forced to do so. thank you Paul Theroux for your passionate truths.
Paul, maybe you should study some economics. Any economics would be helpful… Turns out, the world keeps shrinking, via technology (let's see, horse and buggies became cars, boats became airplanes, you get the idea), and the effects of those technologies are unexpected and powerful. You think that American corporations are guilty of something, by taking advantage of technology in an effort to compete? Just like their counterparts all around the world? You probably also lecture American corporations on their "carbon footprint", while not saying a damn word about what goes on in India and China. Just another US-hating liberal propagandist, with nary a clue of that which he bleats. Give up your car, your A/C, your electricity; go live like it's 1855, and then maybe you'll have a right to spew your nonsense. Spare us, please.
3
We all see the problem but Democrat solutions are a case of the cure being worse than the disease. You cannot control companies. You cannot force them to manufacture in the US and if you try you may just drive them out of the US altogether. We are the only developed nation in the world which taxes corporations on profits they make overseas.
In order to encourage companies to stay here and to manufacturer you must create and environment where it is in their best interests to do so. That means a lower tax rate, more business friendly regulations, right to work laws. You may not like it, but that is what it will take to keep and create jobs here in the US.
There is also a small business maker movement and the sharing economy to consider. These innovations are creating opportunity for those who may never become a fortune 500 company, but can provide for themselves and maybe create a few jobs along the way. Instead of - again - the government immediately jumping up to tax, regulate, and harass them out of existence, it should look for ways to smooth the process and make it easier.
Democrats have to face reality, and the reality is that leftist, collectivist policies are a disaster for the poor and middle class. A reasonably free market is the only way prosperity can be created or maintained.
In order to encourage companies to stay here and to manufacturer you must create and environment where it is in their best interests to do so. That means a lower tax rate, more business friendly regulations, right to work laws. You may not like it, but that is what it will take to keep and create jobs here in the US.
There is also a small business maker movement and the sharing economy to consider. These innovations are creating opportunity for those who may never become a fortune 500 company, but can provide for themselves and maybe create a few jobs along the way. Instead of - again - the government immediately jumping up to tax, regulate, and harass them out of existence, it should look for ways to smooth the process and make it easier.
Democrats have to face reality, and the reality is that leftist, collectivist policies are a disaster for the poor and middle class. A reasonably free market is the only way prosperity can be created or maintained.
3
Possibly the most coherent, and most enraging, condemnation of "business as usual" global economics and its effect on America's labor market. A hundred years ago, Rockefeller and Carnegie earned their fortunes exploiting cheap labor, then tried to absolve themselves of their sins by founding libraries and museums. The Clintons and Jobs and Buffetts of the world are now doing the same thing.
The thing is, though, that it's not just the billionaire CEOs who will see their generous salaries get slashed. If manufacturing is brought back to the U.S. on a large scale, and fair wages are to be paid, that will most certainly increase the prices of the goods we buy. No more cheap products.
Are Americans prepared to pay for that? Perhaps.
The thing is, though, that it's not just the billionaire CEOs who will see their generous salaries get slashed. If manufacturing is brought back to the U.S. on a large scale, and fair wages are to be paid, that will most certainly increase the prices of the goods we buy. No more cheap products.
Are Americans prepared to pay for that? Perhaps.
3
Come on up to rural Downeast Maine if you want to see the picturesque version of Southern poverty. There are a lot of people and organizations in the poverty business, i.e. 'helping poor people' here. Business is good. The leader in the poverty business in these parts got started during the Johnson administration. One wonders: Don't you think they could have won the war on poverty by now?
3
A great deal of the money that billionaires wind up giving to "good causes" through the foundations they create in their names is wasted paying salaries, expenses and overhead for the operation of those charities. They provide good, steady employment, no heavy lifting!, for graduates of elite schools who dress well, dine well and are thus able to theorize about what might help "the poor" until the cows come home.
I worked as a reporter at NPR years ago and came to see the whole public broadcasting apparatus as a form of genteel welfare for the upper middle economic class. This is not to say that these efforts don't do some good, but the blossoming of alternative, digital forms of audio/video programming lay bare some of the truth: non-commercial broadcasting lacks a hard edge that would make it more useful to society. It also focuses, of necessity, on the needs of similarly educated and oriented economic classes because, after all, that's where the support comes from.
This general outlook applies to foundations, by multiples. None of them will ever "end poverty". None of them will ever craft solutions and help implement them to the degree necessary to make real change. Instead, they will spin on indefinitely, hacking around the edges of social, political and economic problems, awaiting the time when real leadership provides a strong direction and solution.
The corporations that provide the wealth of billionaires could, indeed, do much more by changing their own behavior.
I worked as a reporter at NPR years ago and came to see the whole public broadcasting apparatus as a form of genteel welfare for the upper middle economic class. This is not to say that these efforts don't do some good, but the blossoming of alternative, digital forms of audio/video programming lay bare some of the truth: non-commercial broadcasting lacks a hard edge that would make it more useful to society. It also focuses, of necessity, on the needs of similarly educated and oriented economic classes because, after all, that's where the support comes from.
This general outlook applies to foundations, by multiples. None of them will ever "end poverty". None of them will ever craft solutions and help implement them to the degree necessary to make real change. Instead, they will spin on indefinitely, hacking around the edges of social, political and economic problems, awaiting the time when real leadership provides a strong direction and solution.
The corporations that provide the wealth of billionaires could, indeed, do much more by changing their own behavior.
6
And be sure to have funds pumped in for basic education and training in mechanics, practical arts and junior colleges. Labor is not only cheaper in so-call "Third World" countries, it is better discipline, literate and reliable.
2
"... it is only because the American workers would have to be paid fairly."
And there's the rub: define "fairly". If someone in China is willing to make shoes for, say, $50 per day and is as productive as his or her American counterpart, why is it "fair" to pay the American worker $200 per day? Even if the CEO was paid zero, the higher labor costs would have to be passed on to U.S consumers (I'm assuming protective tariffs would have to be imposed to prevent "unfair" competition). In the end, it's all just a shell game when we pay people more than the value of what they produce, no matter how earnestly and passionately we wish and argue otherwise.
And there's the rub: define "fairly". If someone in China is willing to make shoes for, say, $50 per day and is as productive as his or her American counterpart, why is it "fair" to pay the American worker $200 per day? Even if the CEO was paid zero, the higher labor costs would have to be passed on to U.S consumers (I'm assuming protective tariffs would have to be imposed to prevent "unfair" competition). In the end, it's all just a shell game when we pay people more than the value of what they produce, no matter how earnestly and passionately we wish and argue otherwise.
3
A well-written, comprehensive treatment of the decline of the US textile and apparel industry from 2.4 million workers in 1973 to under 400,000 currently is Tim Minchin's Empty Mills: The Fight Against Imports and the decline of the U.S. Textile Industry.
2
"But if there was one experience of the Deep South that stayed with me it was the sight of shutdown factories and towns with their hearts torn out of them, and few jobs. There are outsourcing stories all over America, but the effects are stark in the Deep South."
And yet the Deep South voted monolithically for Willard Romney in 2012, a man who spent his entire working career building a company that made him a billionaire by shipping American jobs to China.
Look away, look away. Dixieland.
And yet the Deep South voted monolithically for Willard Romney in 2012, a man who spent his entire working career building a company that made him a billionaire by shipping American jobs to China.
Look away, look away. Dixieland.
9
Spot on. We allow billionaires. Why?
We must destroy the Rich, then the system that allows a relative handful of people to appropriate and accumulate so much wealth, then power. They are all reactionaries, and belated acts of philanthropy add insult to injury.
It's not called Class War for nothing.
We must destroy the Rich, then the system that allows a relative handful of people to appropriate and accumulate so much wealth, then power. They are all reactionaries, and belated acts of philanthropy add insult to injury.
It's not called Class War for nothing.
You might add to your despair and suggestion all regions of our nation. There are small wasted towns all over our country not only in the deep south. And the south stole the Northern Jobs for a while by disdaining unions... First workers came north then the north and the midwest went rust belt as jobs fled overseas and south, then the south too, became too expensive. And today you have The Clinton Global Initiative touchy feel good scam. Now just add meddlesome wars, a bunch or a bit of Jesus and give every one a gun.... Ta Da..Amercian Exceptionalism marching onward. What a country. Hypocrisy and everywhere.
3
Once again, Paul Theroux hits a bases-loaded home run. Theroux has throughly disparaged aid organizations in his many books written from direct experience in the places few western writers go. "Aid" institutions have a vested interest in poverty (I am not talking about their many humanitarian workers) and Theroux has documented this in his books.
In his books on Africa, Theroux exposed multiple local organizations who are well-aware that if they squander the donated money on their fiefdoms, more will be coming by un-enligthened do--gooders. Theroux is exactly right. All most people want is a decent job.
Hooray for Theroux. He speaks from the heart and from direct knowledge.
In his books on Africa, Theroux exposed multiple local organizations who are well-aware that if they squander the donated money on their fiefdoms, more will be coming by un-enligthened do--gooders. Theroux is exactly right. All most people want is a decent job.
Hooray for Theroux. He speaks from the heart and from direct knowledge.
5
We used to make quality goods, and Americans used to demand quality. Why do we insist on thinking that we are competing with China and India when we should be looking towards Germany and Sweden for manufacturing jobs. If you buy 10$ shirt at Walmart it lasts 2 years. One could rather buy a 50$ quality shirt that lasts 20 years. We end up spending much more for much less - an evil business model, indeed. The mountains of wealth are gleaned from the poorest of us.
3
Why did our manufacturing base abandon the country? Unions.
Unions that demand that rooms full of people be paid to sit and flip through magazines all day, like the UAW.
Unions are the epitome of inefficiency, sloth and greed. Everyone has seen unions in action up close, doing as little as humanly possible while whining that 4 weeks of vacation every year is an outrage. As soon as unions move in, advancement by doing a better job is replaced by holding your breath and trying to bankrupt the company that feeds your kids.
You won, Democrats. Enjoy your ghost towns.
Unions that demand that rooms full of people be paid to sit and flip through magazines all day, like the UAW.
Unions are the epitome of inefficiency, sloth and greed. Everyone has seen unions in action up close, doing as little as humanly possible while whining that 4 weeks of vacation every year is an outrage. As soon as unions move in, advancement by doing a better job is replaced by holding your breath and trying to bankrupt the company that feeds your kids.
You won, Democrats. Enjoy your ghost towns.
2
Then how do you explain the loss of job in the South which is hardly a hotbed of unions?
2
Bring back the companies and not only in the south-- in the small towns of New York State and Pennsylvania also. You know, I heard President Clinton speak 10 years ago and he said that globalization would make the whole world safer-- but it turned out to be a zero sum, didn't it? I don't believe that Americans wanted the US to unravel but in 1975, the steelworkers in Cleveland and Pittsburgh were right when they said that removing trade barriers would hurt more than help. And now we have dead schools, rotting bridges, people fighting among themselves and the plutocrats just wring their manicured hands in their gated communities.
10
Having seen some of the poverty in the deep south I say Amen to Paul Theroux' column. We saw towns (villages, really) where people were stuck, stuck, stuck without even electricity. I would like to add that at least in Mexico, a lot of the jobs here don't really support the growth of a Mexican middle class. In some of the factories, men are not hired (a lovely irony) because women are thought to be better workers. Many of the factories are not located near workers' homes so they have to leave their families to take them. Worker protections here in Mexico are minimal. Some big companies create small companies outside of the reach of employment laws so they don't have to pay severance, health care, etc. The required minimal wage is about $7.00 a day. Remember why the companies offshored their jobs and you´ll realize they weren't trying to lift the poor anywhere. And they really haven't done much to improve the lot of millions of people.
6
Americans like their cheap products and are a part of the outsourcing. If higher wages are paid, the products cost more. We want our cheap clothes and other necessities.
It's silly to complain because businesses want to make money. When I work, I want to make as much money as I can. When a person works, he or she turns most of the hours in the day and most of his or her energy over to that endeavor. Why is it surprising that people and businesses want to make money? More than wanting to make money, businesses have to make money to keep going.
It's silly to complain because businesses want to make money. When I work, I want to make as much money as I can. When a person works, he or she turns most of the hours in the day and most of his or her energy over to that endeavor. Why is it surprising that people and businesses want to make money? More than wanting to make money, businesses have to make money to keep going.
To get ahead in the American corporate world, you have to come up with a plan to cut labor costs, without any regard for the affect on workers. Management is obsessed with finding a use for the foreign labor of desperately poor people. That's how you move up the corporate ladder. The corporations work through their management people, who care only about their promotion and large salaries. It's not corporations per se that are amoral, it's the people who run them. Donald Trump, for instance, says he is going to bring jobs home. He blames the Chinese and our "stupid negotiators" for taking the jobs. Yet when Trump started a brand of clothing, he took the jobs overseas because he thought he could make more money selling inferior goods made in China and other countries. China did not make him do that, and neither did our "stupid negotiators." Ironically, recent studies have shown that when all costs are taken into account, there isn't much difference in manufacturing things in China and the US. http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2014-04-25/china-vs-dot-the-u-dot-s...
However, corporate management is still obsessed with shipping jobs to China and to countries that are a little cheaper than China.
However, corporate management is still obsessed with shipping jobs to China and to countries that are a little cheaper than China.
2
I don't care about Africa. I don't care about China and I don't care about India or anywhere else. I care about America my home. Charity and philanthropy should begin here. It is disheartening to see major corporations who made their fortunes on the back of Americans who are their primary buyers turn around and reward people who have done very little for them.
I guess they are trying to repeat the same experiment somewhere else until they run out of people to exploit. These so-called international philanthropists have a big image problem. They try the help strangers rather then help their own children, because everybody can see and hear about it.
The only time I will be impressed is to see us helping our own people. Is this too much to ask? Thank you Mr. Paul Theroux
I guess they are trying to repeat the same experiment somewhere else until they run out of people to exploit. These so-called international philanthropists have a big image problem. They try the help strangers rather then help their own children, because everybody can see and hear about it.
The only time I will be impressed is to see us helping our own people. Is this too much to ask? Thank you Mr. Paul Theroux
3
This is too simplistic. The "hypocrisy" does not happen overnight. The earlier shift to the sunbelt took place in a different era that coincided with heightened distrust in government and intensified faith in a free market and corporations and consumerism. It was a mixed bag, and the globalized economy had yet to happen--if anyone had predicted it. The sinister turns and consequences since then are complex, including unintended consequences of past trends. Focusing on the present conceals more than it reveals.
"Some companies have brought manufacturing jobs back to the United States..."
Indeed, the Times recently ran an article about that, focused on some company in South Carolina that re-opened a manufacturing plant it had closed decades earlier.
But there was less there than met the eye.
I couldn't help but notice the photo of a young worker in the newly re-opened factory. He was sitting at the controls of some large machine that reportedly did the same amount of work formerly done by several dozen workers in the old days.
In other words, that South Carolina company created one job in place of dozens of old jobs. Not exactly a reversal – just a frank acknowledgement that automation, not lower wages overseas, was principally responsible for all those job losses.
Indeed, the Times recently ran an article about that, focused on some company in South Carolina that re-opened a manufacturing plant it had closed decades earlier.
But there was less there than met the eye.
I couldn't help but notice the photo of a young worker in the newly re-opened factory. He was sitting at the controls of some large machine that reportedly did the same amount of work formerly done by several dozen workers in the old days.
In other words, that South Carolina company created one job in place of dozens of old jobs. Not exactly a reversal – just a frank acknowledgement that automation, not lower wages overseas, was principally responsible for all those job losses.
The last thing the oligarchs want to do is empower Americans. It's the middle class and the working class that start revolutions, sometimes with the aid of the poor, but the poor themselves don't make revolutions. Nike and Apple want Americans to be poor, but not so poor that they can't buy their products. To resolve this issue they have propagandized Americans into believing they cannot live without expensive sneakers and iPhones. Meanwhile they get PR and tax breaks by helping the poor overseas, who present no threat to them because they are overseas. The African poor aren't going to overthrow the US oligarchy. Plus a little money goes farther in Africa, so by spending just a little bit Bill Gates et al can pontificate about how many lives he's saved.
4
Huge moral dilemma here.
Lots of talk since Obama election about wealth inequality - but GLOBALLY, wealth inequality is improving.
Is an American more entitled to "the good life" than a guy in Vietnam? If Nike is making shoes in Indonesia isn't it doing what Henry Ford did in America 75 years ago?
Wal-Mart grew explosively because most Americans want cheaper goods - and they are CHEAPER than what you find in Europe, by quite a large measure. But in order to make them cheaper, you have to make them overseas. The benefits you forgo come back to you in the form of cheaper everything.
When I was growing up you could buy a VW Beetle for $1600 NEW. American cars cost $10,000 or more before a single part is made because of pension obligations to people who don't make cars any more.
New auto workers have worse benefits than old autoworkers to fund the benefits to old autoworkers. So much for "union."
Lots of talk since Obama election about wealth inequality - but GLOBALLY, wealth inequality is improving.
Is an American more entitled to "the good life" than a guy in Vietnam? If Nike is making shoes in Indonesia isn't it doing what Henry Ford did in America 75 years ago?
Wal-Mart grew explosively because most Americans want cheaper goods - and they are CHEAPER than what you find in Europe, by quite a large measure. But in order to make them cheaper, you have to make them overseas. The benefits you forgo come back to you in the form of cheaper everything.
When I was growing up you could buy a VW Beetle for $1600 NEW. American cars cost $10,000 or more before a single part is made because of pension obligations to people who don't make cars any more.
New auto workers have worse benefits than old autoworkers to fund the benefits to old autoworkers. So much for "union."
6
Note to Republicans: if decent jobs are created in this here US of A, then you could stop bitching about moochers.
5
"There's nothing hypocritical in trying to help the real poor of the world."
Several commenters have made a similar point, with which I agree.
Every job saved for some American is a job taken away from some foreigner. Is that American more deserving than that foreigner? What if the foreigner has a family too, and that job was the family's only source of income? Is it really better to take away that foreigner's job and give it to the American -- especially since higher prices will need to be charged for whatever is produced by that American?
Several commenters have made a similar point, with which I agree.
Every job saved for some American is a job taken away from some foreigner. Is that American more deserving than that foreigner? What if the foreigner has a family too, and that job was the family's only source of income? Is it really better to take away that foreigner's job and give it to the American -- especially since higher prices will need to be charged for whatever is produced by that American?
1
Your argument makes sense -- Peter Singer has made similar arguments that true altruism would focus exclusively on need and ignore proximity.
However, China is a "communist" dictatorship that has repudiated the political and religious liberties and democratic process that most Americans believe should be supported. China opened its economy to capitalistic enterprise and exchange to better feed its billions of denizens while retaining communism's principle of subjugating individuals to economic machinery: it's just that the machinery reflects Adam Smith as much as Karl Marx.
Perhaps the best argument for investing in America rather than China is a loyalty to our country and its principles of freedom, democratic participation in government, and a conception of human dignity not shared by the system regnant in China.
However, China is a "communist" dictatorship that has repudiated the political and religious liberties and democratic process that most Americans believe should be supported. China opened its economy to capitalistic enterprise and exchange to better feed its billions of denizens while retaining communism's principle of subjugating individuals to economic machinery: it's just that the machinery reflects Adam Smith as much as Karl Marx.
Perhaps the best argument for investing in America rather than China is a loyalty to our country and its principles of freedom, democratic participation in government, and a conception of human dignity not shared by the system regnant in China.
This is one of the most deeply economically ignorant articles I've read.
And cowardly. He kind of sort of advances the ridiculous proposition that companies voluntarily go to the high cost option when you know you really wants extreme protectionism - advancing his ideas by force.
And he seems to give no weight at all to African lives lifted out of poverty. You see, if someone's making money from this amazing world changing event it must be evil.
At least his examples are mainly left wing liberal billionaires. Man those guys are evil. Producing goods as cheaply as they can, as economics says they must, then giving all their money away. They must be stopped.
Finally he tacitly makes the crazy assumption all cost savings go to profits and all to billionaires. None guys to lower cost goods to consumers? Economics and evidence destroys that argument.
And cowardly. He kind of sort of advances the ridiculous proposition that companies voluntarily go to the high cost option when you know you really wants extreme protectionism - advancing his ideas by force.
And he seems to give no weight at all to African lives lifted out of poverty. You see, if someone's making money from this amazing world changing event it must be evil.
At least his examples are mainly left wing liberal billionaires. Man those guys are evil. Producing goods as cheaply as they can, as economics says they must, then giving all their money away. They must be stopped.
Finally he tacitly makes the crazy assumption all cost savings go to profits and all to billionaires. None guys to lower cost goods to consumers? Economics and evidence destroys that argument.
3
Thanks, New York Times for this article! Now you can go back to selling multi-million dollar real estate and thousand dollar footwear!
7
If you look at Republican primary, it is plain to see we already are a Third World country! It just depends on how you want to divide up the spoils.
3
He should have lived in New England, but perhaps he is a young man. This has been going on for some time now. First it was anti-union, then it became anti-worker. Rich people like causes involving elephants. They don't talk back if things fail. Actually, elephants don't talk. It's really all about feeling "good" and rich. Poor people are less interesting, actually boring, to them. In the end, it's not about people or animals. It's about the almighty dollar. Years ago, poor people were just poor. Now, even the middle class are poor in spirit. The most interesting thing here, and it will soon have people jumping out the window, is the question about who will buy my flowers? You can make things cheaply but who will buy them? When government is controlled by the wealthy, this is what you get. It is not long term thinking. When things get worse, though, long term thinking will be applied by those most effected, and that will be the wealthy, and the people will really be squealing then, but it will all be far too late and to no avail. I'm an old fart on the way out, but I care deeply about those who will be left behind. It could have been a much better world, but it is not. The haves and the have nots, their twain shall never meet, as long as business goes unfettered. Don't we know that by now, or are people just to scared to speak up and loose the little that they now have, like a job that pays them just enough, as Marks predicted, so that they can return to work tomorrow?
5
This makes the 'poor' feeling like supplicant at will of some benefactor.
This is servitude, this is meant to preserve the status quo.
The americans must realize that their capitalism is rigged, has established a system of social classes with strong glass ceilings. Something you shouldn't ignore, especially since Thomas Piketty. And to counter this you don't have to switch to the complete opposite, to marxism, that there are many policies between the two extremes.
And i think one good start is to stop this alms of the gilded class and making help an social entitlement, supervised by a strong bureaucracy.
Which of course means more taxes and a bigger government.
But the problem about a more social government in US is, that in the perception of the US-citizen the economic strength of the US is because of this unfettered capitalism, of people like Donald Trump and the the Koch Brothers, while they blame socialism for the european weakness.
I think the strength to the US is still due to a much more fairer US forty years ago, and that the sustainability of the US is already suffering a severe corrosion.
While in europe the welfare-state are to overstretched and to inefficient, and is also no really able to redistribute the wealth.
The US should break this reign of the gilded class, it should endorse an efficient welfare state, it should remember it's roots. This narrative of the robber barons of being a benefit to the country is mere window dressing.
This is servitude, this is meant to preserve the status quo.
The americans must realize that their capitalism is rigged, has established a system of social classes with strong glass ceilings. Something you shouldn't ignore, especially since Thomas Piketty. And to counter this you don't have to switch to the complete opposite, to marxism, that there are many policies between the two extremes.
And i think one good start is to stop this alms of the gilded class and making help an social entitlement, supervised by a strong bureaucracy.
Which of course means more taxes and a bigger government.
But the problem about a more social government in US is, that in the perception of the US-citizen the economic strength of the US is because of this unfettered capitalism, of people like Donald Trump and the the Koch Brothers, while they blame socialism for the european weakness.
I think the strength to the US is still due to a much more fairer US forty years ago, and that the sustainability of the US is already suffering a severe corrosion.
While in europe the welfare-state are to overstretched and to inefficient, and is also no really able to redistribute the wealth.
The US should break this reign of the gilded class, it should endorse an efficient welfare state, it should remember it's roots. This narrative of the robber barons of being a benefit to the country is mere window dressing.
13
"The US should break this reign of the gilded class, it should endorse an efficient welfare state, it should remember it's roots."
The roots of America did not include the welfare state. Would you like Germany to be run by a someone like Bismarck or a Kaiser Wilhelm? Those are Germany's roots.
The roots of America did not include the welfare state. Would you like Germany to be run by a someone like Bismarck or a Kaiser Wilhelm? Those are Germany's roots.
For two years now I have volunteered my time at the only free clinic in this area of rural Georgia.
My patients happen to be all white. It’s not just our black brothers and sisters who are suffering..it’s our Caucasian brethren too.
And these two ethnic groups now blame each other for their poverty! (Thank you to JEB!, other GOP monsters, and Fox News...oh the Clintons et al don’t get off scotch free!)
The racist terms they use without thinking--both sides. Sides! They have drawn up sides in this impoverished community..the blacks won’t come to this clinic and the white poor would stop coming here if they did!
Every day is a struggle just to care for patients who have no money..not even enough money to get Obamacare. The governor refused Medicaid and unless you are pregnant or a mom you can’t even get on Medicaid! My last patient was a man so poor he spends half his time living in the woods..along with his psychotic brother. He needs surgery on both shoulders from previous construction injuries, has back problems, chronic kidney stones, a sixth grade education, can’t read. I will go with him after work to apply at an in-store Walmart computer to help him apply for temp work..at something.
My next patient is an 8 month pregnant 17 y/o mother of TWO! Unmarried-(NO ONE gets married here! Boys don’t want the commitment) Medicaid won’t give her a tubal ligation until age 21.
Will need to find the kids coats again and will knit hats.
I can’t do this anymore!
My patients happen to be all white. It’s not just our black brothers and sisters who are suffering..it’s our Caucasian brethren too.
And these two ethnic groups now blame each other for their poverty! (Thank you to JEB!, other GOP monsters, and Fox News...oh the Clintons et al don’t get off scotch free!)
The racist terms they use without thinking--both sides. Sides! They have drawn up sides in this impoverished community..the blacks won’t come to this clinic and the white poor would stop coming here if they did!
Every day is a struggle just to care for patients who have no money..not even enough money to get Obamacare. The governor refused Medicaid and unless you are pregnant or a mom you can’t even get on Medicaid! My last patient was a man so poor he spends half his time living in the woods..along with his psychotic brother. He needs surgery on both shoulders from previous construction injuries, has back problems, chronic kidney stones, a sixth grade education, can’t read. I will go with him after work to apply at an in-store Walmart computer to help him apply for temp work..at something.
My next patient is an 8 month pregnant 17 y/o mother of TWO! Unmarried-(NO ONE gets married here! Boys don’t want the commitment) Medicaid won’t give her a tubal ligation until age 21.
Will need to find the kids coats again and will knit hats.
I can’t do this anymore!
25
You sound like a very decent, caring person.
2
I only blame us the voters who can not see and vote for their interests. Rich people will do everything possible to make money then they will have their pet projects and throw small sums to bolster their status in the society worse they will do every thing possible to influence political discussion an election results. I accept that 1% of us will continue to accumulate wealth but I do not understand why are incapable of electing responsible governments that regulate the unfettetterd captiliasm and impose fair taxes on wealth.
9
Free trade is a form of colonialism without the cost of occupation. Everybody without exception is worse off except the exploiters. The 1%. We know very well what happened to the colonized countries, their narratives are still unfolding before our eyes. This time they are taking us down with them. It seems like a logical conclusion in the making. Is this the purpose of life and living? You ask yourself that question!
6
When I shop I always give a priority to merchandise made in the USA especially clothing and food even if I have to pay a higher price. The problem is trying to find merchandise still made in America. I am currently in the market for a new car and again partial to US brands over foreign autos, the problem is that most models from Ford, GM and Chrysler are either made offshore or have a foreign content. I remember when Ross Perot ran for president he was dead set against NAFTA using a swooshing sound to describe all those jobs leaving the USA if it was passed, sounds like he was right.
13
"When I shop I always give a priority to merchandise made in the USA especially clothing and food even if I have to pay a higher price."
That's your choice, and I applaud you for that. We should always have a choice in what we purchase (if only that applied to health care). But cost is a consideration in purchasing anything. The key word is value. In the 1960s, Japanese cars were considered junk and sales were low. By the late 70s and early 80s, their quality improved to the point to where they were competitive with anything Detroit could produce. The same thing has happened in the last 10-15 years with Korean autos. Competition is a good thing.
That's your choice, and I applaud you for that. We should always have a choice in what we purchase (if only that applied to health care). But cost is a consideration in purchasing anything. The key word is value. In the 1960s, Japanese cars were considered junk and sales were low. By the late 70s and early 80s, their quality improved to the point to where they were competitive with anything Detroit could produce. The same thing has happened in the last 10-15 years with Korean autos. Competition is a good thing.
1
Yes, manufacturing will go wherever there is cheaper (and, or better labor). Has been that way since at least the 17th century. Dutch producing china that was cheaper than getting it from China (that's a turnaround). There will come a time, probably soon, when manufacturing capacity will so very far out-distance the worlds capacity to consume, that another world-wide depression will occur. The solution should have been the 1st time and will need to be this time that having a job is not the only way to contribute to society. There will be simply not enough jobs for everyone and we shouldn't sideline those who will not be employed.
This does seem a strange article for Theroux. When he asks a non-profit if Clinton foundation has contacted them, seems like the non-profit should be applying for grants from the Clinton foundation. Bringing back jobs to the US would not fix the problems he describes...
This does seem a strange article for Theroux. When he asks a non-profit if Clinton foundation has contacted them, seems like the non-profit should be applying for grants from the Clinton foundation. Bringing back jobs to the US would not fix the problems he describes...
2
Richard, I think you are right! I think we are already at a place where we can produce more than the world can consume of almost everything. You can see the signals in low revenue growth from major companies, drastic reductions in commodity prices, lack of hiring by industrial companies. There is not enough demand. I took the vast majority of investment out of stocks in May and invested in a permanent annuity, I see low demand for the foreseeable future.
The whole economic theory of "gains from trade" is premised on the notion that there are net benefits, such that the "winners" can compensate the "losers" and everyone can still be at least as well off as before. The U.S. "Trade Adjustment Assistance" program was supposed to make that happen by using the increased tax revenues due to the gains from trade to pay for worker re-training and re-location programs.
Of course, Congress (primarily but not exclusively the GoP) made the program too narrow - only those who could prove that their specific jobs were outsourced due to specific trade deals (e.g., NAFTA) were eligible, excluding all the "indirect" job losses (e.g., suppliers to the factories that had been outsourced). Then of course the programs got hit by tax cuts on top of that.
Of course, Congress (primarily but not exclusively the GoP) made the program too narrow - only those who could prove that their specific jobs were outsourced due to specific trade deals (e.g., NAFTA) were eligible, excluding all the "indirect" job losses (e.g., suppliers to the factories that had been outsourced). Then of course the programs got hit by tax cuts on top of that.
5
A nice read by Mr. Theroux. However this is old news. At least to those in various regions of the country that watched jobs exported to third world locations. Unfortunately, the "fix" to this problem was not adequately addressed by business or government before NAFTA and other trade policies were implemented. Little or no thought was given to the distortions these polices would cause, nor how to mitigate or lessen their impact once they occurred. More likely than not, the towns and communities described in Theroux's article were considered an acceptable cost, the broken eggs incurred for the omelette. Many of our policy makers are visionaries who fail to understand or consider the damage caused by their decisions. An enormous tranche of jobs were eliminated in the US in a relatively short period of time, economically stranding thousands of people. In exchange the US received cheaper clothes, electronics, toys, and furniture. It is distressing that the US government and businesses are so eager and willing to participate in the "Global Economy" at the expense of its own citizens.
4
Oh, our politicians and owners understand the implications of their decisions just fine. No, it's that they don't give a damn about anyone but themselves and their own kind. We have lost a national sense of pride in shared destiny. They distract low income whites with abortion, gun rights and nationalistic flag waving. Poor America. Socialism is no horror. It is human caring at its best.
Yes - those Euro car companies build SUV's in the South because it's cheaper than building them in Europe. It's also cheaper than building them in the North. So basically your idea is that people in Michigan or Ohio or NY don't deserve to get back manufacturing in favor of the South???? In any event - robots will be building cars more and more. Eventually the humans will just overlook things... Mass jobs from mass production is over everywhere. Even in China they realize this and are moving their economy in a different direction.
3
We can buy premium tilapia at Whole Foods that was prepared for nearly nothing by men and women held in for-profit Colorado prisons.
Our foulest institutions, including slavery, arose at the moment a person believed that "shareholder wealth" matters more than the people who created it.
Our foulest institutions, including slavery, arose at the moment a person believed that "shareholder wealth" matters more than the people who created it.
17
I am nauseated by the Uber-donors who live off the backs of taxpayers with every break in the book and then take more deductions giving their ill-gotten wealth to wealthy schools and ultraconservative politicians and countries outside of the U.S. When I see Oprah build a school in Africa. huge donations to Israel, aid to every foreign country... I think, what about the needy in the good old U.S.A.? I can show you pockets of poverty that rival anything you will see in India or any third world country. Why don't these
Uber donors just give their millions back to our U.S. treasury? Pretty soon the
1% could pay off the $3 trillion student debt in our country.
Uber donors just give their millions back to our U.S. treasury? Pretty soon the
1% could pay off the $3 trillion student debt in our country.
12
US business sent millions of jobs overseas, ok'd by congress which receives payment for this in election donations---made larger by the increasing profits from low wage countries.
Today’s youth doesn’t see the pay off from graduating if there are so few decent paying jobs for them to go to. They see the negative job/pay situation with their peers and families.
This is a chain of causation, starting with our big money elections, buying off lawmakers, and letting business do whatever it wants.
That’s the American way. We ship our tons of raw materials out to Asia, and the ships come back loaded with our consumer goods at low prices for underpaid US citizens to buy.
At one time Americans made our consumer products and were paid wages enabling them to buy what they made. It was an upward spiral, not downward. Many workers belonged to unions, and had a secure m. class life, and even non union jobs had to pay more. Yet business was profitable due to consumer demand. Since jobs existed here, there was a path to security. Charity and welfare was not needed as much as now.
It’s long overdue for job offshoring to be THE political issue in the election. They talk about the inequality gap—that’s the result. Where’s talk about the cause? Every candidate should be challenged on this by the media.
A contrasting example is Germany's apprenticeship training in high schools in partnership with businesses. They still manufacture things there. Less need for charity.
Today’s youth doesn’t see the pay off from graduating if there are so few decent paying jobs for them to go to. They see the negative job/pay situation with their peers and families.
This is a chain of causation, starting with our big money elections, buying off lawmakers, and letting business do whatever it wants.
That’s the American way. We ship our tons of raw materials out to Asia, and the ships come back loaded with our consumer goods at low prices for underpaid US citizens to buy.
At one time Americans made our consumer products and were paid wages enabling them to buy what they made. It was an upward spiral, not downward. Many workers belonged to unions, and had a secure m. class life, and even non union jobs had to pay more. Yet business was profitable due to consumer demand. Since jobs existed here, there was a path to security. Charity and welfare was not needed as much as now.
It’s long overdue for job offshoring to be THE political issue in the election. They talk about the inequality gap—that’s the result. Where’s talk about the cause? Every candidate should be challenged on this by the media.
A contrasting example is Germany's apprenticeship training in high schools in partnership with businesses. They still manufacture things there. Less need for charity.
11
"At one time Americans made our consumer products and were paid wages enabling them to buy what they made. It was an upward spiral, not downward. Many workers belonged to unions, and had a secure m. class life, and even non union jobs had to pay more. Yet business was profitable due to consumer demand."
This happened right after World War II, when we were essentially the only major industrial power left standing. As other nations (Japan and Germany in particular) became stable politically and economically in the 60s, they started competing for the attention of the American consumer. We just got complacent. Management, labor and government are all to blame. The American consumer just wants a good deal, regardless of the source.
This happened right after World War II, when we were essentially the only major industrial power left standing. As other nations (Japan and Germany in particular) became stable politically and economically in the 60s, they started competing for the attention of the American consumer. We just got complacent. Management, labor and government are all to blame. The American consumer just wants a good deal, regardless of the source.
Just post '97, I went to see a Chinese factory before China's big growth, as a semi-free capitalist economy. It made lots and lots of products that no one wanted, tacky porcelain bowls, cavorting cloissonne dragons, etc. It existed to support jobs, making products no one wanted, certainly at prices few could stomach. And of course, it was losing lots of money. And where did that money to stop the hemorrhaging come from? The people.
Of course, if we want to talk hypocrisy, I doubt Theroux would be a willing taxpayer under such a command economy.
Of course, if we want to talk hypocrisy, I doubt Theroux would be a willing taxpayer under such a command economy.
2
What has happened to millions of working age Americans since the "Reagan Revolution," and especially since the 2008 meltdown, is appalling. In any other age, there would be marching and violence and blood in the streets. And yet, for millions of other Americans, corporate competitiveness and success has been essential. So punishing corporations only punishes ourselves as a nation. So what do we do? American culture has always had a "helping hand" thread, especially in our local communities. And there are many federal and state government programs that are meant to help those who need it. And still, we have widespread poverty and suffering. Yes, we want our businesses to thrive. And yes, we want our citizens to live at a certain level of material well-being. Can we have both? Yes, we probably can. But it will require a level of mature and thoughtful governance at all levels, something that seem to be sorely lacking today. Above all, it will require a high level of shared understanding and desire for the "common good," another commodity in woefully short supply today.
13
"I seem to remember the South taking factories from the North, because the South kept the unions out."
My son went to college in Lewiston, Maine, which over 100 years ago was a bustling mill town. The mills closed and moved to the South. Now, 100 years later, those same Southern towns are feeling the same pinch as Lewiston felt 100 years ago, as their mills close and move to China.
My son went to college in Lewiston, Maine, which over 100 years ago was a bustling mill town. The mills closed and moved to the South. Now, 100 years later, those same Southern towns are feeling the same pinch as Lewiston felt 100 years ago, as their mills close and move to China.
13
While I agree with the premise of the article, I don't believe it is complete.
If we took some of the "charity" the government hands out to the poor and lowered the taxes on companies - with the link of bring those jobs back to America then we would truly make in roads to this tragedy.
If we took some of the "charity" the government hands out to the poor and lowered the taxes on companies - with the link of bring those jobs back to America then we would truly make in roads to this tragedy.
2
Arthur Richardson,
You mean like giving Corp. tax cuts to move to cheap areas? We are doing so already. Who do you think makes up for the missing tax base?
Do you mean by making "Right to work" states more inviting for Corp.?
We already do this. Who do you think takes the pay cuts and benefits cuts for this to happen?
Now you want to cut welfare and food stamps and Medicare so that a corp. might grace us with its lowest possible paying job without benefits so that the employees need Gov. subsistence just to survive?
But you already cut "charity" for these workers.
How about if a Corp. wants to sell in America it needs to invest here.
How about if a Corp. wants to consider itself American it pays its fair share of taxes here. Not in a P.O. Box in Maine or Ireland or the Cayman Islands.
This race to the bottom is going to get ugly in America with two guns per civilian. That will be a tragedy.
You mean like giving Corp. tax cuts to move to cheap areas? We are doing so already. Who do you think makes up for the missing tax base?
Do you mean by making "Right to work" states more inviting for Corp.?
We already do this. Who do you think takes the pay cuts and benefits cuts for this to happen?
Now you want to cut welfare and food stamps and Medicare so that a corp. might grace us with its lowest possible paying job without benefits so that the employees need Gov. subsistence just to survive?
But you already cut "charity" for these workers.
How about if a Corp. wants to sell in America it needs to invest here.
How about if a Corp. wants to consider itself American it pays its fair share of taxes here. Not in a P.O. Box in Maine or Ireland or the Cayman Islands.
This race to the bottom is going to get ugly in America with two guns per civilian. That will be a tragedy.
1
There're two issues here and shouldn't be mixed. The first is whether the American CEOs should be rewarded by outsourcing. The second issue is whether outsourcing itself is bad. If we see human lives having equal value, a job in the US is as good as a job in India or Mexico or Africa. So I think we should focus on the first issue, i.e. the gross inequality of pay.
5
"The first is whether the American CEOs should be rewarded by outsourcing."
CEOs are rewarded for improving the profitability of the company. And it's not "outsourcing". Jobs belong to the employer, not a country. That's a tough concept to grasp for those who don't understand what capitalism is all about. It's so much easier to demonize with words like "outsourcing".
CEOs are rewarded for improving the profitability of the company. And it's not "outsourcing". Jobs belong to the employer, not a country. That's a tough concept to grasp for those who don't understand what capitalism is all about. It's so much easier to demonize with words like "outsourcing".
Alleged hypocrisy and outpouring aside, did Mr. Theroux find a US town without electricity or running water? Did he find one ripe with HIV and malaria? Were there distended bellies and children dying daily of malnutrition? I think not. To compare the US to the Third World is itself the height of hypocrisy. The well-traveled Mr. Theroux is on a rant of gigantic and misplaced proportion.
7
He is comparing the effect of charity on Africans and Americans. Bad for both. People want jobs not money from Steve Jobs' products,
6
Susan Kostal,
Actually yes we have cities here in Ca. without running water.
Actually yes we have children dying of malnutrition here in the US.
Our children may not have the distended bellies per say but they are obese from the lack of healthy foods available at affordable prices.
We may not be quite at Third World levels yet. YET! But this race to the bottom means given enough time we will be. If you are struggling in America to feed yourself, and many are, then you might as well be in 3WC. If you aren't living that life you could show some empathy for those that are in this "land of plenty".
Actually yes we have cities here in Ca. without running water.
Actually yes we have children dying of malnutrition here in the US.
Our children may not have the distended bellies per say but they are obese from the lack of healthy foods available at affordable prices.
We may not be quite at Third World levels yet. YET! But this race to the bottom means given enough time we will be. If you are struggling in America to feed yourself, and many are, then you might as well be in 3WC. If you aren't living that life you could show some empathy for those that are in this "land of plenty".
2
I grew up in New England. All those closed plants up there turned into closed plants down here in the South. By the way, here in the Charlotte area we had a thriving mill - until they unionized and went out of business in a year. Such is the economic cycle.
But the gist of this author's whining appears to be that a) companies respond to consumer demands and b) by doing so somehow earn tainted money which I guess the poor are too good to take?
But the gist of this author's whining appears to be that a) companies respond to consumer demands and b) by doing so somehow earn tainted money which I guess the poor are too good to take?
4
That is not the subtext. The point is giving charity instead of creating jobs hurts Americans workers, destroys communities and creates takers not makers.
9
It has not been that long ago that tariffs were applied to goods coming in from overseas. Why not use tariffs again?
I know this goes against the free-market fundamentalism that is the true religion of America (not Christianity).
This faith is a delusion; the free market is not moral. The free market is happy for your children to starve. It is up to us to assert some control over that invisible hand.
There are other steps that could be taken (via the tax code) to penalize companies that dump cheap goods, or who do not pay their fair share in taxes.
In recent years, we have become accustomed to bountiful cheap stuff. We can renounce this habit, along with the instant gratification that goes along with it. I am pleased to see that a lot of young people are already on board with this idea--whether for financial or environmental reasons, it's a step in the right direction. Personally, I try to buy fewer things and whenever possible to pay the extra to buy American. (And local if it's available) I have to wait and save money and all those old-timey things; but it hasn't hurt me to do this.
I know this goes against the free-market fundamentalism that is the true religion of America (not Christianity).
This faith is a delusion; the free market is not moral. The free market is happy for your children to starve. It is up to us to assert some control over that invisible hand.
There are other steps that could be taken (via the tax code) to penalize companies that dump cheap goods, or who do not pay their fair share in taxes.
In recent years, we have become accustomed to bountiful cheap stuff. We can renounce this habit, along with the instant gratification that goes along with it. I am pleased to see that a lot of young people are already on board with this idea--whether for financial or environmental reasons, it's a step in the right direction. Personally, I try to buy fewer things and whenever possible to pay the extra to buy American. (And local if it's available) I have to wait and save money and all those old-timey things; but it hasn't hurt me to do this.
22
Nike is an abomination. They pay terrible wages and charge a fortune for their product. Choosing to spend it on marketing instead. A smart choice for them, but a lose lose for rest of us. People need to wake up and stop supporting companies like Nike. IMHO, they represent everything that is wrong with our world.
12
Boycott Nike and sports shows with Nike commercials
6
Lost in this worthy essay is the ironic, tragic fact that the citizens of these hollowed-out regions keep voting, by often huge majorities, for the very party and politicians who obsess on low taxes for the wealthy and zero government involvement in promoting a domestic business environment that can sustain healthy communities. Add in pervasive, reactionary religious fundamentalism and a long, sordid history of violent bigotry, season with guns, guns, guns, then wonder why all the misery.
Go figure.
Go figure.
174
And blaming Democrats too for the lost jobs. They don't get that shareholders are more important than employees. Companies are always looking to reduce costs and paying pennies to the Chinese is better than paying dollars to Americans.
3
"Lost in this worthy essay is the ironic, tragic fact that the citizens of these hollowed-out regions keep voting, by often huge majorities, for the very party and politicians who obsess on low taxes for the wealthy and zero government involvement in promoting a domestic business environment that can sustain healthy communities."
President Obama has been elected to two terms - does he obsess on low taxes and zero government involvement?
President Obama has been elected to two terms - does he obsess on low taxes and zero government involvement?
I have been puzzled for years about how very poor and obviously in need people can vote so obviously counter to their own self interest. They reject Obamacare, reject Medicare, reject unionization, and reject pretty much any and all benefits enjoyed by their more prosperous blue-state peers. I wonder if Mr. Theroux explored that in his research at all?
It seems on the surface that the captains of industry have thoroughly intimidated and bamboozled these voters into believing the best thing for them is to be poor, uneducated, and blindly led.
It seems on the surface that the captains of industry have thoroughly intimidated and bamboozled these voters into believing the best thing for them is to be poor, uneducated, and blindly led.
Why should those companies only re-relocate to the American South? Why not to the entire country.
5
He just happened to traveling in the South. He would have the same experience in the North.
1
This essay seems to be in conjunction with the publication of his latest book titled "Deep South" reviewed here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/23/books/review-in-deep-south-paul-therou...
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/23/books/review-in-deep-south-paul-therou...
1
Please write "Tim Cook...is paid in a couple of days" instead of "earned." The concert of a "reasonable" wage for a day's work gets lost in current language usage to which, dear Paul Theroux, you are very sensitive.
As I mourn what you are describing in this piece, I am insulted by every use of "earned" in relation to what billionaires are paid.
As I mourn what you are describing in this piece, I am insulted by every use of "earned" in relation to what billionaires are paid.
20
Reading the comments makes me realize how many commenters are saying, well that's the way it is and always will be. What? Have you all forgotten how America was in the '40s. '50s, '60s and '70s? We had high taxes for the rich - a graduated income tax - the more you earn the more you pay etc. Now almost half of America lives in poverty. We are a third world nation and that is okay with so many of you. What happened or are you all like the name from the state department who never saw poverty before? That's possible because living in the America hides the poor.
20
Those tax rates were not the effective tax rates. The actual net rates people paid were much lower.
I really hate the phrase the "Deep South". Like calling Africa the "Dark Continent", it's meant to evoke a mysterious and probably dangerous other-ness. Either a state is in "the South" (basically a former Confederate state) or it isn't. Drop the tired cliches.
9
Indeed, let stop making "The South" seem like some exotic land...The people are exactly the same as in the glorious Tri-State...
It's easier to hide money you say you spent on charity overseas.
9
If it's your money you should be able to do anything you want with it. Or do you think the government should confiscate it because they know how to spend it better than you do?
I love it when foreign companies buy American companies and America companies move overseas so as to avoid taxes and our military is responsible for their defense. Makes sense to the top 0.01% and to the flag wavers that can't understand why there are so many immigrants overrunning the EU and licking their chops. There are third world country politicians and their relatives who are making an obscene fortune off this.
12
American tax dollars pay to protect US and foreign multinationals businesses worldwide. The foreign multinationals pay no U.S. tax and U.S. multinationals try any way possible to avoid US tax. Trump is proposing a huge reduction in corporate tax rates. We need to charge these companies for protecting their business operations abroad.
4
I seem to remember the South taking factories from the North, because the South kept the unions out. That was the start of this leveling to the bottom.
23
That was part of it. Burdensome taxes and regulation played a role in the migration as well.
Readers of this essay might also be interested in reading the recent NYT book review of "$2.00 a Day--Living on almost nothing in America" by Kathryn Edin & H. Luke Shaefer.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/06/books/review/2-00-a-day-by-kathryn-j-e...
From the dust jacket: "...the number of American families living on $2.00 per person, per day, has skyrocketed to one and a half million American households including about three million children."
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/06/books/review/2-00-a-day-by-kathryn-j-e...
From the dust jacket: "...the number of American families living on $2.00 per person, per day, has skyrocketed to one and a half million American households including about three million children."
11
I am an American inventor/entrepreneur manufacturing an architectural product in insanely expensive California. I believe I am the last one in my niche still producing in the USA. It is a struggle unlike I have ever known in my 30 years of business and the government policies and regulations make it that much more difficult. While it is all well and good to lament the closed factories in America and shame those 'who send jobs overseas' - the ones sending the jobs overseas is us. Anyone who shops at target, Costco, Home Depot or anyone who lives a middle class life. I saw Barbara boxer grandstanding about Fiorina sending 30k jobs overseas yet boxer has undoubtedly driven millions of lower skilled jobs out of California and America through regulations and policy. No one manufactures here anymore and I probably won't either soon and the data is readily available on the subject. That said, unless Americans are willing to 'buy American' and American producers can make products that are truly worth the price difference to foreign made goods, not much will change.
15
wages are the biggest reason for the job losses.
1
The "frre trade" deals thqt opened the door up to destructive overseas outsourcing should have been FAIR TRADE deals requiring trading partners meet our labor, environmental and other legal requirements so you and others would be competingon a level playing field. The race to the bottom is/was not in America's best interest but of our bought and paid for politicians interests in BOTH parties.
I agree 100%. That is why I will never buy an Apple's product, or Nike's, for that matter. But of course I have been forced to succumb to purchase things made in China. Who hasn't?
If one day, the Chinese communists go berserk and nationalize all American companies over there without compensation I won't applaud but won't shed a single tear either; The greedy batards deserve it.
If one day, the Chinese communists go berserk and nationalize all American companies over there without compensation I won't applaud but won't shed a single tear either; The greedy batards deserve it.
13
It is a disgrace that we let people like Tim Cook, Bill Gates, Zuckerberg et al amass the level of wealth we do and take a supersized role in the lives and prospects of their fellow Americans. We are a commonwealth - there is a point at which wealth reaches the level of obscenity, and policy decisions on charity, helping the poor, and how the excess wealth of our nation should be used best are decisions that should be made by the electorate and executed by our national government, not the venal megalomaniacs who seem to think they are entitled to billions while people all over suffer. They are not entitled to billions, and re-establishing a strongly progressive tax system would set many things on the road to right in the US.
9
great point Jack. Just once I would like to see someone like you-- obviously a good thinker, or someone like Mr. Theroux-- a great writer, be invited to the White House. Instead we get the parade of the usual suspects, Zuck, Cook, et al. What on earth do these people have to say of wisdom or meaning to US? And this happens during democratic and GOP presidencies. Disgusting.
1
Are the lives of people living in Asia and Africa less valuable than those of people living in the United States just because the latter are "closer to home" for us? What's the ethical basis for that position?
9
The reason is that these are OUR people. Americans have every right, and perhaps an obligation, to put Americans first.
2
We have an obligation to look after our own countrymen first for a change
2
No, not at all. However there is a social contract within the country that is being eroded that many do not want to acknowledge.
They benefit from our educational system, and all of the awesome things here in this country. Then, instead of paying the society back for their investment in them they ship the work out to give themselves and shareholders a nice, fat check. They push to pay less taxes than everyone else though their companies benefit from the American infrastructure.
Elizabeth Warren spoke on this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htX2usfqMEs
I do not think we should ignore poverty in the world but damn if we don't even care about our own citizens. I watched the Global Initiative on poverty concert and kept saying "How many kids HERE get the education, housing, healthcare and all the other stuff this organization is promoting?"
Kids are hungry here. As a teacher I know it for a fact; inner city schools stay open over the summer to feed hungry kids breakfast and lunch. On weekends food is sent home from food pantries. Churches donate school supplies. We frequently have coat drives for my students. I've personally brought payless shoes for kids who needed them and the parent just didn't have it. Folks are stretched thin here and it behoove us to stop trying to fix the world if we can't fix what is wrong here.
So. No disrespect to other all over the world who are in need but in one of the few times I'll ever say it - our citizens need to come first.
They benefit from our educational system, and all of the awesome things here in this country. Then, instead of paying the society back for their investment in them they ship the work out to give themselves and shareholders a nice, fat check. They push to pay less taxes than everyone else though their companies benefit from the American infrastructure.
Elizabeth Warren spoke on this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htX2usfqMEs
I do not think we should ignore poverty in the world but damn if we don't even care about our own citizens. I watched the Global Initiative on poverty concert and kept saying "How many kids HERE get the education, housing, healthcare and all the other stuff this organization is promoting?"
Kids are hungry here. As a teacher I know it for a fact; inner city schools stay open over the summer to feed hungry kids breakfast and lunch. On weekends food is sent home from food pantries. Churches donate school supplies. We frequently have coat drives for my students. I've personally brought payless shoes for kids who needed them and the parent just didn't have it. Folks are stretched thin here and it behoove us to stop trying to fix the world if we can't fix what is wrong here.
So. No disrespect to other all over the world who are in need but in one of the few times I'll ever say it - our citizens need to come first.
2
Thank you Paul Theroux for bringing this to the attention of a national audience.
Tennessee's governor is pimping the new plantation labor force:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/government/state/tennessee-official.... At the same time he seeks to outsource state jobs, thus eliminating another set of decent, benefits bearing jobs: http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2015/08/18/haslam-defends-.... The final blow is the state government's refusal to expand Medicaid: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/02/tennessee-bill-haslam-medicaid-exp....
A small group of powerful wealthy people is busily lining the pockets of their friends and piously thinking that they are doing the right thing.
Tennessee's governor is pimping the new plantation labor force:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/government/state/tennessee-official.... At the same time he seeks to outsource state jobs, thus eliminating another set of decent, benefits bearing jobs: http://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2015/08/18/haslam-defends-.... The final blow is the state government's refusal to expand Medicaid: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/02/tennessee-bill-haslam-medicaid-exp....
A small group of powerful wealthy people is busily lining the pockets of their friends and piously thinking that they are doing the right thing.
6
If Tim Cook of Apple computer wants to actually help the country of his birth, the country that also gave birth to Apple and made it possible by prior technology breakthroughs that were developed while Steve Jobs was merely a child, then Mr. Cook should find a way to bring some of the tech assembly jobs back here. Jobs said not long before he died "those jobs aren't coming back"? Why? Is it an impossibility to make a decent profit while employing American citizens? Apple can do well, it actually can do better overall, but employing Americans who buy such a large percentage of its products.
At the same time, Mr. Cook should avoid insulting Americans by saying things like "Americans don't want to make shoes". Americans want to do all of the work available when paid decent, life sustaining wages.
What has happened is that pay scales for the upper 1/3 or so of our society have gone so high that the lower 2/3s, especially the lowest 1/3, can barely live on the money they make. The rich have outbid everyone for housing, health care, elite schools and so forth so that the rest of us are left eating dust...or scraps from the tables of the mega-rich.
In an earlier America, a few decades ago, it was considered shameful to underpay people for their work. Now, it is considered good management, wise business decision making. If we have lost the capacity to care about each other, to care about the health of our nation, then we have lost the ability to function.
At the same time, Mr. Cook should avoid insulting Americans by saying things like "Americans don't want to make shoes". Americans want to do all of the work available when paid decent, life sustaining wages.
What has happened is that pay scales for the upper 1/3 or so of our society have gone so high that the lower 2/3s, especially the lowest 1/3, can barely live on the money they make. The rich have outbid everyone for housing, health care, elite schools and so forth so that the rest of us are left eating dust...or scraps from the tables of the mega-rich.
In an earlier America, a few decades ago, it was considered shameful to underpay people for their work. Now, it is considered good management, wise business decision making. If we have lost the capacity to care about each other, to care about the health of our nation, then we have lost the ability to function.
15
Most of the top 1/3 has actually had a reduction in share of GDP. It is those above the top 5%, and mostly the top 1% and 0.1% that have gained since the 1970's.
Those at the 95% level (top 5%) have seen big gains, but those gains are about the same as productivity growth during the time period in question. Real income at the 90% level has actually lagged productivity growth.
What is really hurting the lower classes, is that the 70% gain in productivity growth since 1970 has not been shared with the bottom 95%.
If you look at income *share*, the cutoff for earners who have just kept exactly the same percent of total income over this time period is between the 90% and 95% level. Meaning, share of total income for those at the 90% level has *declined*, with most of the productivity gains having gone to the top 1% or higher.
The broader point about inequality is spot on, but don't blame the upper middle class. The "takers" due to inequality are the .1% - Hedge fund managers, wealthy investors, etc - the ones in gated communities whose faces you never see. Not middle managers, engineers, nurses, technicians, or other professionals. Most of them have also lost out - just not as much as the very poor.
Those at the 95% level (top 5%) have seen big gains, but those gains are about the same as productivity growth during the time period in question. Real income at the 90% level has actually lagged productivity growth.
What is really hurting the lower classes, is that the 70% gain in productivity growth since 1970 has not been shared with the bottom 95%.
If you look at income *share*, the cutoff for earners who have just kept exactly the same percent of total income over this time period is between the 90% and 95% level. Meaning, share of total income for those at the 90% level has *declined*, with most of the productivity gains having gone to the top 1% or higher.
The broader point about inequality is spot on, but don't blame the upper middle class. The "takers" due to inequality are the .1% - Hedge fund managers, wealthy investors, etc - the ones in gated communities whose faces you never see. Not middle managers, engineers, nurses, technicians, or other professionals. Most of them have also lost out - just not as much as the very poor.
We need more of this reporting. American workers have suffered through decades of capitalist destruction including our recent great "recession". As in the great depression - we also need powerful pictures of the victims, their broken humanity and dire situations that would put a lie to the Fox-publican talking points.
12
I don't think the problem is that CEO's don't realize that people want decent jobs. Rather the problem is one of incentives: e.g. if you bring decent jobs back to the United States but your competitors don't, you're in trouble.
The only way the jobs this article talks about are coming back (on a large scale) is if the United States is willing to lower wages, safety standards, and environmental standards to those of developing countries. I would hope that we don't want to engage in such a race to the bottom.
Asking whether business and governmental leaders realize that people want decent jobs in the U.S. is the wrong question. The real question should be: what do we do with those who have had their jobs outsourced or automated?
Unless we're willing to come up with a practical answer to that question, the current situation will remain unchanged.
The only way the jobs this article talks about are coming back (on a large scale) is if the United States is willing to lower wages, safety standards, and environmental standards to those of developing countries. I would hope that we don't want to engage in such a race to the bottom.
Asking whether business and governmental leaders realize that people want decent jobs in the U.S. is the wrong question. The real question should be: what do we do with those who have had their jobs outsourced or automated?
Unless we're willing to come up with a practical answer to that question, the current situation will remain unchanged.
5
The poor in the US are filthy rich compared to the poor in Africa. Perhaps the towns looked the same because the author was too focused on whom he was blaming.
5
It is blazingly clear that outsourcing jobs is destroying communities. The author of this article states "Big companies have always sought cheaper labor... looking for the hungriest, the most desperate, the least organized, the most exploitable." This means that when companies move to Africa, or anywhere, they move to places that are significantly more needy and willing to work for lower wages and fewer benefits.
Besides taking dollars away the upheaval wastes the infrastructure that has been built, strands people in places that no longer can provide jobs or services
Thereby destroying families and communities.
So, you are saying...?
Besides taking dollars away the upheaval wastes the infrastructure that has been built, strands people in places that no longer can provide jobs or services
Thereby destroying families and communities.
So, you are saying...?
1
AACNY: Many people make your comparison, ie: our poor are richer than their poor. So? How, exactly, does that justify anything? Do you feel that being hungry in Africa hurts more than being hungry in Alabama? And, how many of the poor people in Africa get blamed for their poverty by people like you? Your'e a terrible person you know...saying it's just dandy that a family in our country goes without proper food, medical care, education, clothing and housing because it's even worse some place else.
I've been saying this for years. Wealth has grown and Inequality has shrunk in China and some other countries while at the expense of the opposite happening in the US.
5
Outside the Box:
That isn't so. Wealth and inequality have both grown in China.
Interestingly, at least until a decade ago, although incomes in China grew relatively faster than incomes in the US, incomes in the US grew faster than in China in absolute terms.
Another interesting point is that the Chinese effectively gave US consumers nice pay increases in the form of lower-priced goods.
That isn't so. Wealth and inequality have both grown in China.
Interestingly, at least until a decade ago, although incomes in China grew relatively faster than incomes in the US, incomes in the US grew faster than in China in absolute terms.
Another interesting point is that the Chinese effectively gave US consumers nice pay increases in the form of lower-priced goods.
1
Helloooo! Wait a minute! Corporations are not shipping jobs to countries that have a strong efficient government that works on behalf of the people...and their basic needs and dignity. Union Carbide, the great American chemical and fertilizer company, did not go to Germany, France, England or even Russia to set up their factory. They went to Madhya Pradesh, India: one of the poorest States in India with a terribly inefficient and crooked State government, under an ineffective corrupt central government (of Congress party). They paid bribes to grab a lot of land, built a chemical factory without any oversight, and used toxic chemicals for manufacturing fertilizers without any "safety checks". Safety violations were accumulating, and it was only a matter of time before a a big catastrophe, known as "Bhopal tragedy", would occur...where over 30,000 people died and over a 100,000 people (mostly poor and desperate, living in slums around the factory) lost their eyes, babies, part of their liver, stomach, colon, etc. There are still people dying from Bhopal corporate crime - mostly from cancer due to exposure to toxic fumes and chemicals...32 years later. When we rant and rave about globalization most people selfishly are thinking about their American middle class lives, with TVs, dishwashers, microwave ovens and a second or third car...What we should be talking about is "how some Western corporations (think BP) commit crimes against poor countries globally".
15
It's more than offshoring jobs. Without addressing the dominance of imports in the durable goods sector (clothing, building materials and food are also targeted) then complaining and hindering the off-shoring by US corporations will just push them to bankruptcy. I've seen this in the automotive components side of things.
1
Corporations and their executives have defined duties to shareholders and they seem to put their own interests high on the list things to look after, but a sense of duty to workers, to the community? Maybe part of its absence has to do with it not having an obvious place to be rooted in our society. Even unions aren't going to be of much help if the factory leaves. It seems to me that the norm for the goal of being a successful business needs to take into account maintaining a better balance between profit for the company and keeping its corner of the world doing well.
9
How far should corporations go in their duty to the community and worker? Many of the demands placed on corporations would have rendered them incapable of competing globally. Who benefits then?
If we want corporations to behave differently -- ex., to repatriate all that offshore money, hire American workers, create factories in the US -- they must be incentivized. The government has a role to play. It can tie preferential benefits, like lower corporate taxes, to societal benefits, like jobs for American workers.
It's puzzling how little interaction there has been between the Obama Administration and corporations on job creation. Instead, it has saddled corporations with thousands of pages of regulations. It's priorities are simply elsewhere.
Big government versus big job creation. That's the choice Americans get to make in the next election. Listening to the democratic candidates and the republican candidates, so far only one party is focused on jobs and the economy.
If we want corporations to behave differently -- ex., to repatriate all that offshore money, hire American workers, create factories in the US -- they must be incentivized. The government has a role to play. It can tie preferential benefits, like lower corporate taxes, to societal benefits, like jobs for American workers.
It's puzzling how little interaction there has been between the Obama Administration and corporations on job creation. Instead, it has saddled corporations with thousands of pages of regulations. It's priorities are simply elsewhere.
Big government versus big job creation. That's the choice Americans get to make in the next election. Listening to the democratic candidates and the republican candidates, so far only one party is focused on jobs and the economy.
2
Unfortunately when a US corporation has to compete against imports, the importers are more and more taking advantage of low cost countries for final assembly and manufacturing. You have to take into account not only the final assembled goods but the components that are used in their final assembly.
No amount of flag waving about US union labor will change the equation.
Now please take a look at the automobile you have in your garage/car port/parking space. How about other family members? Your friends, neighbors? In the 1950's over 95% of vehicles sold in this country were assembled in the US with a significant US based component content. Now that figure is just about 45% if you consider the transplants (e.g. Honda, BWM, Toyota...). That change does not happen without an significant impact to that middle class we had during the Post-War years. The need for semi-skilled labor is a fraction of what it was during those years. You, the US consumers and I have decided. So now back to the question of the automobile, Who is its manufacturer? Is it an import? In which state is it assembled? And no, the wind turbine blade industry will not replace those manufacturing sector jobs lost due to the decisions of the US consumer.
No amount of flag waving about US union labor will change the equation.
Now please take a look at the automobile you have in your garage/car port/parking space. How about other family members? Your friends, neighbors? In the 1950's over 95% of vehicles sold in this country were assembled in the US with a significant US based component content. Now that figure is just about 45% if you consider the transplants (e.g. Honda, BWM, Toyota...). That change does not happen without an significant impact to that middle class we had during the Post-War years. The need for semi-skilled labor is a fraction of what it was during those years. You, the US consumers and I have decided. So now back to the question of the automobile, Who is its manufacturer? Is it an import? In which state is it assembled? And no, the wind turbine blade industry will not replace those manufacturing sector jobs lost due to the decisions of the US consumer.
1
Corporations are owned by shareholders who put capital at risk and hope to earn a return. Many of those shareholders are unions, pension funds and retired Americans, through direct stock ownership, IRAs and mutual funds. The shareholder elect boards that are obligated by fiduciary duties to the corporation and its shareholders. It is their job to maximize shareholder value. If consumers are willing to pay $200 for a flat screen television, and it can be manufactured for $160 in Asia, but $265 in the USA, what should the board do?
5
By all means, sell out the American worker.
1
They should not only consider the price of the television, but also the social costs in this country and in the one to which they are considering moving their manufacturing. As a consumer, I don't want to promote death or birth defects in India so that I can save a few bucks on a TV.
1
Hay can someone tell me how many people in US have been "impoverished" since the rise of China and India as outsourcing destinations? Please take a used envelope and google per capita income of US citizens for past 25 years. Find out how much Americans have become poorer. 25 million?? Well if it resulting into uplifting of 600 million in China alone then it is worth it. Is it not?
5
It is certainly worth it for the Chinese who were saved from starvation, not so much for the Americans who end up in the poor house.
Not to me it isn't.
No, it is not. I care more about 25 million Americans than I do 600 million Chinese. Sorry.
3
The rich steal from the poor and expect to be lauded as heroes for returning the money to its proper owners. It is shameful.
5
"Lifting more than 600 million people out of poverty" sounds like helping the poor to me.
2
Intelligence. candor and clarity. Beautifully done. Thank you, Mr. Theroux.
12
Isn't it a good thing to have a strong middle class in China and India? Those are markets for American designed (at least) goods. Some markets are saturated in the US but India offers the potential for huge consumer sale. The majority of sales of aircraft are to foreign countries, and I bet the union members at Boeing and Lockheed Martin would not support the trade wars some people here want.
The major unaddressed problem in the US is overpopulation and so many people, including illegal immigrants, who depend on the dole. As fewer workers generate fewer tax dollars, what's going to happen in the next decade?
The major unaddressed problem in the US is overpopulation and so many people, including illegal immigrants, who depend on the dole. As fewer workers generate fewer tax dollars, what's going to happen in the next decade?
4
The next generation is already falling off the cliff. We think we have a problem with jihadists, wait till you see our own when they starts to speak up! and don't forget we have the right to bear arms! The political process works only when our representatives respect what we elect them to do. However, it doesn't look that way.
Any critique of capitalism is blasphemy. Ask Karl Marx. I wish some journalist would explain in simple terms to the American people why these foundations are formed. All they are is a simple tax dodge for the wealthy. Rockefeller, Carnegie, Ford established foundations over 100 years ago and those families are still extremely wealthy. Do they ever spend the money? They have to spend 5% of the assets each year. Think about that if your sitting on a billion dollars and can't earn 5% on that money you must be pretty stupid considering the fact you can control markets. Warren Buffet states he is taking an interest in some company and the stock immediately rises. Clinton on the other hand did not have anywhere near the wealth of the giants but he had political connections. Donate to his Initiative and you get favored treatment to earn millions. While the congress investigates 4 deaths in a war zone they should be investigating his global initiative scam. Investigating Benghazi would be like investigating Joe crack dealer getting killed in south Chicago.
3
Companies like Uber are creating thousands of flexible positions to earn income using as asset many people already have (a vehicle). However, instead of getting praised for all of the jobs that it's creating, Uber is instead attacked for being aggressive and unsafe. While drivers are independent contractors, many of them earn more than they would if they had a regular full time job, and with Uber they also have the flexibility to work when and where they want.
6
Thanks. It's important to remember that Uber helps even the working class stick it to regular cabbies, destabilize the market, and sucker everybody into cheap rides at the expense of their society.
8
I walk the streets of New York and see taxi drivers and others trying to dodge the reckless and inexperienced Uber drivers. Taxi driving isn't a hobby or a part-time job.
I remember Nixon bring Red China out of the Cold War gambit. There was a sense of relief that a serious adversary had been transformed into an advocate. The whole policy of globalization plays on that theme getting adversaries to buy into the global market ending the need for armies and war. But have we instead created a hungry monster? Our Cold War enemies, strangely our World War II allies, are evolving back into our enemies again. Logic goes out the window. In the thick of these events, we undermine our own power base, our own citizens, thinking China and Russia will be satisfied with a piece of the global market. Humans hone our capacity to hoard everything. The cycles never seem to end over the centuries. The attempt by the right to compromise the power of the US government could end up playing into our countries demise in the global arena. They move their factories around the world. A ruler in China, Russia, Venequela takes over their plants and their "cheap labor" leaving the USA a weakened power another fallen Rome.
4
"I found towns in South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas that looked like towns in Zimbabwe, just as overlooked and beleaguered."
I almost fell off my chair. How the heck am I supposed to believe anything this author says when he can state something so grossly stupid. American corporations are not responsible for southern poverty. The American government is the "Leviathan" that dominates and eviscerates the american economy. The more power and wealth it consumes, the poorer we all get.
I almost fell off my chair. How the heck am I supposed to believe anything this author says when he can state something so grossly stupid. American corporations are not responsible for southern poverty. The American government is the "Leviathan" that dominates and eviscerates the american economy. The more power and wealth it consumes, the poorer we all get.
4
Holy cow! It is the government that is impoverishing the nation, not the corporations?
Maybe you haven't been paying attention. The corporations own the government. That is why Bernie Sanders is starting to sound like a good idea.
Maybe you haven't been paying attention. The corporations own the government. That is why Bernie Sanders is starting to sound like a good idea.
1
The corporate tax rate should reflect the % of all employed who are working within the geographic boundaries of the USA in a progressively higher calculation. If the base tax rate is 35% and 50% of the employees are abroad the tax rate should be increased by 50% to 52%. I believe the base corporate tax rate is too low at 35%. Corporations should pay higher tax rates than people for the privilege of becoming legal "people".
6
So economic growth lifted millions out of poverty in China. Maybe that 's the lesson to be learned from this story. The problem is that the only policies that will result in strong economic growth will also make the rich richer and liberals, no matter how much they say they care about the poor, cannot abide the rich getting richer. Try as you might, you will not come up with a governmental policy that really helps the poor while preventing the rich from getting richer. If you don't want to be hypocritical, i.e., if you really want to help the poor, lower tax rates on capital gains, lower corporate income taxes and reduce regulation. You will dramatically help the poor and the middle class but but but, you will also help the rich. All of the prescriptions in these comments to "control or modify" corporate greed and profits would only serve to slow economic growth and hurt the poor and middle class more than the rich. But those policies will make you feel better about yourself so which do you prefer - To feel better or to really help the poor?
The thing about the rich is, they're never rich enough.
What you say would only be true if "trickle-down economics" were more than a right-wing fantasy. It isn't.
1
“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime” is a quote from the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu.
If corporations had left the factories here in America opened and thriving and then expanded into China and opened factories there with comparable wages to those paid in the US what incredible consumers would that expansion have lead to and preserved? Instead they all but destroyed their markets in the US and did not create a comparable market in China. Foolish, foolish capitalists who could have made billions and a enriched the world. Instead we have had recession after recession, slow growth and the devastation of America and the exploitation of the Chinese.
What is wanted are jobs that people can actually support themselves with and that will float the boats of the working people of the world. Your salve of blood money is not wanted.
If corporations had left the factories here in America opened and thriving and then expanded into China and opened factories there with comparable wages to those paid in the US what incredible consumers would that expansion have lead to and preserved? Instead they all but destroyed their markets in the US and did not create a comparable market in China. Foolish, foolish capitalists who could have made billions and a enriched the world. Instead we have had recession after recession, slow growth and the devastation of America and the exploitation of the Chinese.
What is wanted are jobs that people can actually support themselves with and that will float the boats of the working people of the world. Your salve of blood money is not wanted.
10
Indeed. If the corporatists really cared about the world poverty, they would open factories that paid American wages. They would attract the best workers in the host country and really spread prosperity.
But spreading prosperity was never their goal. It has always been about cheap labor.
But spreading prosperity was never their goal. It has always been about cheap labor.
You would think, in a time of declining jobs and rising unemployment (40% or so, not the fantasy figures from the Dept. of Labor - if ever there was a misnamed entity) that now would be a bad time to IMPORT more unskilled labor, but, I haven't the brilliance of mind (the smartest HUMAN being to ever break wind, my god, just look at the crease in those pants!!) of our dear leader who doubtless is doing his all for the USA.
Perhaps we could close the borders, for just a spell, and SEE if Americans will take those jobs or not.
Perhaps we could close the borders, for just a spell, and SEE if Americans will take those jobs or not.
6
Or perhaps we could check the numbers on immigration these days, what with half your illegals being people who overstay a legal visa and net immigration being at zero.
But then, taking Donald Trump's hilarious figures seriously doesn't suggest somebody who'll be much interested in reality.
But then, taking Donald Trump's hilarious figures seriously doesn't suggest somebody who'll be much interested in reality.
1
Perhaps you would prefer to see the president dressed like a slob? Why don't you ask the republicans for whom you ostensibly vote to do something about immigration reform instead of just trying to take the crease out Obama's pants?
1
Right on. And please let's not forget the hypocrisy of promoting inflationary economic policies and then rallying as a champion of the poor to support raising the minimum wage which is forever falling behind the rising cost of living.
Setting in place the mechanism of creating crises and then riding in to the rescue seem unfortunately to be the life blood of our dysfunctional political system. For heaven's sake we have crises enough with deliberately making more.
Setting in place the mechanism of creating crises and then riding in to the rescue seem unfortunately to be the life blood of our dysfunctional political system. For heaven's sake we have crises enough with deliberately making more.
3
I think Kathy K made the point best when she pointed out the irony that the ghost towns and shuttered factories and lines of unemployed also happened when the textile industry abandoned New England for the Deep South and maybe when New England wrested the textile trade from England.
Indeed, change has been so rapid in China that in the space of little over a 35-40 years places like Dongguan have gone from being a small fishing village to an industrial powerhouse and is now on its way to being part of China's rust belt.
It is silly to lash out at heartless capitalists for the pain that accompanies economic change. Theroux makes it sound as if the executives who outsourced production to China had any real say in the matter. They could bring the work back in a second if they really cared.
But that is ridiculous: If clothes and bikes can be made more cheaply in China than in Hollandale, Miss., then a US retailer is faced with two choices: Either it closes its plant in Hollandale and imports clothes and bikes from China, or it closes its plant in Hollandale and watches its competitors import clothes and bikes from China. This isn't a matter of becoming a multi-billionaire; it is a simple matter of economic survival.
Btw, it's not just trade. Technological innovation also shutters factories.
I have just been reading Sir Vidia's Shadow. It's great. My frank advice: Stick to literature and travelogues.
Indeed, change has been so rapid in China that in the space of little over a 35-40 years places like Dongguan have gone from being a small fishing village to an industrial powerhouse and is now on its way to being part of China's rust belt.
It is silly to lash out at heartless capitalists for the pain that accompanies economic change. Theroux makes it sound as if the executives who outsourced production to China had any real say in the matter. They could bring the work back in a second if they really cared.
But that is ridiculous: If clothes and bikes can be made more cheaply in China than in Hollandale, Miss., then a US retailer is faced with two choices: Either it closes its plant in Hollandale and imports clothes and bikes from China, or it closes its plant in Hollandale and watches its competitors import clothes and bikes from China. This isn't a matter of becoming a multi-billionaire; it is a simple matter of economic survival.
Btw, it's not just trade. Technological innovation also shutters factories.
I have just been reading Sir Vidia's Shadow. It's great. My frank advice: Stick to literature and travelogues.
2
Fantastic essay. In just a few paragraphs Paul Theroux skewers America's much admired billionaires.
BTW, similar conditions exist in rural New England. Drive through some former mill towns that haven't been able to capitalize on revitalization efforts and you'd swear you were in parts of the third world.
BTW, similar conditions exist in rural New England. Drive through some former mill towns that haven't been able to capitalize on revitalization efforts and you'd swear you were in parts of the third world.
13
the South? all those jobs you talked about used to be Union and in the North.
5
I don't mind corporations outsourcing, making obscene profits, hiring armies of Accountants to evade taxes and stashing their money in the Caymans.............. as long as there's a guaranteed income for every American of say, $50K and we have Universal Healthcare and Education and Housing.
8
Hey, how about some investment in Detroit??
6
At one of our dinners, Milton recalled traveling to an Asian country in the 1960s and visiting a worksite where a new canal was being built. He was shocked to see that, instead of modern tractors and earth movers, the workers had shovels. He asked why there were so few machines. The government bureaucrat explained: “You don’t understand. This is a jobs program.” To which Milton replied: “Oh, I thought you were trying to build a canal. If it’s jobs you want, then you should give these workers spoons, not shovels.”
3
This essay seemed as intent on bashing Bill and Hillary as the outsourcing CEOs.
2
We can vote with our dollars as well as our ballots. Look for "made in America labels." Sometimes, it's impossible to find a product made here, but often it is doable. Speak up. Tell store managers that you chose to NOT buy something because you couldn't find a made in America product. If enough people send that message, re-shoring will happen more quickly. Do not underestimate the power of your "share of wallet."
1
God bless you, Paul.
The devastation of offshoring is one of the most important -- and least told -- stories of the past 25 years or more.
Thanks also for your reference to Mr. Moore's "The Big One". When I saw this movie, it was already at least seven years old ... but it was just as relevant then, and still is today. In city after city, Moore visited plants that were being shut down by major corporations which ADMITTED THAT THE PLANTS WERE PROFITABLE.
There's a fundamental moral problem here.
The devastation of offshoring is one of the most important -- and least told -- stories of the past 25 years or more.
Thanks also for your reference to Mr. Moore's "The Big One". When I saw this movie, it was already at least seven years old ... but it was just as relevant then, and still is today. In city after city, Moore visited plants that were being shut down by major corporations which ADMITTED THAT THE PLANTS WERE PROFITABLE.
There's a fundamental moral problem here.
4
I think you gave too much credit to Apple and Tim Cook's for China's economic growth. Out of the $600, or $700 you paid for an i-phone-- about $3 goes to the value added by Chinese workers.
11
I stopped reading after " when Hollandale's CITIZENS lost their JOBS in the cotton fields". I may need a day or two to process and perhaps research that statement before I can fully grasp the hypocrisy part.
4
I must respond to this new york comment . . . having come from middle tennessee in the sixties, i have some still living relatives who "picked cotton" to buy their first bicycles . . . in the summer and after school . . . we are all aware of what happened there but that is not the entire story . . . read some or know some people who lived it . . . before you rant . . .
a white man in dallas texas William Wilson
a white man in dallas texas William Wilson
Thank you. I recall some years ago the same author observed that when he was in the Peace Corps in Africa people were relatively content. When he went back years later life had massively deteriorated for the Africans due to unbridled population growth. Perhaps if humans did not procreate so rapidly they would be valued and it would be impossible to make sneakers in third world countries because the wages there would rise. Now human labor is incredibly cheap. If there were not so many babies.....and people could say no to slave wages.....
5
" why don’t they understand the simple fact that what people want is not a handout along with the uplift ditty but a decent job?"
They are too "progressive" to open factories in the south or right to work states. And they are too smart to expose their businesses to the likes of the UAW.
They are too "progressive" to open factories in the south or right to work states. And they are too smart to expose their businesses to the likes of the UAW.
2
Bravo! It's not just the deep south that these oligarchs impoverish. Think Detroit.
5
all true, except for the use of the word "earn" to describe what Tim Cook is paid.
6
I was raised in North Rural Alabama in Marshall County and have witnessed it also! I was diagnosed HIV positive in 1988 of October,and living a great life! I focus on HIV related articles and I would like everyone who has commented to google HIV in the South! Its alarming what's happening at this very moment!
There are those who wont get tested out of fear of being found out about,there or those who have no clue of their status,going around and infecting others! Its a domino effect! If they do disclose there status to the doctor in a rural area,the first thing that is said with arms folded is How did you get it? The only social outlet for those who have learned of their status is there church,and if disclosed to the church,their shunned away,and judged and condemned! There are no access to medications,programs,or support groups!
There are those who wont get tested out of fear of being found out about,there or those who have no clue of their status,going around and infecting others! Its a domino effect! If they do disclose there status to the doctor in a rural area,the first thing that is said with arms folded is How did you get it? The only social outlet for those who have learned of their status is there church,and if disclosed to the church,their shunned away,and judged and condemned! There are no access to medications,programs,or support groups!
1
Mr Theroux, I agree with you 100%. Perhaps you could gain access to the Clintons, the Cooks, the Gates', the Knights, etc, and convince them to use their influence to bring jobs back to the US.
4
Ah yes, capitalism at it worst.
2
"Big companies have always sought cheaper labor, moving from North to South in the United States, looking for the hungriest, the most desperate, the least organized, the most exploitable." This say's it all. In our version of capitalism, profits are all that matters. So to reverse the process of sending jobs offshore a policy needs to be implemented that makes it profitable to keep or create jobs here in the United States. I'm not wise enough in economics to know what is the best approach, but some ideas might be making access to our market, the largest in the world, dependent on the product being made or assembled in this country, or perhaps adding a large enough tariff to American companies that produce their products oversees to make it more profitable to make the product here (if this makes the product too expensive to compete here, so be it). The politicians talk a lot about the global trade deals creating jobs for American products but that's just politician speak. What these deals do is make it easier and more profitable for American corporations to move jobs offshore. Here's an idea, tax the corporations 50 percent who offshore jobs and only 30 percent when they make the product here. Boy won't the Corporations love that!
6
I am so impressed by this article and the commentary by your readers. There were so many good points that it would take a book to respond. It is interesting that the American people are so concerned about abortion and Gay rights that they have little interest in a discussion on corporate greed and their own economic well being.
5
the issues you mention are the red meat thrown to the masses to deflect them from thinking about anything important and instead to chastise a female who has an abortion even if she's 14 and was impregnated by her daddy or complain that two gay people want to engage in the legal contract that is the essence of marriage. Not thinking about the real stuff is why they vote GOP.
I love when people say, "I know we are friends, but this is business". Supposedly allowing one to do something to a friend they would not otherwise do. So when a business says I know this is our country, but this is business, which allows them to do to this country what we would never let a foreign country do to us...impoverish us. Who is our worst enemy?
5
William Stringfellow's "My People is the Enemy" had some thoughts about
these people - rich and poor.
these people - rich and poor.
1
Take the Amtrak City of New Orleans train from Chicago to New Orleans. It passes right through the delta. Even fifteen years ago, it was shocking. I will never forget the conditions I observed just passing through.
5
Capitalist justify their profits. Only fools believe the explanations.
1
As I read the article I opened google streetview and made my own trip across the cities mentioned here and I wondered, does the author really knows a third country poor town?
1
Oh please. Americans are happy to benefit from cheap labor by piling up material goods they would have been unable to afford had those goods been made domestically. Let's stop being hypocrites. Our priority is our wallets, not the jobs of our factory workers.
3
Personally I would really like to be able to buy a good quality refrigerator or washing machine as I did when they were made in the USA. Now I pay for a cadillac but get an imported piece of junk with a lifespan of 10 years, which goes into the landfill when it cannot be repaired. Tell me how that has been my choice.
1
PT is correct in citing the lack of intellectual contribution to this problem by top executives. They all have advanced B-school degrees, earn plenty, have resources at their disposal, even have good intentions, but none of this seems to bring forth proposals to help. For example, they want to repatriate $2 Trillion in profits at some lower tax rate. OK, but what about some constructive investment earmarks to justify America's investment in them?
4
Mr. Theroux's piercing revelation is true not only of the Deep South, but of a huge swath of the American landscape around the Great Lakes known also as "The Rust Belt." Philanthropy in all its forms, private, community and corporate foundations try to help but in reality are merely tax exempt consolation prizes for corporations and the heirs of corporate leaders whose business decisions to move manufacuring abroad has impoverished what was once a thriving middle class.
9
Excellent, excellent article. I hope the media runs with it and Obama devotes a full speech to it. Time for us to help ourselves. Let follow the Sweden model.
3
Doubtless, many of these policies were hammered out in roiling egalitarian forums like Davos and Aspen.
This is why I think Warren Buffet is the Devil Incarnate and refuse to be impressed by reports of his "charity." Money is the easiest thing to give when you have it.
1
Thank you Mr. Theroux. I've enjoyed several of your books about exotic lands. I'm glad you've now turned to the US for material, especially stories like this that contain information that all Americans should have. The only thing you forgot to include is the tax breaks the wealthy obtain for giving to 'charity', which they would not receive if the same money was being paid to workers employed be them.
3
This is one of the best I have read in some time. GE just announced they were moving a plant to Canada; Imelt justified sending US jobs to cheap labor in India as the effect of "globalization". Steve Jobs did this and the administration glorified him. Disney just gave its Orlando IT US jobs to Indians and made the US employees train their cheap labor replacements,
I will vote for the candidate who stakes a position that he or she will penalize executives and companies for doing this. This will be my litmus test.
I will vote for the candidate who stakes a position that he or she will penalize executives and companies for doing this. This will be my litmus test.
125
Vote for the candidate that has proven over time that he or she will penalize executives and companies. One who does not take their money else you will get a politician who just makes false promises to get elected.
GE stated that it is moving a gas engine plant to Canada because Congress has cut off funding for the US Import-Export Development Bank and GE will be able to get funding from Export Development Canada. Corporations can be blamed in many instances for outsourcing jobs but this doesn't seem to be one of those cases.
So are we condemned to live in a zero sum economy, at least when viewed at a global scale? Jobs either go to poor people in rich countries or to the poor in poor countries, but not both simultaneously? If manufacturing and BPO jobs return to the United States, what happens (at least in the near term) to the poor and middle classes in China and India? Is it possible to lift underdeveloped economies in situ, without any trade with rich countries? India and China did try that experiment from post-WW2 to the end of the Cold War; they followed the import substitution philosophy, tried to build up their economies from within, and protect those economies from all foreign influences. These experiments were spectacular failures, condemning millions to dire poverty. After the end of the Cold War, we were asked (forced) to join the global capitalist system by opening up our economies. We did so, played by the rules of the capitalist game, and manage to achieve a couple of decades of economic growth. Should we voluntarily surrender ourselves back to poverty by reversing that process?
Can our world only afford to have a few affluent countries, with the rest condemned to suffer on the margins?
Can our world only afford to have a few affluent countries, with the rest condemned to suffer on the margins?
36
Damning report about our hypocrisy in trying to sound magnanimous...while doing nothing for those displaced workers, now left alone, biting the dust. Are these rich and powerful folks aware of their disengagement and hypocrisy? In spite of their blindingly wide social distance, I suspect some awareness is there, but not the courage to change things for the better. Pusillanimous.
2
Poverty in the U.S.A. is a cruel and intentional choice that is painfully obvious. We should blame, and if you are part of this group you should blame yourself, the ignorant Republican voter. There is not a single platform position by the GOP that benefits solely the poor and the middle-class. If you vote Republican and still believe in the lies of free-market capitalism and supply-side economics then you are complicit in the suffering of over 43 million Americans. The economic data is clear and not refutable; blame Republicans.
We should also accept that we no longer live in a Republic or functional Democracy. We live in a Plutocracy not an oligarchy or a Socialist nation the idiots mentioned above would have you believe. Corporations and the wealthy individuals who control them dictate who is elected and they, literally, write legislation into law. They are the wealthy who enjoy a legal system that is more ‘just’ for them. They are also those who dictate what is reported as ‘news’ in this country and they sell our Horatio Alger myth to every man, women, and child born in the U.S.
We have decided to foster and live with lie after lie in this country. We live with the lie of 'American Exceptionalism' whose truth is that we are exceptional at maintaining the propaganda of our deception. We inflict suffering on 10s of millions because it is profitable to do so not because we cannot afford to care for everyone. Poverty is big and profitable business and business is booming.
We should also accept that we no longer live in a Republic or functional Democracy. We live in a Plutocracy not an oligarchy or a Socialist nation the idiots mentioned above would have you believe. Corporations and the wealthy individuals who control them dictate who is elected and they, literally, write legislation into law. They are the wealthy who enjoy a legal system that is more ‘just’ for them. They are also those who dictate what is reported as ‘news’ in this country and they sell our Horatio Alger myth to every man, women, and child born in the U.S.
We have decided to foster and live with lie after lie in this country. We live with the lie of 'American Exceptionalism' whose truth is that we are exceptional at maintaining the propaganda of our deception. We inflict suffering on 10s of millions because it is profitable to do so not because we cannot afford to care for everyone. Poverty is big and profitable business and business is booming.
11
Long before we lost jobs to China -- way back around 1960 -- at which time we were losing jobs to Japan and Eastern Europe (shoes) we had welfare queens. I was contemplating the fate of Portsmouth, Oh. which saw its steel mill (now a Walmart) and shoe factory close. Now the former oxycontin capital (heroin nowadays) has a state university, several Mexican restaurants (but no ESL courses), a couple of large hospitals and many well-paid MDs (thank you medicaid and medicare and all you Leftists out there). Meantime population has shrunk... Lovely old buildings have been demolished for the parking lot for the humungous Krogers and various banks. Sears is gone -- all of the local department stores are gone. The Holiday Inn (brand new) is gorgeous and when the highway bypass (not needed but hey someone want to make moohla) is completed I really wonder what will happen. Jobs have been migrating now for a long time. (And raising the minimum wage to 15$ an hour and 2 billion more to the population is not going to make things better!!) Birth control? and let's actually do learn to conserve and preserve... NO MORE HOME CONSTRUCTION -- that should not be driving the economy and PS some economists do agree... and some people think biodiversity or saving the various species on the planet might be a good thing. Eat insects -- high in protein, low in fat but I have seen neither a grasshopper nor a cricket ina coon's age not even in Ohio.
1
Thanks, Paul, for this excellent essay. For a long time I wondered by no one talked about this. No one who could get published in the NYTimes.
What is even more disgusting this that Clinton was the president who signed away one of our safety nets. He not only ignored the American poor but he actively hurt them. After all he had to get funding for funding for his "foundation" from the rich. But he obviously never bothered to follow through and see what hells he piled on the vulnerable. It is not just the South of there are hidden pockets of extreme poverty all over California that even Jerry Brown doesn't notice. California is not run by Republicans but by Democrats. They appear not to care either. Again, thanks for this thoughtful column.
What is even more disgusting this that Clinton was the president who signed away one of our safety nets. He not only ignored the American poor but he actively hurt them. After all he had to get funding for funding for his "foundation" from the rich. But he obviously never bothered to follow through and see what hells he piled on the vulnerable. It is not just the South of there are hidden pockets of extreme poverty all over California that even Jerry Brown doesn't notice. California is not run by Republicans but by Democrats. They appear not to care either. Again, thanks for this thoughtful column.
2
Free trade is damned expensive.
I was raised in Martinsville, Virginia -- a city very similar to those highlighted by Mr. Theroux.
Once upon a time it was the sweatshirt capital of the world (and now has no fleece production to speak of), had the world's largest nylon plant (now bulldozed), and, in the surrounding Henry county, had the world's largest furniture plant (still there, but shrunken by about 95%).
Bassett, Stanley, Pulaski, Hooker, or American of Martinsville furniture, sweatshirts from Tultex, Pannill, or Bassett-Walker, and DuPont nylon now come from Asia in most cases.
As a consequence, Martinsville had, in the recent past, 21% unemployment rate, among the highest in the country (and this is after many residents have left the area for lack of work).
And the carnage extends beyond just the factory workers to engineers, technology workers, and mid-level managers, all of whom are now unemployed as well. Martinsville and Henry County doesn't have much of a middle class anymore.
I understand the traditional economic theory about free trade benefiting trading economies. What we are experiencing now, however, does not fit the traditional model: people who live in concrete dormitories and earn 85¢ an hour (the typical Chines wage) can’t buy anything that we produce here.
If our current, grossly asymmetric trade policies continue in their current form, the United States will mirror Martinsville before too long (Martinsville's descent took less than 15 years).
I was raised in Martinsville, Virginia -- a city very similar to those highlighted by Mr. Theroux.
Once upon a time it was the sweatshirt capital of the world (and now has no fleece production to speak of), had the world's largest nylon plant (now bulldozed), and, in the surrounding Henry county, had the world's largest furniture plant (still there, but shrunken by about 95%).
Bassett, Stanley, Pulaski, Hooker, or American of Martinsville furniture, sweatshirts from Tultex, Pannill, or Bassett-Walker, and DuPont nylon now come from Asia in most cases.
As a consequence, Martinsville had, in the recent past, 21% unemployment rate, among the highest in the country (and this is after many residents have left the area for lack of work).
And the carnage extends beyond just the factory workers to engineers, technology workers, and mid-level managers, all of whom are now unemployed as well. Martinsville and Henry County doesn't have much of a middle class anymore.
I understand the traditional economic theory about free trade benefiting trading economies. What we are experiencing now, however, does not fit the traditional model: people who live in concrete dormitories and earn 85¢ an hour (the typical Chines wage) can’t buy anything that we produce here.
If our current, grossly asymmetric trade policies continue in their current form, the United States will mirror Martinsville before too long (Martinsville's descent took less than 15 years).
2
One aspect of the white savior complex is that after 'saving' the dysfunctional 'other' culture from themselves, the great white hope leaves feeling ever so much better about their sanctimonious selves. Not so easy to do when the impoverished are your own creation and they live in your backyard. This is why the fence building/hiding and hedge planting/funding are hand-in-hand with campaign discourse. The rich don't want to see it, and they sure as hell don't want to do anything about it. And their very deep pockets will make sure they don't have to.
1
I thought this op-ed piece, from a writer I greatly respect, was bizarre. Lots of straw men and false choices (African elephants vs. “saving” the Southern poor???? Why couldn't the Clinton Foundation do both? Oh, I see, then it would be hypocritical, just like Tim Cook?). In the end, it just seemed ridiculously simplistic and naive to me. So Tim Cook should start making iPhones in the South with poor Southern (untrained) workers, who are paid a “living wage” (presumably well above minimum), and then what? Declare bankruptcy when iPhones become so over-priced (particularly outside the US) that his market share evaporates? What good would that do? And is it better if he just hoards his wealth as opposed to donating it to charitable causes? Dumb, dumb, dumb.
2
The hypocrisy of Theroux's xenophobic diatribe is in holding that America's poor have special rights versus China's, Zimbabwe's or any other country. They don't. If Theroux really cared about jobs moving out of the Delta, he should focus on why companies find these locations less desirable. And the answer is not wages.
2
This country did not become prosperous by sitting around waiting for someone to build a factory and hire a bunch of people. This country was built with sweat labor, building and farming etc. All people have needs and those needs have to be met which means there is opportunity everywhere there are people. You don't have to be employed by someone to get to work, you have your hands and your brains, look around and use your resources wisely. Why are illegals working?, they like eating.
1
Cogently argued and well thought-out... I am amazed that no one has made Mr. Theroux a CEO by now
Oh yeah... now I recall... because he is a travel writer with no experience running anything... ever.... in his life.
Oh yeah... now I recall... because he is a travel writer with no experience running anything... ever.... in his life.
2
Never has an essential truth been spoken more clearly and simply. Simply drive around rural South Carolina, up the I-95 "corridor of shame" or go to the clinics trying to treat the rampant and growing HIV epidemic and you wonder where is the Clinton and Gates foundations....and as plainly spoken by Theroux, where are the jobs?
6
You sound like part of the Washington village's and the media's continual chorus against the Clintons. "What the town had on hand to spend for police officers, firefighters, public works, outreach, welfare and town hall salaries was roughly the amount of a Bill or Hillary one-night-stand lecture fee."
And "The other day, in an attempt at mortification, I looked at the Clinton Foundation website and saw as the leading headline, “Partnership to Save Africa’s Elephants.” Since I had recently been in rural Arkansas, I thought: If you want to help closer to home, how about the black family farmers in the Delta...?"
Perhaps you've forgotten that during the time when the Clintons held national office, we had the best employment record, the best job creation rate, and the longest period of financial success in history? Don't you realize that the South, and the entire country, was much better off during that period? What is your beef with them? You should hold them up as good examples of policies that actually helped poor Americans. Talk about "hypocrisy."
And "The other day, in an attempt at mortification, I looked at the Clinton Foundation website and saw as the leading headline, “Partnership to Save Africa’s Elephants.” Since I had recently been in rural Arkansas, I thought: If you want to help closer to home, how about the black family farmers in the Delta...?"
Perhaps you've forgotten that during the time when the Clintons held national office, we had the best employment record, the best job creation rate, and the longest period of financial success in history? Don't you realize that the South, and the entire country, was much better off during that period? What is your beef with them? You should hold them up as good examples of policies that actually helped poor Americans. Talk about "hypocrisy."
1
Finally a sensible opinion graces the NY Times. Add H1B visas to crimes committed by Benedict Arnold CEOS like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and the rest of the Silicon Valley elite. All have made their fortunes by selling primarily to Americans while displacing American workers with cheaper, inferior H1B Visa workers. Hopefully these CEOs will be "outsourced" in the afterlife and sent straight to Hades.
5
Excellent article and a necessary corrective to yesterday's column by Nicholas Kristof who clearly has drunk the globalization Kool-Aid.
4
Hmmm, so yet another progressive who's dismayed by all this "progress" stuff. Paul, globalization is progress, I'm sorry to inform you. 600 million Chinese lifted out of poverty is both progress and a good thing. (What have you got against the Chinese, btw?) And it's going to keep happening, possibly in ways you don't always like. Progress doesn't care about Paul Theroux's opinion, as astonishing as that seems.
Listen, I'm a shareholder in just about all of the companies you mention in this column (except the auto companies; I'm an investor, not a fool). As an owner, I want these companies to maximize returns to me while working within the law, so I can retire while I still have a few years left to enjoy. That's their responsibility, period. They and I aren't responsible for your sad feelings.
But buck up, Paul! There's a great solution right at hand. You can put together a Kickstarter with all of your sad, progressive friends and start "Paul Theroux's Social Justice Shoes" (Theroux's Shoes, not bad, huh?). You can scoop up all of those highly skilled Southerners who can't wait to make some awesome shoes and pay them all a nice fat "living wage" (I'm thinking $80/hr. to start). I'm sure folks won't think twice about buying your $600 sneakers, since they're made in good old America!! You'll show those fools at Nike! Please keep me posted on how all of it goes.
Listen, I'm a shareholder in just about all of the companies you mention in this column (except the auto companies; I'm an investor, not a fool). As an owner, I want these companies to maximize returns to me while working within the law, so I can retire while I still have a few years left to enjoy. That's their responsibility, period. They and I aren't responsible for your sad feelings.
But buck up, Paul! There's a great solution right at hand. You can put together a Kickstarter with all of your sad, progressive friends and start "Paul Theroux's Social Justice Shoes" (Theroux's Shoes, not bad, huh?). You can scoop up all of those highly skilled Southerners who can't wait to make some awesome shoes and pay them all a nice fat "living wage" (I'm thinking $80/hr. to start). I'm sure folks won't think twice about buying your $600 sneakers, since they're made in good old America!! You'll show those fools at Nike! Please keep me posted on how all of it goes.
4
Only Karen Garcia succinctly details "the rest of the story." Speaking of Paul Harvey's Rest-of-the-Story broadcasts,
"THEY" had slavery around d here once, and "THEY" liked it.
"THEY" had slavery around d here once, and "THEY" liked it.
I've seen some crocodile tears for the poor outside our borders, crocodile tears for the poor being one of the favorite defense mechanisms of the greedy rich.
You know, "We can't raise the minimum wage, because it will throw the poor out of work."
"We can't continue to finance public schools, because the poor deserve to attend my friend's new profit-making charter school."
"We can't build urban rail systems, because the poor need buses (which are made by auto companies and need tires and gas)."
"We can't mandate more nutritious food, because the poor can't afford it." (And whose fault is that?)
"We have to have our sports-industrial complex, because it's the only way poor people can get a college education." (God forbid that they should qualify for academic scholarships.)
"We can't have pollution controls, because it will destroy jobs."
The statements in this column strike me as being self-justifying ways of saying, "I need to continue finding cheap labor, no matter who gets hurt, but I'll give a huge contribution to UNICEF to make up for it."
You know, "We can't raise the minimum wage, because it will throw the poor out of work."
"We can't continue to finance public schools, because the poor deserve to attend my friend's new profit-making charter school."
"We can't build urban rail systems, because the poor need buses (which are made by auto companies and need tires and gas)."
"We can't mandate more nutritious food, because the poor can't afford it." (And whose fault is that?)
"We have to have our sports-industrial complex, because it's the only way poor people can get a college education." (God forbid that they should qualify for academic scholarships.)
"We can't have pollution controls, because it will destroy jobs."
The statements in this column strike me as being self-justifying ways of saying, "I need to continue finding cheap labor, no matter who gets hurt, but I'll give a huge contribution to UNICEF to make up for it."
4
Exactly. Capitalists have somehow forgotten that if they are in the business of selling goods and services someone needs to be able to pay for them. And, they would like to, rather than need a helping hand.
1
When we are asking foreign monies to invest in America it doesn't take a rocket scientist to conclude there is a high probability that America is for sale. A house divided cannot stand, yet, this is home to people, which have preformed well.
There's still hope because of the persons' in Obama's administration and this is a new life for American corporations.
There's still hope because of the persons' in Obama's administration and this is a new life for American corporations.
1
Wall Street is like a machine that sucks money from the hinterlands, ships it to the big cities under the pretense of "free market capitalism" ( you know, the most efficient producer wins). As the hinterlands become a basket case, the cost is on someone elses back. That hides in the name of "disruptive innovation". Innovation for who? Wealth has shiftwd to a few out of towners and sophomeric accounting has missed the total picture over time leaving a lot of pain and suffering behind.
What makes sense dollar & cents wise does not account for the total picture, espcecilly when time and place is disregarded.
What makes sense dollar & cents wise does not account for the total picture, espcecilly when time and place is disregarded.
1
Ross Perot was the only presidential candidate to warn us that jobs would go overseas with the trade agreements.
1
I wanted to thank both the author and the commenters I learned a great deal. It was especially illuminating to learn how the jobs moved from the NorthEast to the South and then to China.
'Mystagogies' - I love it! A great, actually 'liberal' article in the NYT - who would have thunk? But the south of the US votes conservative, so we must assume they don't care that their jobs have gone overseas to exalt the rich owners who benefit. That is their right. And one would hope that the countries who benefit through higher living standards would be appreciative. But they are not really out friends. So why do we do it?
Yes hypocrisy -- It is "kind" to throw taxpayer money at someone who is kept in poverty to keep a party in power. but an abomination to fight for (or at least not drive out of the country) proud jobs.
The hatred and division that steals votes for the Democrats is not evident in China -- they will do ANYTHING, fair, foul, legal, illegal to gain jobs for their people. They are throwing money they get from we cowards "outsourcing" our manufacturing to them to buying governments and government projects around the world. Every one of the projects with workers flown in from China.
The answer is easy -- fair competition in tech and manufacturing -- but that would take the wealth and power from our present rulers who interpret our own laws for us. Good luck to that!
The hatred and division that steals votes for the Democrats is not evident in China -- they will do ANYTHING, fair, foul, legal, illegal to gain jobs for their people. They are throwing money they get from we cowards "outsourcing" our manufacturing to them to buying governments and government projects around the world. Every one of the projects with workers flown in from China.
The answer is easy -- fair competition in tech and manufacturing -- but that would take the wealth and power from our present rulers who interpret our own laws for us. Good luck to that!
It would be nice if the Clinton foundation folks would help in America. I don't think they'd do much good though. They're efforts in Haiti appear to have not done anything except be a money sinkhole for Hillary's brother. Bill and Melinda Gates do good work in America, but I feel they have somewhat of a narrow view of what charter schools can actually accomplish (I know many charter schools do good. If I lived in some place where it's difficult to get a proper education in Biology I'd look into neighboring secular charter school, but the biggest impression that I have of charter schools is that they reflect American domestic disaster capitalism....much like the efforts to help Haiti.)
Mr. Theroux makes no distinction between a family in sub-Saharan Africa trying to live on $1.25 a day and an out-of-work former textile worker in South Carolina with an home, automobile, TV, and ample food. He is marketing his book; not empathizing with American victims. Poverty is a relative thing.
2
Department of Extreme Irony: On my browser, the page with Mr. Theroux's story had an ad for "Made in India." As long as Americans are addicted to cheap goods and the marginalized are kept out of sight, nothing will change. Thanks for an excellent and thought-provoking article.
I agree with Mr. Theroux that charity starts at home. The problem extends to sensitive technology transfers, something the Clintons are very familiar with, and has resulted in damage to our national security. I hope Bernie or Trump can reverse decades of neglect. It is not to late to turn this ship around. The gains from trade are held in overseas accounts because the multinationals have co-opted the Congress. We have tremendous challenges to rebuild the nation's infrastructure and to fix a vulnerable power grid. Until solar panels become ubiquitous, power station transformers should be classified as an essential part of national security.
1
$20 Trillion has been stolen from the Producers
and given to the Consumers since LBJ
Yet the poverty rate is the same 15%
rewarding the poor for being poor turns out to be a very stupid idea...
and given to the Consumers since LBJ
Yet the poverty rate is the same 15%
rewarding the poor for being poor turns out to be a very stupid idea...
1
And punishing the poor for being poor has always been evil...
These days, you are supposed to focus on the positive.
You know, like the billionaires of silicon valley who made their billions by creating addictive time wasters.
Or the property speculators who live off the regular financial system bailouts.
Or the million dollar studios in Manhattan.
Or the hedge funders permanently stuck the Fed's breast.
Or the "non profit' health care providers who seem to be building ever larger facilities, where entry is likely to result in bankruptcy.
Or talk about "innovation" in the abstract.
Basically think and be "mentally" with the rich, in the hope that you will become one of them.
The media has a large role to play in this, of course, as they become the key power brokers where there is no society, just self interested individuals.
You know, like the billionaires of silicon valley who made their billions by creating addictive time wasters.
Or the property speculators who live off the regular financial system bailouts.
Or the million dollar studios in Manhattan.
Or the hedge funders permanently stuck the Fed's breast.
Or the "non profit' health care providers who seem to be building ever larger facilities, where entry is likely to result in bankruptcy.
Or talk about "innovation" in the abstract.
Basically think and be "mentally" with the rich, in the hope that you will become one of them.
The media has a large role to play in this, of course, as they become the key power brokers where there is no society, just self interested individuals.
People tend to think that companies who have outsourced are located far away (just as shootings can't happen here). However, for a few months in a university town here in Florida, I worked for a company making surgical instruments. The employees (mostly middle-aged women) were making extremely low wages, but felt they could not quit because (1) they needed the health insurance for children and sick people at home they had to support (often disabled husbands who had been injured at work), and (2) they could not find work elsewhere. Yet the owner ended it all by outsourcing the company to avoid taxes, although he was already making a healthy profit from selling his products all over the world.
2
Good description of the effects, but Theroux offers no solution. Would he espouse complete economic isolation so that we only consume what we produce AND we export nothing? Or should there be regulations so that foreign products have no cost advantage to domestic products?
The challenge of a business is to stay in business so it can provide earnings to shareholders, jobs for employees, and tax money to support bureaucrats telling it what to do (though they have little knowledge).
The challenge of a business is to stay in business so it can provide earnings to shareholders, jobs for employees, and tax money to support bureaucrats telling it what to do (though they have little knowledge).
1
Be sure and read the Dems push for "Negotiations on Trans-Pacific Trade Pact Are Extended, Fueling Hope" in todays US section. The TPP also removes the $6 duty on tennis shoes, that will help!
1
A silly story. Let’s assume not a single American company ever outsourced a job. Foreign companies would simply fill the gap and, absent a trade barrier, the same cheap foreign labor would still present a formidable challenge. American auto companies didn't outsource jobs to Germany or Japan, but they got their lunches eaten by quality, inexpensive imports.
The bigger problem is governmental policy. We impose the highest business taxes in the world. Try to build anything, anywhere; try to dig a whole; try to use power. And watch the ecos complain – or file suit – contending you’re an environmental rapist.
In many cases, we’re not losing jobs to China or Mexico, but to Canada and Ireland. But the left keeps demanding ever higher taxes on business and ever stricter regulations, with entirely predictable results.
Wishful thinking and good intentions are no substitute for an understanding of simple economics. Businesses might be willing to pay higher American wages were they not paying confiscatory American taxes and stymied by draconian American regulations,
The bigger problem is governmental policy. We impose the highest business taxes in the world. Try to build anything, anywhere; try to dig a whole; try to use power. And watch the ecos complain – or file suit – contending you’re an environmental rapist.
In many cases, we’re not losing jobs to China or Mexico, but to Canada and Ireland. But the left keeps demanding ever higher taxes on business and ever stricter regulations, with entirely predictable results.
Wishful thinking and good intentions are no substitute for an understanding of simple economics. Businesses might be willing to pay higher American wages were they not paying confiscatory American taxes and stymied by draconian American regulations,
3
From the perspective of an outsider, if anything it is narrow-minded and hypocritical to only speak of the poor in the US. Free trade and globalization can truly be an effective way to elevate the poor in developing countries and at the same produce cheaper. By forcing companies to produce good in the US when it is more expensive, the manufacturing process will be ineffective and also help exclude developing countries from getting richer through free trade. Instead, the discussion should be how to make the US workers – not forcing companies to make their production process ineffective.
Corporations can't solve this problem. It would be suicide for them to move their production back to the US . . . as long as their competitors can continue to take advantage of the lower costs of low wage, no regulation third world sweatshops.
The answer has got to be political, and it has got to include dismissing everything we have been indoctrinated to believe about competition and free enterprise. In a global market, WE will be priced out of jobs. Protectionism won't be as efficient as laissez-faire, but when "efficiency" means destroying our own livelihoods to make our corporations more profitable, I'd say it is a virtue we can do without.
The answer has got to be political, and it has got to include dismissing everything we have been indoctrinated to believe about competition and free enterprise. In a global market, WE will be priced out of jobs. Protectionism won't be as efficient as laissez-faire, but when "efficiency" means destroying our own livelihoods to make our corporations more profitable, I'd say it is a virtue we can do without.
2
Ah yes, evil corporations. So original. Let's start with the basics: corporations make things that people need and want. What people want, they want cheap. So corporations cut costs because if they don't, a competitor will and the loser will go out of business. Profit? Well that's a return on the investment made, in equipment, buildings, etc., in order to make the stuff that people want. See, you need money to build a factory, and you have to "buy" money from others to get enough. You borrow from banks for cash, and to others you offer pieces of the business for cash. So, to support all of this, you need revenue from customers. Those customers, however, are fickle, disloyal, thrifty and smart. Despite all your efforts to build a good product and pay a fair wage, your customers will abandon you for a competitor who sells the same thing for less. So it's not evil corporations, it's you, too, consumers, who ultimately shape the course of business. If this isn't true, then Walmart would not be able to compete with all those nostalgic, locally-owned stores that consumers gleefully abandon when something cheaper comes along.
3
Which borders define humanity and compassion? If a company moved its factory across the street, would you consider that traitorous to the people on the abandoned side of the street? What if they moved it across town? Across the state? To another state? Investors in companies demand that they maximize the return on their investment. Very few investors scour the financial pages for companies they can invest in that perform poorly because they have kept their factories in a place like Detroit, where the greed of the unions made it impossible for any company to profit. If they stay, the unions and their members profit; if they leave, the companies, their employees (wherever they are located) and their investors profit.
1
Contrary to 'charity', the super rich of the U.S. would do so much more good if they would attempt to become richer by creating businesses and factories in the U.S. that would employ people. It is hard to think of a higher good deed than providing a meaningful and robust job.
2
It may be fun to deplore the hypocrisy of Clintons, Gates, Cook, et al, and they certainly deserve it, but it is somewhat beside the point. It is not their vanity that is destroying us, it is their vocations, and there they have no choice. If you want to be successful at national politics or big business you pretty much have to follow reverse Robin Hoodism, robbing the poor to help the rich. If it was not them it would be someone else.
If you want to help the working and middle classes, moralizing will cut no ice. You have to replace the profit driven political/economic system.
If you want to help the working and middle classes, moralizing will cut no ice. You have to replace the profit driven political/economic system.
2
In 1934, a wave of labor organizing in textile factories swept the east coast, all the way down to Georgia. The southern establishment reacted with hysteria - there was a bloody repression of labor organizing and strikes in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. Baptist preachers went to their pulpits denouncing the union organizers every Sunday. Georgia declared martial law and interned union organizers and picketers in an old WWI POW camp. Georgia also finally found a use for their reserve army of labor of mostly unemployed black workers - they were moved into the factories of Columbus, Georgia as scabs. The divide et impera tactic of setting white worker against black worker served the establishment well during that crisis.
For years afterward, employers and the southern establishment told workers not to organize into unions, as they would take care of the workers in the long run as family. And southern textile workers didn't - North Carolina and South Carolina have the lowest unionization rates in the country. Meanwhile, in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, union workers in Michigan are buying homes, a car for the family and sending their kids off to Ann Arbor as the first generation of the family to go to school.
We see how this ends - the sons and grandsons of Michigan union auto workers are Larry Page of Google, Michael Moore and the like. The southern textile workers bought into the lies of the 1%, and their families are now left with nothing.
For years afterward, employers and the southern establishment told workers not to organize into unions, as they would take care of the workers in the long run as family. And southern textile workers didn't - North Carolina and South Carolina have the lowest unionization rates in the country. Meanwhile, in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, union workers in Michigan are buying homes, a car for the family and sending their kids off to Ann Arbor as the first generation of the family to go to school.
We see how this ends - the sons and grandsons of Michigan union auto workers are Larry Page of Google, Michael Moore and the like. The southern textile workers bought into the lies of the 1%, and their families are now left with nothing.
11
The interests of the low income American working class will only become a major concern of elected officials when a majority of them start voting- and not just in presidential election years.
In 2012, 80 percent of those in the over $150,000 income bracket voted. Only 47 percent of those making less than $10,000 bothered to turn out.
In midterms, it's even worse. In 2014 only 19% of "likely voters" came from low income households. Which is why we have a congress packed to the gills with people who neglect and actively vote to further oppress and deprive the poor.
Yes, money's important in elections- but if the poor and soon-to-be-poor did whatever it takes to get to the polls, and voted their economic interests, things would change.
See:
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/news/2014/11/06/100627/why-... and
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/01/income-gap-at-the-polls-1...
In 2012, 80 percent of those in the over $150,000 income bracket voted. Only 47 percent of those making less than $10,000 bothered to turn out.
In midterms, it's even worse. In 2014 only 19% of "likely voters" came from low income households. Which is why we have a congress packed to the gills with people who neglect and actively vote to further oppress and deprive the poor.
Yes, money's important in elections- but if the poor and soon-to-be-poor did whatever it takes to get to the polls, and voted their economic interests, things would change.
See:
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/news/2014/11/06/100627/why-... and
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/01/income-gap-at-the-polls-1...
1
This article contains a few fallacies.
First, jobs have been lost mainly through mechanization, not outsourcing (like the cotton workers in this article). Globalization isn't the culprit.
Next, the Apple iphone that's made in China ... isn't really made in China. It is ASSEMBLED in China, a low-value task. The high-value bits come from Western countries and well-paid US, Korean, Japanese, and European workers. China adds about $15 to the value of an iphone.
It's really a battle of man vs machine, and brain-workers vs hand-workers. The brain-workers have figured out how to make the hand-workers irrelevant (and then many brain-workers will be replaced themselves).
American middle class incomes began to stagnate relative to productivity well before outsourcing happened on a large scale.
First, jobs have been lost mainly through mechanization, not outsourcing (like the cotton workers in this article). Globalization isn't the culprit.
Next, the Apple iphone that's made in China ... isn't really made in China. It is ASSEMBLED in China, a low-value task. The high-value bits come from Western countries and well-paid US, Korean, Japanese, and European workers. China adds about $15 to the value of an iphone.
It's really a battle of man vs machine, and brain-workers vs hand-workers. The brain-workers have figured out how to make the hand-workers irrelevant (and then many brain-workers will be replaced themselves).
American middle class incomes began to stagnate relative to productivity well before outsourcing happened on a large scale.
1
I live in and have traveled by motorcycle through the area described by Mr Theroux. During high summer, I can get off the bike by a roadside marker on the Blues Trail, remove my helmet, and feel the heat on my skin. There is no breeze. The sun is very bright and seems to be too close. A rusted water tower stands off in a distance, and all around are grey, dirty buildings, their tin roofs peeled back and weeds struggling up through cracks in the asphalt. Train tracks that once carried Robert Johnson to Memphis stretch away in the distance. But now nothing moves. If I stand long enough I'll see someone, usually an old black man in a long-sleeved shirt moseying across a lot but sometimes a kid on a bicycle. I have no idea what they're doing here. And then I remember: I remember my work at St Vincent Du Paul, my clients, mostly black women come in for medicines, trying to hold their families together and I start to cry. I don't like that. This is place to be lived in for awhile. It's not a place to be driven through in air-conditioned comfort but hiked or ridden through on a bicycle. It's a place where you stay outside if you want to get to know it. And when you do you'll know that it should not be allowed to exist.
3
Shipping jobs overseas is good for developing nations. At one time it would have been described as spreading the wealth. Lets face it most people in the west are doing well.
1
Realities of contemporary America:
1. Many people don't seem to care about others the way they used to care (probably because of a lack of faith in God).
2. America does not facilitate grassroots business development (I have owned many businesses - - starting and operating a business in America is difficult, very difficult).
3. If you don't have a faucet on the business grid, your business is probably in danger of failing.
4. Many (if not most) of the big business people simply pass the capital and business deals over the heads of small operators. (I know, I was in business many years).
5. America is selling the "service economy" nonsense. That's stupid. What of all the natural resources America has (fertile soil, forests, lakes, rivers, subsurface metals, chemicals, etc.)?
6. Instead of being productive with farm tractors, grown men are being sold lawn mowers and ride around CUTTING GRASS as if that is the standard of American productivity.
7. On purpose, America has transferred (to foreign countries) millions of human labor intensive jobs (and is telling Americans to "retrain" for the "service economy").
8. Technology has become the new "god of business". Since companies don't want to pay human beings, EVERY computer should be taxed at the human being employee rate. (Busines people would, of course, just move more jobs overseas.) So, expect local tax bases to continue to shrink.
9. America seems to value profits more than human beings.
1. Many people don't seem to care about others the way they used to care (probably because of a lack of faith in God).
2. America does not facilitate grassroots business development (I have owned many businesses - - starting and operating a business in America is difficult, very difficult).
3. If you don't have a faucet on the business grid, your business is probably in danger of failing.
4. Many (if not most) of the big business people simply pass the capital and business deals over the heads of small operators. (I know, I was in business many years).
5. America is selling the "service economy" nonsense. That's stupid. What of all the natural resources America has (fertile soil, forests, lakes, rivers, subsurface metals, chemicals, etc.)?
6. Instead of being productive with farm tractors, grown men are being sold lawn mowers and ride around CUTTING GRASS as if that is the standard of American productivity.
7. On purpose, America has transferred (to foreign countries) millions of human labor intensive jobs (and is telling Americans to "retrain" for the "service economy").
8. Technology has become the new "god of business". Since companies don't want to pay human beings, EVERY computer should be taxed at the human being employee rate. (Busines people would, of course, just move more jobs overseas.) So, expect local tax bases to continue to shrink.
9. America seems to value profits more than human beings.
3
If 600,000,000 people have been lifted out of poverty in China alone by the effects of globalization, and some 10,000,000 people in the US have been plunged into poverty, is globalization a bad thing? Is Paul Theroux suggesting we build a virtual wall to keep the jobs in this country?
1
The reason the Clintons have no presence in the deep South is because it was their failure to change the economic regime that led to the deindustrialization of the US. Recall that Clinton was embarrassed into supporting labor unions at the protests against the WTO in Seattle. They have profited by their association with the sanctimonious CEOs who show up in the self-congratulatory forums in Switzerland and the Clinton Global Initiative. They are part of the bought political system that has sold these sad areas of the nation down the river.
2
Ok, I agree human lives matter more than elephants.
But the premise here seems to be that American lives matter more than Chinese, etc lives.
Federalism in the form of a United set of States always allowed movement of work from well paid areas of the country to poorly paid, un-unionised areas.
And now globalism allows movement to poorer countries.
Is there any difference? Other than jingoism?
Support the ILO so hat workers receive decent conditions and wages everywhere. It's a global problem, not one of rich Americans' charitable habits.
But the premise here seems to be that American lives matter more than Chinese, etc lives.
Federalism in the form of a United set of States always allowed movement of work from well paid areas of the country to poorly paid, un-unionised areas.
And now globalism allows movement to poorer countries.
Is there any difference? Other than jingoism?
Support the ILO so hat workers receive decent conditions and wages everywhere. It's a global problem, not one of rich Americans' charitable habits.
2
The loss of jobs, dignity, and hope is what is fueling the "government is the problem" mantra of the disenfranchised. Move more people into the middle class and watch divisiveness diminish.
5
Theroux is one of the greatest misanthropes of the last 100 years. His legacy will be that along with being the best travel writer ever. He probably doesn't care that the poorest Americans are among the top 10% richest people in the world and the top 1% richest who ever lived. Facts, those pesky facts.
2
Regarding comments here about how there are always “winners and losers” in a capitalist society and the reward is that, unlike communism, it ultimately provides the greatest benefit to society as a whole.
Somehow Germany, without resorting to communism, manages to retain high skill, high paying jobs producing cutting edge manufactured goods that are sold at a premium throughout the world. Germany is also the second largest exporting nation after China and we're not talking about coal and soybeans. Germany also has low unemployment and greater upward mobility than the US.
But instead of sitting back and waiting for the miracle of “free market capitalism” to automatically “benefit society as a whole" Germany pursues an active industrial policy and provides its citizens access to quality healthcare and primary, university and skilled trade education at little or zero personal cost to them. It also maintains a world class physical infrastructure to facilitate and support its industrial and economic policies. In short, all the ingredients necessary to support a robust economy that provides a decent living for most of its citizens.
So unless the US electorate wakes up and votes out the parasites who allow the "free market" plutocracy to play rope-a-dope with their lives, a large number will end up enjoying the third world experience without ever having to leave home.
Somehow Germany, without resorting to communism, manages to retain high skill, high paying jobs producing cutting edge manufactured goods that are sold at a premium throughout the world. Germany is also the second largest exporting nation after China and we're not talking about coal and soybeans. Germany also has low unemployment and greater upward mobility than the US.
But instead of sitting back and waiting for the miracle of “free market capitalism” to automatically “benefit society as a whole" Germany pursues an active industrial policy and provides its citizens access to quality healthcare and primary, university and skilled trade education at little or zero personal cost to them. It also maintains a world class physical infrastructure to facilitate and support its industrial and economic policies. In short, all the ingredients necessary to support a robust economy that provides a decent living for most of its citizens.
So unless the US electorate wakes up and votes out the parasites who allow the "free market" plutocracy to play rope-a-dope with their lives, a large number will end up enjoying the third world experience without ever having to leave home.
316
It's true but how to change a cultural mindset that distrusts and disbelieves there are virtues in centralized planning? It includes but goes beyond national industrial policies.
1
To the people who own the country, ordinary working Americans are no more than gullible customers and replaceable units of labor. A corporation's only homeland is its bottom line.
That being said, I have limited sympathy with the now unemployed low wage industrial workers of the South. In the 1950s and 60s, they were glad to get the factory jobs that were once done by unionized workers in New England, upstate New York and the Middle West. Now they're on the other end of the same process.
That being said, I have limited sympathy with the now unemployed low wage industrial workers of the South. In the 1950s and 60s, they were glad to get the factory jobs that were once done by unionized workers in New England, upstate New York and the Middle West. Now they're on the other end of the same process.
1
Mr. Theroux, the people of the Delta seem to like their situation! Every election, they vote for Republican candidates who support the interests of the outsourcers, and stymy any attempts to improve education, medical care, and poverty relief.
Go home, enjoy the sumptuous social life of educated, intelligent people in New England, or better, London! Forget about the poor who refuse to help themselves and don't want help from you!
Go home, enjoy the sumptuous social life of educated, intelligent people in New England, or better, London! Forget about the poor who refuse to help themselves and don't want help from you!
Good observations and conclusions. But let's also say that this is about our politicians, not just the rich people. Our politicians have sold the American middle class and workers down the drain, causing this flow of jobs offshore.
Rich people have always had clout. But the departure of both the Democratic party and the Republican party catering to the uber-rich and corporations that do not respect our sovereign boundaries or rule or law or rights have created the mess we have now with illegal immigration, low wages, anemic job growth and low job participation, as well as the rise of the corporations as setting trade deal priorities (it's not the American worker or the US economy).
And at this point I don't see anyone but Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders even mentioning these issues. Where are our politicians on this and why is this an issue with people from both parties? I expect hypocrisy from rich people and corporations. I expect a little less from our elected representatives. But they're worse. Aaaarrrrggggghhhhh.
Rich people have always had clout. But the departure of both the Democratic party and the Republican party catering to the uber-rich and corporations that do not respect our sovereign boundaries or rule or law or rights have created the mess we have now with illegal immigration, low wages, anemic job growth and low job participation, as well as the rise of the corporations as setting trade deal priorities (it's not the American worker or the US economy).
And at this point I don't see anyone but Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders even mentioning these issues. Where are our politicians on this and why is this an issue with people from both parties? I expect hypocrisy from rich people and corporations. I expect a little less from our elected representatives. But they're worse. Aaaarrrrggggghhhhh.
I have known a few multimillionaires in my time. One or two are decent folks, aware of their human frailties.
Then there are the ones who are so smug about their wealth, about never again having to worry about the cost of anything -- to say nothing of essentials like food and shelter -- that they become insufferable. They are in complete denial about the fact that they are human, that they must put on pants one leg at a time like the rest of us.
Instead, they are after god-like status, and perceive that the only way to achieve it is to throw around their money, and have their name applied upon stone tablets to show the world how wonderful they are.
Then there are the ones who are so smug about their wealth, about never again having to worry about the cost of anything -- to say nothing of essentials like food and shelter -- that they become insufferable. They are in complete denial about the fact that they are human, that they must put on pants one leg at a time like the rest of us.
Instead, they are after god-like status, and perceive that the only way to achieve it is to throw around their money, and have their name applied upon stone tablets to show the world how wonderful they are.
3
I find it rather bizarre that in one breath the author castigates wealthy executives for giving charity to the poor instead of giving them jobs, and then goes on to criticize the Clinton Foundation for not doing enough charity work in the South? Yes, I agree that many people in this country have been affected negatively by globalization, but it shouldn't fall on the shoulders of the Clinton Foundation to take care of Americans who've fallen on hard times -- it should be the job of the American government that does that.
I think the part of this article that doesn't sit well with me is the fact that the author seems to claim that "lifting more than 600 million people out of poverty" doesn't matter, since those 600 million people aren't Americans.
I think the part of this article that doesn't sit well with me is the fact that the author seems to claim that "lifting more than 600 million people out of poverty" doesn't matter, since those 600 million people aren't Americans.
I don't understand the obsession with manufacturing jobs. It doesn't make sense for low-skilled manufacturing to occur in a rich country. We should be focused on encouraging the growth of high-value jobs (design, engineering, marketing, finance, etc.), by improving education (especially STEM).
Rolling back the clock to the 1960s is not a viable plan. Manufacturing will be largely performed by robots within a generation, anyway.
Rolling back the clock to the 1960s is not a viable plan. Manufacturing will be largely performed by robots within a generation, anyway.
A very sad story used to be posted on the Web about Russ Berens clothing headquarted in Malibu. The 65-year-old owner was finally persuaded to move his operation to China. It was against his better instincts, but he went along with the idea. He was cheated by the Chinese, they substituted inferior fabric, did substandard work. By then, he was too old to start over, and his brand went away. You can still find some items on Ebay, but they are dated and worn out. I used to buy his clothing at a boutique in New Mexico.
1
Just like the computer and the marriage, capitalism is not an answer to all problems, and can itself be a major problem. So much wool has been pulled over our eyes, and is still being pulled, that capitalism is being perceived almost as the Messiah. America has become a colony, wherein 99% has no voice, and 1% has a free rein. If capitalism in its disgraceful present form continues to advance, entire world will become a slave ship. I have detailed my thoughts in two books, "Capitalism: Colonization of America" and "Slave Ship Earth: the Ultimate Triumph of Capitalism." Neither of these have been reviewed by the media, for their own, very valid reasons, I suppose.
Free trade economists are happy to cite David Ricardo's theory of comparative advantage, ignoring the many elements in current trade that do not fit the framework of that theory. Once currency manipulation is introduced into trade, the beneficial outcomes of trade become much more clouded.
Outsourcing? Sometimes it's known as giving a hand to help the poor in developing countries. Our manufacturing industry in this country has shrunk so much that we no longer have the skills. Solution to this problem - migrant labour. And where are they coming from? The very countries we were "outsourcing" to in the first place!
1
There are some simpler answers. Buy American would be a good start. But it's increasingly harder to discern what's really made in America if the chips and other parts come from overseas. If we had an initiative where a product would state how much material and labor was US and it was proudly displayed we could create a culture of buying American. Imagine if one of the Amazon filters was "Certified made in the US"?
I know I will not by any food from China, not even for my dogs.
I know I will not by any food from China, not even for my dogs.
2
Global poverty rates have fallen dramatically over the past 20 years and income inequality on a global level has declined. The industrialization of China and other developing countries is the main reason for this. Some parts of the world have suffered because of this. But on the whole, humanity is better off because of globalization. We should think about how national economies can help those harmed by globalization. Shutting down globalization and complaining about the winners will accomplish little.
This is probably the best article I've read in a long time. Major corporations don't want to invest in the American worker simply because they don't want to pay them a living wage. Why do that when you can pay someone in China $3.00 an hour. If major corporations pay the American worker a living wage that could have a dramatic effect on the salary of the CEO namely having them go from making $8.5 million a year to $7.5 million a year. Good gracious! The CEO's would say that's pushing them into poverty & that it would be bad for business. Cry me a river. Investing in America is a sure way to bolster the economy, make our country economically viable while concurrently lifting Americans out of poverty. I agree with Mr. Theroux, Americans don't want a hand out. They just want a fair wage for the work they're asked to do which would help them get themselves out of poverty. It's as simple as that. Unfortunately, the major corporations just don't see it that way. Visionaries? Not in my book.
3
'Philanthropy'. What an over-massaged, somewhat ugly word. Everywhere in the Western world the media adulates exactly those people described in this well reasoned article. It is an 'industry' on its own. It supports thousands of individuals, most of which attend indulgent, self-congratulatory conferences. There are some 'Foundations' which are well focussed and not obsessed by self promotion. Take a bow: the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. There are others yet they are probably the exceptions to prove the rule. The Reverend John Wesley, of Methodist faith, had a healthy approach to helping the drunken poor in London: In accepting money from the Brewers & Distillers he declared: 'Lets take the Devil's money to do God's work.
1
Why haven’t we had dozens of op ed pieces and media discussions like this piece over the years? Should have been discussed on all TV news shows over decades, as a national scandal--the outsourcing millions of jobs over the years. Has PBS done any documentaries on this?
It’s the biggest issue of our time, causing downward living standards and need for welfare. Should be the biggest issue in any election campaign---if our democracy was working. The candidate who talks most about it is sidelined. Our liberal columnists don’t discuss it.
The excess profits that flow from the offshoring of millions of jobs has been invested in our congress, enabling their elections, then more tax breaks, and the offshoring of corporate profits to tax havens, plus looser regulations, and the hiring of thousands of lobbyists that crowd DC, to write our laws. This is why our campaigns are paid for by billionaires.
So our laws are actually creating new lower classes and poor, out of people who in previous generations would have been employed, self supporting, stable tax payers. But after a generation of entrenched downward mobility, they are scolded for lack of work ethic, character and ambition. Politicians and pundits cause destruction then blame the victims.
The rich love charity, to keep control, and portray themselves as beneficent. Charity fund raising events are fun. And if fits in with the religiosity in our politics. Gilded Ages are big on charity.
It’s the biggest issue of our time, causing downward living standards and need for welfare. Should be the biggest issue in any election campaign---if our democracy was working. The candidate who talks most about it is sidelined. Our liberal columnists don’t discuss it.
The excess profits that flow from the offshoring of millions of jobs has been invested in our congress, enabling their elections, then more tax breaks, and the offshoring of corporate profits to tax havens, plus looser regulations, and the hiring of thousands of lobbyists that crowd DC, to write our laws. This is why our campaigns are paid for by billionaires.
So our laws are actually creating new lower classes and poor, out of people who in previous generations would have been employed, self supporting, stable tax payers. But after a generation of entrenched downward mobility, they are scolded for lack of work ethic, character and ambition. Politicians and pundits cause destruction then blame the victims.
The rich love charity, to keep control, and portray themselves as beneficent. Charity fund raising events are fun. And if fits in with the religiosity in our politics. Gilded Ages are big on charity.
2
I get your point and it is a good one. One thing at a time. CEOs and Corporations are For Profit. To be Merciful, one must have power. To be generous one must have wealth. Not my quote, but from a Chinese martial arts teacher. Local marijuana growers in Northern CA can buy a new truck every year cash and fly off to Costa Rica for surfing vacations, but the local school teachers are buying their own supplies. They don't pay ANY taxes. In Hong Kong wealthy Chinese flock to the city to buy anything made in America or Europe, Anything. The Chinese know that their food supply and Chinese made goods are unreliable and the best stuff, under stricter quality control, goes West.
How are the poor of Asia or Africa any different from the poor of the US? If millions of human beings there have food on their tables now because of this globalisation, what does it matter where they live? It surprises me that Paul Theroux - of all people - should have such a parochial view. He should know that a large portion of our wealth in this country accumulated due to economic colonisation and exploitation of the now poorer countries over the years. Developing countries are not meant only for cheap travel, thrills and research (for books)
If you're looking for a clue about what will happen in the South, look right here in Central New York. The flight of manufacturing took place a long time ago. The old mills became factory outlet stores and then fell into crumbling disuse. Gradually, most of them are being demolished.
The agricultural economy declined and many fields lie fallow. They are beautiful with their crops of golden rod at this time of year. Soon they will move on in the succession to forest.
Population is still declining and small towns no longer provide the basic services people need. People with get up and go have gone, often to the South where there are more opportunities. What's left are the aging and the discouraged.
There are a few bright lights. Chobani has grown into a significant employer that insures some dairy farmers also thrive. Tourism is still vital with baseball camps luring thousands each summer. The nascent nanotechnology industry has been lured by government, but its impact is uncertain.
We know that change is inevitable. I wonder if it's also inevitable that the losers from change must suffer.
The agricultural economy declined and many fields lie fallow. They are beautiful with their crops of golden rod at this time of year. Soon they will move on in the succession to forest.
Population is still declining and small towns no longer provide the basic services people need. People with get up and go have gone, often to the South where there are more opportunities. What's left are the aging and the discouraged.
There are a few bright lights. Chobani has grown into a significant employer that insures some dairy farmers also thrive. Tourism is still vital with baseball camps luring thousands each summer. The nascent nanotechnology industry has been lured by government, but its impact is uncertain.
We know that change is inevitable. I wonder if it's also inevitable that the losers from change must suffer.
1
It's not just cheap labor that corporations are scouring the world for. It's also the chance to pollute freely. I see European and US corporations that have come to Mexico to set up shop, and they dump toxic waste on communities in ways that would never be allowed back in their home countries. Of course, Mexican businesses do the same thing, as do US industries in their own country when given a chance. Don't expect businesses to pursue the public good. Only strict regulation will keep them in line.
4
Just bringing the plantations back to our soil will not fix anything. The new manufacturing jobs mentioned here, Mercedes-Benz for example are not lower paying because workers do less skilled work, the company specifically replaced man for man a new lower paid worker for a previously higher paid one--for the same work.
Nor can we ignore the pollution and stress to the water and air manufacturing exacts on the environment that companies have been able to shirk responsibility with globalization.
There needs to be a change of the endless "stuff" on shelves that is just the pre-landfill stage of planned obsolescence to generate a perceived profit that does not pay for the rape of the earth's resources to make them or the poisoning of the earth's air water and soil when they are tossed away, now useless.
We could engineer our New South but instead we are leaving it to the same feckless id'ots who, chewing a straw from the front verandas of their plantation homesteads, "stuff happens".
Nor can we ignore the pollution and stress to the water and air manufacturing exacts on the environment that companies have been able to shirk responsibility with globalization.
There needs to be a change of the endless "stuff" on shelves that is just the pre-landfill stage of planned obsolescence to generate a perceived profit that does not pay for the rape of the earth's resources to make them or the poisoning of the earth's air water and soil when they are tossed away, now useless.
We could engineer our New South but instead we are leaving it to the same feckless id'ots who, chewing a straw from the front verandas of their plantation homesteads, "stuff happens".
2
“The uplifting of impoverished people” was one of the reasons Phil Knight, Nike’s co-founder, gave in 1998 for moving his factories out of the United States.'
What an indictment of the plunder of big business and it's self-enrichment through offshoring. But I have an even bigger comment, or rather question: in the author's travels throughout the impoverished south, why is it that the poor in his region always consistently vote Republican?
Why do they keep voting in those who would encourage, through tax laws, the enrichment of China at the expense of the American worker? I know that I, for one, would pay more for goods made in the USA. As a matter of fact, I try to make major purchases only made in the USA--they do exist, if you look for them.
In our economically counterproductive country, it's a sad day indeed when those directly responsible for economic devastations of whole groups of workers try to play Lady Bountiful and throw them a bone. It's like a pyromaniac that lights a fire, and then rushes in at the end with a bucket of water, offering to help.
What an indictment of the plunder of big business and it's self-enrichment through offshoring. But I have an even bigger comment, or rather question: in the author's travels throughout the impoverished south, why is it that the poor in his region always consistently vote Republican?
Why do they keep voting in those who would encourage, through tax laws, the enrichment of China at the expense of the American worker? I know that I, for one, would pay more for goods made in the USA. As a matter of fact, I try to make major purchases only made in the USA--they do exist, if you look for them.
In our economically counterproductive country, it's a sad day indeed when those directly responsible for economic devastations of whole groups of workers try to play Lady Bountiful and throw them a bone. It's like a pyromaniac that lights a fire, and then rushes in at the end with a bucket of water, offering to help.
126
Christine: you are right on as the political ignorance of Southerners. It goes back to the Civil War & segregation. They poor but they had black people to step on & abuse; the pollticians told them they were superior. The same game today, blame Northern Companies for moving the jobs away, but enjoy the cheap goods at Walmart to go with their lower wages. Also their politicians make sure Black & Brown people don't vote thanks to the Supreme Court. As long as Southern Whites resent that Black people get equal treatment from the Feds- or maybe a bit more as they are poorer, they will vote for politicians who ship their jobs to Asia. The same can be said of the Intermountain West, only the people are Brown & speak Spanish, who do jobs they don't want or at lower pay.
1
The charity announcements for the poor made by the super rich are nothing but an attempt to hide guilt and prop up self image. As for the globalisation, neither was it for the benefit of the world's poor nor to create opportunities through levelling the playing field. The way income and resource gaps between and within societies have assumed glaring proportions in recent years does clearly prove that not only the whole globalisation project has gone awry but looks as if it was all a big farce enacted to get cheaper labour, resources, and market access across the world to serve the interests of the super rich and big corporations. The party is over now. The promoters of globalisation have turned protectionists while the countries that reluctantly joined the drive have become the champions now. What a role reversal in about two decades?
These same areas of which Mr.Theroux writes continue to vote Republican. A vote totally against their economic interests. So to blame others for their demise is a joke. Kansas is the same case in point. These areas are still under the belief that lower taxes will end all their suffering. You can not feel too sorry for folks who won't see that lower taxes and more guns are not going to save them. The Hypocracy is not with Apple or The Clintons it is fully with Southerners who refuse to chose another direction. Not one of the Southern Republicans is voting in Congress for any initiative that would help these folks but they keep getting elected. Oh and by the way the consumer drove prices down in a frenzy to get everything for nothing when you can not pay a living wage to make most products in the USA at the price these consumers wIsh to pay. Offer the same products at the two different prices and see which one the consumer buys. They almost always choose the one made overseas for less. It is not just the Corporations. The "made in America" push of the late 80' failed because consumers wanted cheap. If we were all willing to pay the price for things made here, then Vanity Fair and such may have stayed here.
2
Since our federal income tax code provides deductions, credits, subsidies and lower tax rates for certain industries, transactions, sources of income, business entity structures, contracts and securities it "pays" to help the poor. By shipping our jobs and their money overseas and then "helping" the poor it is all tax deductible and good marketing and political public business relations. Corporations are not people. Money is not speech. Corporate executives are not humanitarians nor philanthropists by nature nor nurture nor law. They are not hypocrites. We are fools.
1
It is very rare to see an op-ed like this. We need more of them.
There is a reason why elites favor "free trade": it makes them, or their friends and families, richer.
No other American policy has done more damage to the United States than "free trade".
It is a lie (which keeps showing up in the media) that Americans don't "want" to do certain jobs. The "journalists" who repeat this falsehood are either stupid or disingenuous: every such job (e.g., factory jobs, farm labor jobs) would have thousands of American job applicants if only the greedy "job creator" would pay a living wage. The truth is painful but simple: greedy people pay their crooked Congressmen to keep the minimum wage low, reduce tariffs and facilitate the employment of illegal aliens to work for very low wages. (The low tariffs are the major factor in "free trade", which enables the greedy CEOs to offshore our jobs.)
I often wonder how much of journalism is advocacy of policies whose detrimental consequences make for great future stories. (See "War in Iraq".)
There is a reason why elites favor "free trade": it makes them, or their friends and families, richer.
No other American policy has done more damage to the United States than "free trade".
It is a lie (which keeps showing up in the media) that Americans don't "want" to do certain jobs. The "journalists" who repeat this falsehood are either stupid or disingenuous: every such job (e.g., factory jobs, farm labor jobs) would have thousands of American job applicants if only the greedy "job creator" would pay a living wage. The truth is painful but simple: greedy people pay their crooked Congressmen to keep the minimum wage low, reduce tariffs and facilitate the employment of illegal aliens to work for very low wages. (The low tariffs are the major factor in "free trade", which enables the greedy CEOs to offshore our jobs.)
I often wonder how much of journalism is advocacy of policies whose detrimental consequences make for great future stories. (See "War in Iraq".)
2
Who else, pray tell, does free trade benefit? Consumers. That's right - all of us. Is it your position that government should set the prices for all goods (including labor) in our country? If not, why not?
Mr. Theroux could have written this article about New England mill towns a couple of decades ago when corporations decided to relocate their factories to the south in an effort to avoid paying union wages. The problem is two-fold: shareholders and CEOs want to maximize profit and consumers want low prices. The deregulated capitalism and free trade advocated by political candidates in both parties reinforces this and the anti-government mantra of the right makes it even worse. Shareholders need to look at the effects of maximizing profits by moving jobs abroad and taking advantage of tax loopholes… and consumers need to ask themselves if they are willing to save money at the expense of their fellow Americans jobs. If everyone dug a little deeper to pay taxes and spend more on consumer goods we COULD restore the economy in our country. Otherwise, we will continue devolving into a plutocratic oligarchy.
2
There is a flip side to the hypocrisy of the corporations maximizing profits by outsourcing labor. American consumers can demand better products that are actually made in the USA, with good labor practices, environmental safeties, and middle class wages.
I know that I'm as guilty as the next person at searching out a bargain. But I do try - where possible - to buy American. But, it's really tough.
Our country has a chance to change this around - to promote American manufacturing before we lose all the skills and knowledge.
One way to start is to fund infrastructure spending. This would recreate a strong middle class, with money to spend on quality consumables (not "straight-to-the-dump" junk).
I call it "trickle up" economics!
I know that I'm as guilty as the next person at searching out a bargain. But I do try - where possible - to buy American. But, it's really tough.
Our country has a chance to change this around - to promote American manufacturing before we lose all the skills and knowledge.
One way to start is to fund infrastructure spending. This would recreate a strong middle class, with money to spend on quality consumables (not "straight-to-the-dump" junk).
I call it "trickle up" economics!
1
I grew up in West Virginia and saw the impact that cheap imported steel had on industry there and throughout the Ohio Valley. Part of the problem I saw was that everyone - company executives and unions - were too interested in getting "theirs" all the while ignoring foreign competition and hoping that tariffs would continue to protect their profits and their jobs. Too many of us were too slow to recognize the risks posed by this type of thinking and refusing to manage change to a more sustainable place and instead had change forced upon us. As a people we have to learn to be responsible not only for ourselves, but our "neighbors" - our fellow Americans, no matter where they live - and not on the supposed protection and false hopes offered by politicians and corporate chieftains alike. Many of us learned this lesson the hard way; it doesn't need to be that way again.
So essentially what we can conclude from all this is that Karl Marx was totally right--that Capitalism is not tethered by moralities, sentiments and inhibitions, that as an economic system it will do whatever it needs to do to make money and survive competition. It must always seek new and cheaper markets. It must always grow, always profit and misery be damned. Marx saw in Capitalism a system that breeds its own self-destruction, that its own growth causes its deficiencies. Had it not been for socialist policies that guranteed good wages and labor rights, that protected workers and consumers, Capitalism would have vanished long ago. It is remarkable how Republicans have waged war against unions and raising minimum wages and advocated for the notion that corporations are people who can buy elections while at the same time lamenting the decline of the working class. The ultimate question here is: what role does big government have in protecting its own citizens against rapacious Volkswagian practices? Capitalism is like water: it will flow over and around any regulations that inhibit its force. It will even try to break the backs of the very unions that created the middle class in this country.
3
Sure, but who will then protect us against "big government"? Your argument appears to be that Marxist governments produce, for society as a whole, greater prosperity. Why do you believe this? Tell me: is a knife good, or evil?
The American process of outsourcing seems to be in the process of evolving over here in Europe. We have been troubled by outsourcing to cheap labour in third world countries for decades. Now the large Corporations have discovered a much easier and cheaper way of doing things. They can keep all of their expensive plant and skilled workforce in place but reduce the cost of the labour by bringing in millions of third world immigrants to undercut the wages of the indigenous people. It is happening already over Europe but especially so in Britain and Germany. Many of the shipbuilders in Govan, Scotland have been replaced by Polish shipbuilders who will work for much lower wages and we find ourselves in the ridiculous situation where our new aircraft carriers are being built largely by former Communist Bloc workers.
It is no small wonder that the EU will negotiate virtually anything except the 'free movement' of labour. Germany wants and needs more immigration because of their low birthrate but Britain simply does not have the room for any further large influx of immigrants.. We have, officially, 8.3 Million immigrants out of a total of 68 Million population but there are an estimated 4 Million 'illegals' on top of that number in a country that will fit more than 13 times into Texas alone. Just last year, the official Nett figure was 330,000 but the gross figure was well over half a million and our country and culture cannot stand it any more.
It is no small wonder that the EU will negotiate virtually anything except the 'free movement' of labour. Germany wants and needs more immigration because of their low birthrate but Britain simply does not have the room for any further large influx of immigrants.. We have, officially, 8.3 Million immigrants out of a total of 68 Million population but there are an estimated 4 Million 'illegals' on top of that number in a country that will fit more than 13 times into Texas alone. Just last year, the official Nett figure was 330,000 but the gross figure was well over half a million and our country and culture cannot stand it any more.
3
Mr. Theroux has written a superlative piece. It details the brutal effects of the relocation of capitalism away from the US and into other parts of the world.
The impunity corporate monarchs now enjoy, to pull up stakes and just leave so they can grow their personal fortunes even more from cheap labor elsewhere, is devastating the very country that made them rich in the first place. What ingrates!
Even worse, there's no one here to tell them, hey, if you leave, we'll keep all your capital investment right where it is now, and your plant and equipment will go to the workers, and they will become a workers' co-op, and any product you make overseas that you bring back here to sell will carry a 35% duty tax.
But no, the rich have bought themselves sufficient corrupt politicians to help them get away with all this. And while living entirely in the pockets of their their financial masters, these pols still call themselves "public servants".
They spend their time in office overtly on-the-take, engaged as they are in a constant fundraising scam from billionaires and anyone else they can grab.
This is the florid disease of our dying democracy. And charity, as Mr. Theroux so amply demonstrates, is no viable substitute for the foundational structural change we need to fix this.
Citizens United only united the rich. It has disastrously dis-united the actual citizens of the entire United States.
oz.
The impunity corporate monarchs now enjoy, to pull up stakes and just leave so they can grow their personal fortunes even more from cheap labor elsewhere, is devastating the very country that made them rich in the first place. What ingrates!
Even worse, there's no one here to tell them, hey, if you leave, we'll keep all your capital investment right where it is now, and your plant and equipment will go to the workers, and they will become a workers' co-op, and any product you make overseas that you bring back here to sell will carry a 35% duty tax.
But no, the rich have bought themselves sufficient corrupt politicians to help them get away with all this. And while living entirely in the pockets of their their financial masters, these pols still call themselves "public servants".
They spend their time in office overtly on-the-take, engaged as they are in a constant fundraising scam from billionaires and anyone else they can grab.
This is the florid disease of our dying democracy. And charity, as Mr. Theroux so amply demonstrates, is no viable substitute for the foundational structural change we need to fix this.
Citizens United only united the rich. It has disastrously dis-united the actual citizens of the entire United States.
oz.
3
As I watched, in amusement, the parade of billionaires take the stage at the Gobal Citizens Festival and speak of their commitment to ending poverty by 2030, it occurred to me that we could probably end world poverty by the end of the month if we took 95% of the wealth of all the world's 1400 billionaires. It seems to me that the odds would be in the people's favor, not to mention, the ethics.
2
I'm disturbed by the way in which this essay (which so correctly calls out the hypocrisy of wealthy philanthropists for what it is) pits the poor of the US against the poor of the rest of the world. I have been in the rural impoverished South, and in the 3rd world. It is simply worse in many parts of the 3rd world--people in the US have some access to healthcare (the ER--not ideal, but keeps most women from dying in childbirth, for example), electricity (maybe not at home, but somewhere in town), clean running water (hopefully everywhere, but if not, again, somewhere in town), food stamps and food pantries (few people starve to death in the US, notwithstanding the terrible health consequences of the nutritionally empty food we feed the poor). Not good access, but access. A rural village in China, India, Africa? Not so much. What the globalizing capitalists really want is to divide and conquer.
Offshoring doesn't have to be a disaster for US workers. I suggest that there are plenty of jobs here, we just refuse to insist on decent pay for them. Being a clerk at Walmart or a server at McDonald's is not a job that should inherently carry a low wage, we've just decided it's not worthy of the same high salary as the CEO. How about raising the minimum wage, investing in infrastructure, raising tax rates on the very wealthy?
Oh, I forgot the South won't vote for that, because abortion.
Offshoring doesn't have to be a disaster for US workers. I suggest that there are plenty of jobs here, we just refuse to insist on decent pay for them. Being a clerk at Walmart or a server at McDonald's is not a job that should inherently carry a low wage, we've just decided it's not worthy of the same high salary as the CEO. How about raising the minimum wage, investing in infrastructure, raising tax rates on the very wealthy?
Oh, I forgot the South won't vote for that, because abortion.
3
At it's root is that corporations are machines with a mandate to maximize profit within the law. As long as it remains most profitable and their shareholders (you and me) go along, a corporation is doing what it's built to do.
There's a solution somewhere, but asking CEOs to forgo profits for social benefit is, at this time, akin to asking them for their resignations. It won't change until the culture changes. Stockholders want their returns on investment, and by their actions demonstrate a lack of concern about how they get them.
There's a solution somewhere, but asking CEOs to forgo profits for social benefit is, at this time, akin to asking them for their resignations. It won't change until the culture changes. Stockholders want their returns on investment, and by their actions demonstrate a lack of concern about how they get them.
1
99% of German GDP is produced in companies that employ less than 200 people. While Mercedes and Porsche turn heads, it is the small, home-town factory that makes the sophisticated components for the heavy, "dumb" stuff like boilers that China sells. Family-owned, small-town based these businesses have no plans to uproot. They have lifelong relationships with their workers. When what they make becomes obsolete or cheaper to make in Asia, they innovate.
The term for this economic powerhouse is the Mittelstand, and it is an alliance between workers, bosses and the state. The state invests in the types of technical education the bosses will need from their workers, and it also protects workers through labor-friendly wage and working conditions laws. This is NOT adversarial, and EVERYONE wins.
This kind of, let's spell it out, corporatism, is what the US had after WWII in its heavy industries (esp. automobile production). When the American assembly-line economy broke in the 1970s, we got the "knowledge economy" which is a little bit of Silicon Valley and a lot of Wall Street paper.
This did not have to happen. Our people are hungry for good jobs, we can literally retool and like Germany have an export economy in banking and services as well as industrial goods.
We used to have an entrepreneurial state; it's time to bring her back into the jobs conversation.
The term for this economic powerhouse is the Mittelstand, and it is an alliance between workers, bosses and the state. The state invests in the types of technical education the bosses will need from their workers, and it also protects workers through labor-friendly wage and working conditions laws. This is NOT adversarial, and EVERYONE wins.
This kind of, let's spell it out, corporatism, is what the US had after WWII in its heavy industries (esp. automobile production). When the American assembly-line economy broke in the 1970s, we got the "knowledge economy" which is a little bit of Silicon Valley and a lot of Wall Street paper.
This did not have to happen. Our people are hungry for good jobs, we can literally retool and like Germany have an export economy in banking and services as well as industrial goods.
We used to have an entrepreneurial state; it's time to bring her back into the jobs conversation.
1
PHILANTRHOPY Or what passes for it in our day is more focused on exoticism and romanticism than building or rebuilding the US. One notable exception is Jimmy Carter, whose Habitat for Humanity has many projects onshore, as well as overseas. Bill Gates has stated that his primary interest is investing where he will get the biggest bang for his buck. So while he's doing magnificent work in African with malaria, he has bypassed those impoverished in the US by offshoring. Time was when US magnates wanted to bequeath their wealth onshore. For example, Andrew Carnegie built libraries that bore his name in the US and some overseas. But the local communities had to participate in the expenses. The Quakers, for example, have overseas projects to help those less fortunate, but need to consider the needs of those nearby. I think that one of the strongest arguments in favor of levying high taxes on the 1% is to encourage philanthropy to rebuild the US infrastructure, including the infrastructure to repatriate and rebuild onshore manufacturing. Philanthropists would do well to emulate Jimmy Carter's model, where he rolls up his sleeves and works together with other volunteers at home and abroad, to provide decent homes for those in need. I would be far more impressed with Gates and others, who also rolled up their sleeves and worked side by side with fellow Americans, than with those who write a check and send their wealth overseas exclusively.
1
There are two kinds of poverty - absolute and relative. Western world got rich to some extent by controlling the world's poor- colonisation and slavery. Now globalisation is helping reduce the absolute world poverty. A consequence is increasing relative poverty in the rich countries. We need to find better policies to continue to help reduce absolute global poverty without increasing relative poverty in the rich countries.
1
I responded to a recent Kristof op-ed that also flogged the fact that hundreds of millions had been lifted out of poverty globally (http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/01/opinion/nicholas-kristof-the-most-impo.... My comment also noted that the cost of this prosperity was an evisceration of the West’s and particularly our middle classes through outsourcing, much as Mr. Theroux charges.
As a general matter, people should look askance at corporate leaders who expend billions in charitable works when their own corporate practices have contributed to making of our middle classes a rapidly expanding wasteland, and all through basically unchecked globalization that benefits what were subsistence-level societies but that also severely disadvantage our own. Exponents argue that globalization creates net greater jobs here, but I’d suggest that even if true, the new jobs are burger-flipping or equivalent ones while those lost are solid middle class jobs.
The solution to the predatory effects of outsourcing needs to be a higher level of incentives, likely best through the tax code, to goad domestic companies to keep jobs here. Without that, whether it be The Clinton Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, or any other, we’ll continue to see billions being expended that were amassed by individuals who had a lot to do with gravely damaging our middle classes; and those billions mostly won’t be expended here.
As a general matter, people should look askance at corporate leaders who expend billions in charitable works when their own corporate practices have contributed to making of our middle classes a rapidly expanding wasteland, and all through basically unchecked globalization that benefits what were subsistence-level societies but that also severely disadvantage our own. Exponents argue that globalization creates net greater jobs here, but I’d suggest that even if true, the new jobs are burger-flipping or equivalent ones while those lost are solid middle class jobs.
The solution to the predatory effects of outsourcing needs to be a higher level of incentives, likely best through the tax code, to goad domestic companies to keep jobs here. Without that, whether it be The Clinton Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, or any other, we’ll continue to see billions being expended that were amassed by individuals who had a lot to do with gravely damaging our middle classes; and those billions mostly won’t be expended here.
3
The writer conveniently ignores the fact that reason those textile factories were at one time in Greenville was that the the jobs had been outsourced to the Southern states from the Northeast US, leaving tens/hundreds of thousands of workers without jobs, of the jobs had moved to New England from England, leaving tens/hundreds of thousands of workers without jobs. Oh and buy the way the jobs didn't go from Greenville to Asia, they first were outsourced to Latin America. Don't feel to bad even as we speak the Chinese are getting their comeupances as tens of thousands of jobs are being outsources to Vietnam, who will be replaced someday by Africa.
Funny thing is that England through taxes and trade barriers stole the jobs from Asia in the first place.
Funny thing is that England through taxes and trade barriers stole the jobs from Asia in the first place.
1
The only reason we don't have a failed economy today is that the US Dollar is still the basis of exchange for petroleum. Otherwise, our fiat currency would have failed already. We enjoy the cheap consumer goods from China, but in reality all we have given them is a couple of trillion electrons and binary codes that represents some really handsome cloth imprints of our dead presidents.
I don't even think the Chinese government has allowed its people to purchase significant amounts of US real property or make investments outside of China, so until they do, where's the harm in continuously diluting our our currency like we have? It certainly hasn't cause inflation domestically.
I don't even think the Chinese government has allowed its people to purchase significant amounts of US real property or make investments outside of China, so until they do, where's the harm in continuously diluting our our currency like we have? It certainly hasn't cause inflation domestically.
I cannot be so sad. Come to Philadelphia and across Pennsylvania and see the factories that were abandoned by industries relocating to Right-to-Work states in the South. Freed of pesky unions they were able to pay lower wages, while the thriving communities that made their products shriveled behind their departure. No tears in those lucky Southern communities. Rather a pride in not having unions pushing up wages. A faith in getting by on starvation wages. Only someone else is still more desperate, and now the jobs are gone. The prices for the products have not gone down, the profits have gone up. Its the system we have in this country.
How Germany is able to maintain so many high paid manufacturing jobs is a mystery to me. Sorry for the folks down South who have been the latest to be left holding the bag. Its an old story up here in the "rust belt". Good luck getting help from your fellow citizens through unified efforts, aka government intervention, retraining, support for your children's schooling. Those who still have will see you as takers and encourage you to recognize things have changed and now you, but not they, have to do more with less.
How Germany is able to maintain so many high paid manufacturing jobs is a mystery to me. Sorry for the folks down South who have been the latest to be left holding the bag. Its an old story up here in the "rust belt". Good luck getting help from your fellow citizens through unified efforts, aka government intervention, retraining, support for your children's schooling. Those who still have will see you as takers and encourage you to recognize things have changed and now you, but not they, have to do more with less.
1
Those corporate geniuses who so love outsourcing are not only extremely greedy but, in the long run, profoundly stupid. Even tough old Henry Ford had the good sense to realize that hiring your countrymen and paying them enough to be able to afford your product is a great way to make sure you have a healthy market. These current rich fools, by contrast, are gradually killing their markets in their own country. The effect might not be immediately noticeable as there are many who 'must' have the latest toys, even on public aid (That's right, folks, we've got billionaires who are actually on welfare, one step removed), but as the money spigot starts to slow what's left of the demand will follow. By now much of our populace has caught on and don't exactly regard these characters with love, so they end up spending literally millions per year on bodyguards and fortifications - literally, gilded prisons of their own making. This is a success story? This is national suicide.
1
The irony is that these same southern states continue to support right wing politicians. The contrast of economies in well-to-do states (like left-leaning Minnesota, Oregon or California) and the states Mr. Theroux describes is pretty stark. Yet even these wealthier states are vulnerable to the same forces.
One group of answers comes from Modern Monetary Theory (#MMT) that among other things explains the possible role of a federal job guarantee. The unfounded fear of deficits prevents this from becoming more than a footnote in political discussion; across the world, political candidates who support larger deficits are soundly defeated.
One group of answers comes from Modern Monetary Theory (#MMT) that among other things explains the possible role of a federal job guarantee. The unfounded fear of deficits prevents this from becoming more than a footnote in political discussion; across the world, political candidates who support larger deficits are soundly defeated.
2
I can certainly empathize with what many folks in these towns of the deep South are feeling. When I was a kid growing up in the '60s and '70s, I watched as my hometown of Lock Haven, PA went from being a small, but thriving, bustling manufacturing community with a high standard of living, to being yet another rust-belt statistic. The biggest manufacturer in town was Piper Aircraft. When Piper pulled up stakes in the mid-70s, the town -- indeed, the entire county -- was dealt an economic blow from which it has yet to fully recover, even to this day. In the ensuing years, one by one, nearly all of the remaining manufacturers left the area. And Lock Haven was hardly alone: this happened to manufacturing towns throughout the Northeast and Midwest.
Yet, even as I empathize with the people 9of these towns in the Deep South, at the same time, I cannot help but experience a bit of schadenfreude. For you see, in the mid-70s, it wasn't to China or Mexico to which manufacturing operations (and the corresponding jobs) relocated; rather, it was to towns in Florida, Alabama, and other states of the Deep[ South that companies went, aggressively lured there by lavish incentives and very low tax rates -- low rates sustained largely by the refusal of people in the South to fund the kinds of public services those in the Northeast and Midwest saw as being essential to civilized living. So, in a sense, what these towns are now going through can be seen as chickens coming home to roost.
Yet, even as I empathize with the people 9of these towns in the Deep South, at the same time, I cannot help but experience a bit of schadenfreude. For you see, in the mid-70s, it wasn't to China or Mexico to which manufacturing operations (and the corresponding jobs) relocated; rather, it was to towns in Florida, Alabama, and other states of the Deep[ South that companies went, aggressively lured there by lavish incentives and very low tax rates -- low rates sustained largely by the refusal of people in the South to fund the kinds of public services those in the Northeast and Midwest saw as being essential to civilized living. So, in a sense, what these towns are now going through can be seen as chickens coming home to roost.
161
Piper is still in Vero Beach,Fl. --Florida, where the average hourly wage is $6/hr lower than the U.S. average
Although many of those commenting on this piece seem obsessed with taxes, that really doesn't have anything to do with this problem. The wealthiest few in this country already shoulder almost the entire tax burden. Corporate taxes are also irrelevant. Taxes are a smaller financial burden on companies than payroll, working conditions, environmental regulations, etc. We could drop our corporate tax rate to zero and it wouldn't' reverse this problem.
The real problem, plain and simple, are our politicians. This is a problem that has grown, and in fact been nurtured, under both Democratic and Republican administrations and Congresses. As a society, we deemed certain rules regarding pay, conditions, labor/management relations, environmental precautions, etc. to be in our national interest. As long as everyone played by the same rules, all was well. But then our elected leaders turned around and cut deals and made trade pacts that amounted to saying to companies: "Hey, if you want to just setup shop in the third world and skirt all these rules, we're cool with that." They made it not only easy, but financially advantageous for offshoring to occur.
Now we have Democrats telling us the solution is to tax the wealthy more, and Republicans telling us that the solution is to drop our corporate taxes. Neither of which will do anything to alleviate the problem.
The real problem, plain and simple, are our politicians. This is a problem that has grown, and in fact been nurtured, under both Democratic and Republican administrations and Congresses. As a society, we deemed certain rules regarding pay, conditions, labor/management relations, environmental precautions, etc. to be in our national interest. As long as everyone played by the same rules, all was well. But then our elected leaders turned around and cut deals and made trade pacts that amounted to saying to companies: "Hey, if you want to just setup shop in the third world and skirt all these rules, we're cool with that." They made it not only easy, but financially advantageous for offshoring to occur.
Now we have Democrats telling us the solution is to tax the wealthy more, and Republicans telling us that the solution is to drop our corporate taxes. Neither of which will do anything to alleviate the problem.
57
Really the wealthy pay all the taxes?
Basic facts from the IRS
Top 20% income, not wealth but income, earn 57 % of the income, pay 71% of taxes,
Top 5% earners just over 22% of income pay 38% of taxes.
Sorry as part of the 5% seems mostly reasonable.
(My arguement is with what its soent on, but thats another story)
Top 20% income have much more wealth of course, dont have a valid number.
Cry a river for the top.!
Basic facts from the IRS
Top 20% income, not wealth but income, earn 57 % of the income, pay 71% of taxes,
Top 5% earners just over 22% of income pay 38% of taxes.
Sorry as part of the 5% seems mostly reasonable.
(My arguement is with what its soent on, but thats another story)
Top 20% income have much more wealth of course, dont have a valid number.
Cry a river for the top.!
1
I feel sad for these southern communities. Yet, look how they have voted over the past 30 years. It has been the south that has elected the politicians who have dismantled collective bargaining, kept the minimum wage low, and consistently rewarded they rich with tax reductions for their utterly selfish behavior. They are the ones who consistently elect the politicians who insure our national massacres by refusing to enact reasonable gun control. They are the one who consistently elect the politicians who would deny them of even the most basic health care.
The south never really got over losing the civil war. Instead, they have crawled into their own backward looking cocoon. I feel sorry for them, but we urban people of the coastal cities live well and grow because we are not afraid of the future, but welcome change. And unlike our southern brothers and sisters, we vote for politicians who represent out best interests, rather than those who prey on our fantasies.
The south never really got over losing the civil war. Instead, they have crawled into their own backward looking cocoon. I feel sorry for them, but we urban people of the coastal cities live well and grow because we are not afraid of the future, but welcome change. And unlike our southern brothers and sisters, we vote for politicians who represent out best interests, rather than those who prey on our fantasies.
1
In traditional economic circles, free trade is seen as a "net positive" because on the whole it produces sufficient increases in wealth for the "winners" such that they could compensate the "losers" to make them whole and then some--so everyone would theoretically be better off after this reallocation. This is a pretty simple idea that economists have for some reason labeled Kaldor-Hicks efficiency.
And I really do believe free trade produces greater global wealth than protectionism--just as the models predict.
However, we forgot the part about making the "losers" better off. I think we need a new approach. With all the talk about reforming the tax code to make it more economical for U.S. businesses to remain here, we probably should create what amounts to an offshoring tax that would be utilized directly to compensate those that are disrupted by the offshoring.
And I really do believe free trade produces greater global wealth than protectionism--just as the models predict.
However, we forgot the part about making the "losers" better off. I think we need a new approach. With all the talk about reforming the tax code to make it more economical for U.S. businesses to remain here, we probably should create what amounts to an offshoring tax that would be utilized directly to compensate those that are disrupted by the offshoring.
It seems negligent to not include the Walton family when discussing the economy in general and Arkansas in particular.
That family of Walmart fame is as wealthy has 42% of American families.
Taxes should be much higher for the very wealthy. When a Koch brother dies he will leave an estate worth at least $40 billion. The estate tax rate on such fortunes should be at least 95%. That would leave the "kids" at least $2 billion.
Conservatives always say that high taxes on the rich won't deliver major revenues. Rubbish.
There should be higher tax brackets for the wealthy and super wealthy. When someone's income, from all sources, reaches into the high millions, the federal government should be getting upwards of 90%.
These revenues would be substantial indeed at should be used to benefit the poor and struggling American citizens.
Single-payer health insurance and major investments in the country's infrastructure should be a no-brainer. We need an FDR type WPA. Millions of a decent paying jobs can be created.
Corporations that use all sorts of creative financial "instruments" in moving jobs overseas, and of course in all sorts of ways, could be discouraged with financial penalties.
We are in a new gilded age and the Republicans strive to make it even worse. The disparity in income and wealth in this country is a disgrace. There is much we can do to remedy this calamity. We might be able to accomplish much of this. We have to try.
That family of Walmart fame is as wealthy has 42% of American families.
Taxes should be much higher for the very wealthy. When a Koch brother dies he will leave an estate worth at least $40 billion. The estate tax rate on such fortunes should be at least 95%. That would leave the "kids" at least $2 billion.
Conservatives always say that high taxes on the rich won't deliver major revenues. Rubbish.
There should be higher tax brackets for the wealthy and super wealthy. When someone's income, from all sources, reaches into the high millions, the federal government should be getting upwards of 90%.
These revenues would be substantial indeed at should be used to benefit the poor and struggling American citizens.
Single-payer health insurance and major investments in the country's infrastructure should be a no-brainer. We need an FDR type WPA. Millions of a decent paying jobs can be created.
Corporations that use all sorts of creative financial "instruments" in moving jobs overseas, and of course in all sorts of ways, could be discouraged with financial penalties.
We are in a new gilded age and the Republicans strive to make it even worse. The disparity in income and wealth in this country is a disgrace. There is much we can do to remedy this calamity. We might be able to accomplish much of this. We have to try.
The country needs a strategic blueprint for growth based upon high speed rail with three or four major hubs across the country; spokes clasping the American people together.
This public private venture will spur an explosion of research, infrastructure, manufacture, construction jobs, along with all the other trades, services, durable goods, and merchandise associated with healthy american business life.
Automobiles and steel once drove the economy and high speed rail can do the same while transforming our physical, industrial, economic, psychological landscape for the next century.
Infrastructure is the next big thing to right the american economy. It's a no brainer.
This public private venture will spur an explosion of research, infrastructure, manufacture, construction jobs, along with all the other trades, services, durable goods, and merchandise associated with healthy american business life.
Automobiles and steel once drove the economy and high speed rail can do the same while transforming our physical, industrial, economic, psychological landscape for the next century.
Infrastructure is the next big thing to right the american economy. It's a no brainer.
Thanks for your ability, knowledge and straight up honesty in addition to the time and effort you expended to put reality in place of the fiction we are led to believe exists in "our" land.
What few of us realize is that exploiters, regardless their nationality, are equally opportunistic. While we suppose those we elect to office are there to assist us while protecting our best interest, the reality is many of them are bought and traded on a market that rivals the DJIA in its overall value with much less scrutiny and aside from the foxes in the henhouse, no oversight at all.
Ultimately because we live in a democracy where one person is elected to each office by a plurality of the voters that person is trusted to represent all of us. However the corollary that those we put in office will be honest whether we agree or not is often betrayed by self aggrandizement involving narrowly interpreted legal favoritism.
The single most important lesson to be learned from this column is that we cannot blindly trust any of those who seek leadership in any endeavor. This isn't to say we must be suspicious, but we must demand as a matter of self protection that those who seek to represent us regardless of party affiliation are as or more scrupulous than ourselves.
While outsourcing has certainly been a boon to a few wealthy business owners it was never designed to benefit the citizenry and that was well known by all the politicians before a single job was ever shipped overseas.
What few of us realize is that exploiters, regardless their nationality, are equally opportunistic. While we suppose those we elect to office are there to assist us while protecting our best interest, the reality is many of them are bought and traded on a market that rivals the DJIA in its overall value with much less scrutiny and aside from the foxes in the henhouse, no oversight at all.
Ultimately because we live in a democracy where one person is elected to each office by a plurality of the voters that person is trusted to represent all of us. However the corollary that those we put in office will be honest whether we agree or not is often betrayed by self aggrandizement involving narrowly interpreted legal favoritism.
The single most important lesson to be learned from this column is that we cannot blindly trust any of those who seek leadership in any endeavor. This isn't to say we must be suspicious, but we must demand as a matter of self protection that those who seek to represent us regardless of party affiliation are as or more scrupulous than ourselves.
While outsourcing has certainly been a boon to a few wealthy business owners it was never designed to benefit the citizenry and that was well known by all the politicians before a single job was ever shipped overseas.
1
This is a very simplified version of the effect of trade. I find it very unfortunate that commentators bash outsourcing. To me this is nothing more than thinly veiled anti-Asian racism. The consequences of outscoring are this; low skilled manufacturing ( usually assembly and textile) jobs went overseas to places like India and China where real wages ( wages plus productive, since it is cheap to pay someone $10/ hour is they can make 40 shirts/hours than someone $2/hours if they can only make 5 shirts/hour due to productive differences) are lower. The result of this is cheaper prices for Americans and lower inflation (considering the last time we ever had to deal with high inflation was the 1980's), on the flip side millions of people who would either be in farming or unemployed are now finding new sources of employment and income, lifting many of them out of poverty. Instead of moaning of the loss of low skilled labor, how about invest in worships to give skills to blue collar workers, or they can go the way of whalers when the lightbulb was invented. In addition, community planning must be focused on increasing incomes, opportunity and reducing the impact on the environment. To do this town with 3500 people should not exit. It is time that the US embracing high density development, as higher density places are more environmentally friendly (more people in less space) and economically beneficial.
My heart is absolutely in agreement with Mr. Theroux. Shame on their hypocrisy. However, when we consider these misdeeds, we must remember that we are forever bound by the laws of nature, no matter how "civilized" and removed we may be as humans. The lions will always want the lion's share. You may as well try to deny the law of gravity as convince a CEO to not steal candy from a baby. There is no such thing as "fair" in a predator-prey relationship, nor is there in the market - both are natural phenomena. A man-made construct of government regulation can't be expected to make businesses play fair, because the warp speed of nature's drive will always find loopholes to spring through. So to echo Kirk and Observer sentiments below, I think we can only expect positive change out of this nation's abandoned industrial complex when we align our ideas and product/service development toward outcomes that will create jobs here AND simultaneously allow the elite to chase their bloody wealth at an optimal rate. This is a difficult equation to balance, and it will take a lot of clever creative energy to approach it (much more than any app has already boasted).
Tell me about it Paul, I was born in Detroit. As I read in a review of a book called The Warmth of Other Suns, by Wilkerson, there was a mass migration of 5 million blacks from the south after WWI until the 1960s as African American people flooded up into the industrial north to escape Jim Crow and begin climbing the ladder to the middle class. They arrived too late for many, because as Theroux says, those industrial jobs that were rungs to those ladders were pulled out from under these new citizens of Detroit, as well as the white working class that had been there too. This is why I feel so desperate about the current situation in our largely African American inner cities, where people are marooned without opportunities, and kept under control, sometimes violently, by the police. We focus on the interaction between the police and African Americans, but usually seem to miss the fact that it this loss of family wage jobs that is really at the root of the rot in poor families, whether in black inner city and rural communities, or white rural areas and suburbs.
I think it promises to get worse. Americans now comprise 32% of the worlds middle class citizens according to a recent article in The Atlantic. More are in Europe, and about as many are now in Asia. But within a couple of decades, somewhere around 66% of the middle class will be in Asia, and only 16% in America. This means that corporate interests will be even less aligned with those of the American middle class.
I think it promises to get worse. Americans now comprise 32% of the worlds middle class citizens according to a recent article in The Atlantic. More are in Europe, and about as many are now in Asia. But within a couple of decades, somewhere around 66% of the middle class will be in Asia, and only 16% in America. This means that corporate interests will be even less aligned with those of the American middle class.
I think Kathy K made the point best when she pointed out the irony that the ghost towns and shuttered factories and lines of unemployed also happened when the textile industry abandoned New England for the Deep South and maybe when New England wrested the textile trade from England.
Indeed, change has been so rapid in China that in the space of little over a 35-40 years places like Dongguan have gone from being a small fishing village to an industrial powerhouse and is now on its way to being part of China's rust belt.
It is silly to lash out at heartless capitalists for the pain that accompanies economic change. Theroux makes it sound as if the executives who outsourced production to China had any real say in the matter. They could bring the work back in a second if they really cared.
But that is ridiculous: If clothes and bikes can be made more cheaply in China than in Hollandale, Miss., then a US retailer is faced with two choices: Either it closes its plant in Hollandale and imports clothes and bikes from China, or it closes its plant in Hollandale and watches its competitors import clothes and bikes from China. This isn't a matter of becoming a multi-billionaire; it is a simple matter of economic survival.
Btw, this isn't unAmerican. Technological innovation produces identical results.
I have just been reading Sir Vidia's Shadow. It's great. As an ex-Brit, I can empathize with what the author felt about Lady Antonia Fraser. My frank advice: Stick to literature.
Indeed, change has been so rapid in China that in the space of little over a 35-40 years places like Dongguan have gone from being a small fishing village to an industrial powerhouse and is now on its way to being part of China's rust belt.
It is silly to lash out at heartless capitalists for the pain that accompanies economic change. Theroux makes it sound as if the executives who outsourced production to China had any real say in the matter. They could bring the work back in a second if they really cared.
But that is ridiculous: If clothes and bikes can be made more cheaply in China than in Hollandale, Miss., then a US retailer is faced with two choices: Either it closes its plant in Hollandale and imports clothes and bikes from China, or it closes its plant in Hollandale and watches its competitors import clothes and bikes from China. This isn't a matter of becoming a multi-billionaire; it is a simple matter of economic survival.
Btw, this isn't unAmerican. Technological innovation produces identical results.
I have just been reading Sir Vidia's Shadow. It's great. As an ex-Brit, I can empathize with what the author felt about Lady Antonia Fraser. My frank advice: Stick to literature.
1
I am reconsidering the whole 'free trade is good' mantra that every economist seems to believe. The idea is, each country specializes in what it does most efficiently and each benefits as a result.
So, we outsource shoe manufacture and phone assembly to china and supposedly do other higher value jobs here and our GDP will be bigger.
Okay, I accept this.
We let China make our shoes. What do we do here? We focus on financial services enabling all that. Our GDP does go up, yay!
So, the impoverished state of our former textile workers is more than offset by the total gains in income of already rich financiers.
Fine, so be it, our national wealth is bigger. I'll do this with a smile on my face IF the rich financiers allow redistribution through tax policy. I notice though, that this does not happen.
So I now look wistfully back to the old days, when we were a 'poorer country' that made it's own textiles just like they do in the third world now.
Yes, the rest of the world is better off, sure, they have benefited enormously from free trade. But what about US? I for one am not comforted by vast increases in the wealth of our bankers.
All those 'gains from trade' are not worth a bucket of warm spit when the entire amount of the gain is captured by the one percent while the rest of us stand around and watch the weeds grow up around all our silent dead factories.
So, we outsource shoe manufacture and phone assembly to china and supposedly do other higher value jobs here and our GDP will be bigger.
Okay, I accept this.
We let China make our shoes. What do we do here? We focus on financial services enabling all that. Our GDP does go up, yay!
So, the impoverished state of our former textile workers is more than offset by the total gains in income of already rich financiers.
Fine, so be it, our national wealth is bigger. I'll do this with a smile on my face IF the rich financiers allow redistribution through tax policy. I notice though, that this does not happen.
So I now look wistfully back to the old days, when we were a 'poorer country' that made it's own textiles just like they do in the third world now.
Yes, the rest of the world is better off, sure, they have benefited enormously from free trade. But what about US? I for one am not comforted by vast increases in the wealth of our bankers.
All those 'gains from trade' are not worth a bucket of warm spit when the entire amount of the gain is captured by the one percent while the rest of us stand around and watch the weeds grow up around all our silent dead factories.
Free-range slavery is low cost, and has the advantage of workers
clamoring at the gates to be one of the lucky ones chosen, but not quite
desperate enough to become violent themselves when they are laid off.
Far better to let governments and charities maintain a large population
of potential workers, at no cost to the business right up until they
actually need someone, and then only take them on contract for no more
remuneration than necessary to ensure their participation. By "slaves," I
mean people whose resources are nil or mediated by others, whose labour
is directed by others, and whose return for that labor is at
subsistence, regardless of the productivity of their labor. They may
produce a value of 10X subsistence, but still only receive the bare
minimum required to keep them alive. As they increase their productivity
to 20X, they still only receive 1X in return. This, not overt
ownership, is the functional structure of slavery. In fact, overt
ownership is an inefficient and expensive way to control human labor.
The wealthy did not succeed in the Great Depression in establishing
free-range slavery, This time they might.
clamoring at the gates to be one of the lucky ones chosen, but not quite
desperate enough to become violent themselves when they are laid off.
Far better to let governments and charities maintain a large population
of potential workers, at no cost to the business right up until they
actually need someone, and then only take them on contract for no more
remuneration than necessary to ensure their participation. By "slaves," I
mean people whose resources are nil or mediated by others, whose labour
is directed by others, and whose return for that labor is at
subsistence, regardless of the productivity of their labor. They may
produce a value of 10X subsistence, but still only receive the bare
minimum required to keep them alive. As they increase their productivity
to 20X, they still only receive 1X in return. This, not overt
ownership, is the functional structure of slavery. In fact, overt
ownership is an inefficient and expensive way to control human labor.
The wealthy did not succeed in the Great Depression in establishing
free-range slavery, This time they might.
Mr. Theroux presumably feels good because he speaks out for the poor. Nice.
Companies have an absolute duty to make profits. When labor is either too expensive or lacking in qualifications, they have no choice but to look elsewhere. The problem with globalization, if it is a problem, is that it makes factories to where the least expensive, qualified labor exists. Without China, iPhones would cost three times what they cost.
The problem in the south and elsewhere isn't greedy executives. The problem is a workforce that is too costly relative to its competence and efficiency. Like it or not, sad as it is, many of the poor are neither amenable to competitive wages or else they lack the qualifications.
Life isn't fair. Poverty has been with us forever. And will likely remain that way. Writing op-eds doesn't solve the problem, though Mr. Theroux will surely take pride in receiving hundreds of emails from friends telling him he is a good person.
Being a good person doesn't solve poverty. Sorry.
Companies have an absolute duty to make profits. When labor is either too expensive or lacking in qualifications, they have no choice but to look elsewhere. The problem with globalization, if it is a problem, is that it makes factories to where the least expensive, qualified labor exists. Without China, iPhones would cost three times what they cost.
The problem in the south and elsewhere isn't greedy executives. The problem is a workforce that is too costly relative to its competence and efficiency. Like it or not, sad as it is, many of the poor are neither amenable to competitive wages or else they lack the qualifications.
Life isn't fair. Poverty has been with us forever. And will likely remain that way. Writing op-eds doesn't solve the problem, though Mr. Theroux will surely take pride in receiving hundreds of emails from friends telling him he is a good person.
Being a good person doesn't solve poverty. Sorry.
1
Free trade is darned expensive.
I was raised in Martinsville, Virginia -- a city very similar to those highlighted by Mr. Theroux.
Once upon a time it was the sweatshirt capital of the world (and now has no fleece production to speak of), had the world's largest nylon plant (now bulldozed), and, in the surrounding Henry county, had the world's largest furniture plant (Bassett Furniture -- still there, but shrunken by about 95%).
Bassett, Stanley, Pulaski, Hooker, or American of Martinsville furniture and sweatshirts from Tultex, Pannill, or Bassett-Walker now come from Asia in most cases.
And Martinsville had, in the recent past, a 21% unemployment rate, among the highest in the country (and this is after many residents have left the area for lack of work).
And the carnage extends beyond just the factory workers to engineers, technology workers, and mid-level managers, all of whom are now unemployed as well. Martinsville and Henry County doesn't have much of a middle class anymore.
I understand the traditional economic theory about free trade benefiting trading economies. What we are experiencing now, however, does not fit the traditional model: people who live in concrete dormitories and earn 85¢ an hour (the typical Chines wage) can’t buy anything that we produce here.
If our current, grossly asymmetric trade policies continue in their current form, the United States will mirror Martinsville before too long (Martinsville's descent took less than 15 years).
I was raised in Martinsville, Virginia -- a city very similar to those highlighted by Mr. Theroux.
Once upon a time it was the sweatshirt capital of the world (and now has no fleece production to speak of), had the world's largest nylon plant (now bulldozed), and, in the surrounding Henry county, had the world's largest furniture plant (Bassett Furniture -- still there, but shrunken by about 95%).
Bassett, Stanley, Pulaski, Hooker, or American of Martinsville furniture and sweatshirts from Tultex, Pannill, or Bassett-Walker now come from Asia in most cases.
And Martinsville had, in the recent past, a 21% unemployment rate, among the highest in the country (and this is after many residents have left the area for lack of work).
And the carnage extends beyond just the factory workers to engineers, technology workers, and mid-level managers, all of whom are now unemployed as well. Martinsville and Henry County doesn't have much of a middle class anymore.
I understand the traditional economic theory about free trade benefiting trading economies. What we are experiencing now, however, does not fit the traditional model: people who live in concrete dormitories and earn 85¢ an hour (the typical Chines wage) can’t buy anything that we produce here.
If our current, grossly asymmetric trade policies continue in their current form, the United States will mirror Martinsville before too long (Martinsville's descent took less than 15 years).
As long as the US remains an unabashedly capitalist country, the corporations have no choice. Their first duty is to maximize profits for their shareholders, and if that means outsourcing jobs to countries where labor is dirt cheap, then that's what they not only will do but will feel obliged to do. The only solution is to have laws that impose tariffs on imports from countries that pay below the minimum US wage, or have environmental and safety conditions incompatible with US laws. That would not only discourage outsourcing but in the long run improve conditions elsewhere, and we would have true competition based on quality and real efficiency instead of merely a race to the bottom based on low wages.
But as long as large multinational corporations wield the kind of political power that they do, I don't see such laws being passed.
But as long as large multinational corporations wield the kind of political power that they do, I don't see such laws being passed.
In an earlier comment I placed much if not most of the fault on those who represent us in public office and only mentioned in passing the owners of the businesses who actually move their factories out of our country.
They are of another class who have less fealty, if that seems possible, to our nation than the politicians who they control. They consider themselves world citizens while at the same time expecting U.S. protection whether of trade, tariff or ultimately defense their pawns in government provide and we the taxpayer support.
If there is a validity to this observation it follows that there should be a higher tax leveled against products which were formerly manufactured here, but are now imported.
Computer manufacturers such as Apple which have profited at very high levels as result of so called offshoring should be forced to decrease the profit margin of their product through the levy of higher taxes or to reflect the reduced cost of their product through a concomitant decrease in domestic price.
This thought clearly runs against the grain of those who tout the idea of "free enterprise" but enterprise of the sort practiced by offshoring is hardly free when the consumer is paying a price which more truly reflects the cost of manufacturing here in the states while the excess profit goes into stockholder pockets.
I suspect that our worldwide network of military bases may exist to protect private interests of U.S. citizens abroad more than our actual homeland.
They are of another class who have less fealty, if that seems possible, to our nation than the politicians who they control. They consider themselves world citizens while at the same time expecting U.S. protection whether of trade, tariff or ultimately defense their pawns in government provide and we the taxpayer support.
If there is a validity to this observation it follows that there should be a higher tax leveled against products which were formerly manufactured here, but are now imported.
Computer manufacturers such as Apple which have profited at very high levels as result of so called offshoring should be forced to decrease the profit margin of their product through the levy of higher taxes or to reflect the reduced cost of their product through a concomitant decrease in domestic price.
This thought clearly runs against the grain of those who tout the idea of "free enterprise" but enterprise of the sort practiced by offshoring is hardly free when the consumer is paying a price which more truly reflects the cost of manufacturing here in the states while the excess profit goes into stockholder pockets.
I suspect that our worldwide network of military bases may exist to protect private interests of U.S. citizens abroad more than our actual homeland.
A corporation may be a person, but it is not a citizen, not an American. It has no loyalty, it goes to the highest bidder. When corporations give to political causes, it is the stockholders money that is being given.
My retirement fund is large in mutual funds, the funds own stock in corporations, and the corporations (and I have no idea what corporations they are) are spending my money to fund politicians that further the interests of the corporation, but may be far removed from the interests of the country. So I become a passive participant in the destruction of my country because, forsooth, I have no choice if I want to be able to retire.
Our system pits those who save against those who can't. While a few people reap the lion's share of the benefit.
This isn't a conspiracy by the evil rich. It IS a system that is badly designed and organized, that has dreadful unintended consequences. The few aren't evil, nor are the many good; but they live in a system impoverishes the many and enriches the few. And no one seems to have a viable alternative.
My retirement fund is large in mutual funds, the funds own stock in corporations, and the corporations (and I have no idea what corporations they are) are spending my money to fund politicians that further the interests of the corporation, but may be far removed from the interests of the country. So I become a passive participant in the destruction of my country because, forsooth, I have no choice if I want to be able to retire.
Our system pits those who save against those who can't. While a few people reap the lion's share of the benefit.
This isn't a conspiracy by the evil rich. It IS a system that is badly designed and organized, that has dreadful unintended consequences. The few aren't evil, nor are the many good; but they live in a system impoverishes the many and enriches the few. And no one seems to have a viable alternative.
Tradere, traditio, treisoun, treason. Handing over. Handing over millions upon millions of good paying jobs, jobs that built and maintained millions of decent homes, put good, nutritious food on the family table, paid for health care and education, provided for an ample middle-class style of life handed over. Handed over to China. To India, To Indonesia. Impoverishing millions of U.S. citizens. Foreclosures. Inability to afford medical attention. The impossibility of attending college or university. Detroit. The downtown core largely white. Upscale. But tens of thousands of decaying homes on thousands of city streets, potholes many the size of trucks. Virtually no significant education taking place for the vast majority of children compared against world-class standards. And Detroit is just one example of once thriving urban metropolises. Blighted suburbs. With no reasonable prospects of employment, what is there to motivate youth to buckle down and learn. To behave? Treason. It is that. But the vast beyond imagining fortunes earned by their treachery protects the culprits responsible for the destruction of millions of U.S. citizens' lives. How many on wall street responsible for the crash are behind bars? How many industrialists? The real threat to the social fabric existed right here. The focus on terrorist threats from abroad deflected 99% of us from the real terror at home as our culture was thoroughly gutted.
1
Apparently Mr. Theroux did not get the "late-stage capitalism" memo. In a time of corporatist shareholder value maximization it pays to impoverish workers in the first world while claiming to bring millions in the third world "out of poverty." Read the apologist comments of Frank Dobbs NYC below. The mantra of corporatist Masters of the Universe is that their efforts bring opportunity for millions to rise out of poverty. Well, yes, if poverty is defined as abject, hopeless, brutish survival in places without drinking water,electricity, and access to penicilin. Poverty that today still threatens to kill millions with preventable diseases such as cholera and tuberculosis. As oppposed to the kind of poverty in the 1st world. The insidious poverty that threatens millions of children with brain damage from lead-paint in public housing. The more elegant poverty that leads to early death from chronic asthma, lung diseases, morbid obesity, and diabetes caused by food additives and air polutants. Just because U.S. poverty allows millions to have smart phones and cable TV does not deny the fact that it is poverty, that it is preventable, and made in the USA.
1
Mr. Theroux is a too willing to blame this result on the likes of Knight and Cook. The Walton Family should get their fair, and large, share of the blame as well. Making shoes in the US that the Waltons will not sell in their network of stores is a great incentive to move the shoe factory to China. Had Cook decided to assemble cell phones and tablets in the US, would they compete today with products sold at Best Bye and assembled in Asia?
There is another problem too. A modern factory, the type that are being built all over Asia today, are capital intensive. That means very large loans from banks are required to build them. Many Asian governments are willing to help out with policies that reduce the risk to lenders who reciprocate with lower rates of interest. This makes manufacturing abroad more profitable, it costs less to borrow money to finance your factory in Asia.
Here in the US our Congress opposes help US industries so that they can compete in a global economy. Here in the US the market place’s invisible hand is the only help US manufacturing can expect, but the rest of world manufacturers get plenty of help from their governments. There is plenty of blame to spread around for US job loses, the attitude of the majority in our Congress deserves their share of it too – another very large share.
There is another problem too. A modern factory, the type that are being built all over Asia today, are capital intensive. That means very large loans from banks are required to build them. Many Asian governments are willing to help out with policies that reduce the risk to lenders who reciprocate with lower rates of interest. This makes manufacturing abroad more profitable, it costs less to borrow money to finance your factory in Asia.
Here in the US our Congress opposes help US industries so that they can compete in a global economy. Here in the US the market place’s invisible hand is the only help US manufacturing can expect, but the rest of world manufacturers get plenty of help from their governments. There is plenty of blame to spread around for US job loses, the attitude of the majority in our Congress deserves their share of it too – another very large share.
Automation will increase. There will be more robots. As a result, there will be fewer jobs.
This is a worldwide trend. There will be fewer jobs in Germany and China as well as in the US. The present economic situation gives full time jobs to some people and nothing to the others.
Attempts to even this out, such as the US overtime system, have been subverted. Overtime was intended to prod employers to hire two workers when there was work for 1.5, instead of giving all of it to one person. Many organizations have instead used the time and a half rule to double their members pay while preventing others from having any job at all.
One solution is Welfare for All. If it is okay for the children of the wealthy to live off the work of others while at the same time paying no taxes, and for the poor to receive food stamps, maybe the rest of us should get welfare too. The robots will do the work, except for what people want to do.
Welfare for All has been tried in Canada (google Professor Forget) and on US Indian reservations, and it works. It totally eliminates poverty. People continue to work, but at jobs they prefer.
For this and other great ideas, go to YouTube and watch Comedy Party Platform (2 min 9 sec). Then send a buck to Bernie Sanders and invite me to speak to your group. Thanks.
This is a worldwide trend. There will be fewer jobs in Germany and China as well as in the US. The present economic situation gives full time jobs to some people and nothing to the others.
Attempts to even this out, such as the US overtime system, have been subverted. Overtime was intended to prod employers to hire two workers when there was work for 1.5, instead of giving all of it to one person. Many organizations have instead used the time and a half rule to double their members pay while preventing others from having any job at all.
One solution is Welfare for All. If it is okay for the children of the wealthy to live off the work of others while at the same time paying no taxes, and for the poor to receive food stamps, maybe the rest of us should get welfare too. The robots will do the work, except for what people want to do.
Welfare for All has been tried in Canada (google Professor Forget) and on US Indian reservations, and it works. It totally eliminates poverty. People continue to work, but at jobs they prefer.
For this and other great ideas, go to YouTube and watch Comedy Party Platform (2 min 9 sec). Then send a buck to Bernie Sanders and invite me to speak to your group. Thanks.
Our state and federal tax system is what drives US based corporations overseas - it's not jobs, it is tax avoidance that allows and encourages US based corporations to move profits overseas. It is our state and federal tax system and tax incentives that entices foreign based corporations to move operations to the US. It is tax avoidance that encourages US corporations to move their commercial domicile overseas via tax inversions. US based corporations are taxed on their worldwide income ONLY if and when foreign income is repatriated (as foreign dividend income). Foreign based corporations operating in the US are ONLY taxed on their "reported" US income - if any. Tax avoidance in the US by multinational corporations of all stripes is the prime motivation. Congress won't fix it but a state, any state, could by adopting unitary worldwide combined reporting - a method approved by the US Supreme Court three times. If California returned to unitary worldwide combined reporting, it would open the dam on our damnable tax system.
Henry Ford know that if he paid his workers a decent wage, he would in fact be creating a customer for his automobiles. Every administration since Clinton has done everything it could to ignore that simple axiom.
When this country started, protectionism (import tariffs) were our greatest source of revenue and our greatest assurance of unprecedented industrialization. Perhaps, the pendulum swung too far, unions became too powerful. Who knows. Outside of public employee unions, they certainly hold no great power today.
The problem is obvious: one cannot have a social contract based society with all of its significant costs, including living wages, worker safety regulations, environmental protections, laws, courts, and a huge governmental infrastructure to compute it all and enforce its provisions, and then simply open its borders to third-world countries which have NONE of those additional burdens and costs, and then with a straight face, expect our industry to compete, our society to function and our economy to grow. It doesn't take an Ivy league economist to predict the outcome of the path we have chosen.
If we were somehow able to demonetize our political process, we might be in a position to slowly reverse the damage. But, let's face it, we aren't even faced in that direction, much less in a position to reverse the obvious trend toward deindustrialization and misery.
When this country started, protectionism (import tariffs) were our greatest source of revenue and our greatest assurance of unprecedented industrialization. Perhaps, the pendulum swung too far, unions became too powerful. Who knows. Outside of public employee unions, they certainly hold no great power today.
The problem is obvious: one cannot have a social contract based society with all of its significant costs, including living wages, worker safety regulations, environmental protections, laws, courts, and a huge governmental infrastructure to compute it all and enforce its provisions, and then simply open its borders to third-world countries which have NONE of those additional burdens and costs, and then with a straight face, expect our industry to compete, our society to function and our economy to grow. It doesn't take an Ivy league economist to predict the outcome of the path we have chosen.
If we were somehow able to demonetize our political process, we might be in a position to slowly reverse the damage. But, let's face it, we aren't even faced in that direction, much less in a position to reverse the obvious trend toward deindustrialization and misery.
114
Liked it except for the negative union comment, without which 6 year old children would be working 12 hour days 7 days a week.
You are right! Globalization is a calamity. Even if we gave all our money and goods to the rest of the world, it will still remain poor. It is a question of overpopulation, lousy religious beliefs, cultural, ethnic differences and entrenched meaningless loyalties to backward past traditions.
As technology began rapidly entering the workplace in the 1950s, instead of decreasing worker-hours and maintaining the workforce at the same level with the same level of compensation, employers used the savings from technology to keep worker-hours and salaries the same, but reduced the size of the workforce. Greater productivity was translated into greater profits for the owners. The benefits did not trickle down.
With the decline of unions and the failure of the government to shorten the work-week as they had done in the early part of the 20th century, the work-week stayed about the same, with fewer employees required. At the beginning of the 21st century, worker compensation had remained relatively stable for the past 50 years while the compensation of owners has increased twenty-fold.
The answer is not to encourage Americans to 'Buy American', but to demand that employees benefit from technology as do employers: Fewer hours for employees with a commensurate increase in compensation so that the level of employment remains the same having more workers working fewer hours and all Americans benefiting from the fruits of technology, not just the employers.
Legislation reducing the work-week from 40 hours to 35, then 30 will dramatically increase employment while giving more leisure time to Americans and restoring the worker-owner incomes to a more traditional ratio of 10 or 20:1 rather than the current 200:1.
With the decline of unions and the failure of the government to shorten the work-week as they had done in the early part of the 20th century, the work-week stayed about the same, with fewer employees required. At the beginning of the 21st century, worker compensation had remained relatively stable for the past 50 years while the compensation of owners has increased twenty-fold.
The answer is not to encourage Americans to 'Buy American', but to demand that employees benefit from technology as do employers: Fewer hours for employees with a commensurate increase in compensation so that the level of employment remains the same having more workers working fewer hours and all Americans benefiting from the fruits of technology, not just the employers.
Legislation reducing the work-week from 40 hours to 35, then 30 will dramatically increase employment while giving more leisure time to Americans and restoring the worker-owner incomes to a more traditional ratio of 10 or 20:1 rather than the current 200:1.
105
Following the great depression Milton S. Hershey, of chocolate fame, refused to layoff any of his workers. Instead he began major building projects both at his plant and in Hershey, PA.
One day he was giving a tour to a group of businessmen. During the tour they visited the site where he was constructing an new 170 room hotel. While they were watching the work in progress the foreman approached them and bragged to the tour that they had just purchased, and were using, a state of the art steam shovel that could do the work of 40 men.
After the tour was completed Hershey came back to the construction site and told the foreman to get rid of the steam shovel and hire 40 men.
Hershey, his business and his town came through the depression nearly unscathed.
There is much to be learned from business leaders like this. If only we had more like him.
One day he was giving a tour to a group of businessmen. During the tour they visited the site where he was constructing an new 170 room hotel. While they were watching the work in progress the foreman approached them and bragged to the tour that they had just purchased, and were using, a state of the art steam shovel that could do the work of 40 men.
After the tour was completed Hershey came back to the construction site and told the foreman to get rid of the steam shovel and hire 40 men.
Hershey, his business and his town came through the depression nearly unscathed.
There is much to be learned from business leaders like this. If only we had more like him.
2
Thank you Paul for highlighting the hypocrisy of the businessmen and the politicians. Let's not forget that it was Clinton who caved into business pressure and gave China "most favorite nations status". Businesses were looking for cheaper labor but the move of manufacturing outside of the United States decimated communities whose fragile economy was dependent on that industry. We are destroying our nation to line the pockets of the very wealthy, but that's capitalism, isn't it? Clinton couldn't even get human rights concessions from the Chinese, for the special status. The only way to fight this malaise is to boycott Chinese goods. Walmart does not carry American made products. They get preferential treatment from the Chinese government, because all their products are made in China. How patriotic. A sad state of affairs indeed.
I want to cry. Thank you Mr. Theroux.
I was once part of the so-called limousine liberals on the late 20th century. My values haven't changed but my perspective has.
While I was never a greatly concerned about the plight of the Gnu in parts of Africa I will never visit, I have been in the institutional financial biz and have visited corporate headquarters (of Fortune 1,000 companies) all around the country. I have been appalled by the blight that exists between airports and the corporate centers. (Little Rock to Bentonville Arkansas is an eye-opening "experience" of the 3rd world if you take the "Blue Highways.")
Americans love to beat their chest about how generous we are (while far out done by Scandinavian countries), and how we care about the loss of jobs (except when it comes to cronie capitalism).
We are the drunk who knows he shouldn't drink, but goes to the bottle every night because it assuages his guilt about being a drunk. Substitute our America predilection for meaningless goods and services and you get the point.
I was once part of the so-called limousine liberals on the late 20th century. My values haven't changed but my perspective has.
While I was never a greatly concerned about the plight of the Gnu in parts of Africa I will never visit, I have been in the institutional financial biz and have visited corporate headquarters (of Fortune 1,000 companies) all around the country. I have been appalled by the blight that exists between airports and the corporate centers. (Little Rock to Bentonville Arkansas is an eye-opening "experience" of the 3rd world if you take the "Blue Highways.")
Americans love to beat their chest about how generous we are (while far out done by Scandinavian countries), and how we care about the loss of jobs (except when it comes to cronie capitalism).
We are the drunk who knows he shouldn't drink, but goes to the bottle every night because it assuages his guilt about being a drunk. Substitute our America predilection for meaningless goods and services and you get the point.
4
Amen, brother Theroux. Henry David would be proud to share an approximation of his name with you. After all, it was he who wrote, "The luxury of one class is counterbalanced by the indigence of another." Now, what to do? Sure, we can wag our fingers at the Republicans, but this death spiral in the South began during the Democrat's watch. In truth, our economic conundrum is a bipartisan tar baby that has entangled every burgh and borough of the United States. We must also acknowledge that the dearth of manufacturing in the United States is due to economic constriction caused by a third-world python fed and strengthened by both America’s corporate greed and America’s addiction to cheap imported goods. Our producers and consumers alike have worked in partnership to create this problem. The death of American manufacturing was a slow burning process that moved from North to South during most of the twentieth century.
What could spur a return of industrial growth? Legislation is rendered ineffectual by corporate influence and our political temperament. Corporations are run for the sake of maximizing profits and vanquishing competition, so it would be completely illogical to expect corporate boards and executives to voluntarily absorb losses in order to revitalize American manufacturing.
So, what to do? Perhaps we are off to hell in a hand basket, and as stirring as Theroux's elegy is, righteous indignation and moral outrage don't pay the bills.
What could spur a return of industrial growth? Legislation is rendered ineffectual by corporate influence and our political temperament. Corporations are run for the sake of maximizing profits and vanquishing competition, so it would be completely illogical to expect corporate boards and executives to voluntarily absorb losses in order to revitalize American manufacturing.
So, what to do? Perhaps we are off to hell in a hand basket, and as stirring as Theroux's elegy is, righteous indignation and moral outrage don't pay the bills.
1
Great opinion piece. It feels good reading these FACTS.
There are two additional points which should be made:
. Every T-shirt, TV, shirts, shoes, toys, piece of furniture, computer, cell phone...etc which has been outsourced to China is contributing to the funding of China's military budget through taxes and through the hundreds of companies owned by China's governement, from steel mills to manufacturing companies, which have been benefitting from Western countries outsourcing. So, Americans, by their massive purchase of chinese made goods, actually contribute to financing their most formidable future enemy, much more than they contribute to the Pentagon's budget!
. in America, this globalization process which has hollowed out many American (and European) communities has been driven by a God, the actual God Under which America claims to be living, who, for many capital owners and business people is actually money, money empowered by greed and hypocrisy.
The moral of the story is that, for over 30 years, American business "elites" have been driving their country off a cliff, for the sole short term purpose of making more money for their businesses and for themselves.
These are the FACTS, but very few people are telling them as they are, and greed and hypocrisy reign supreme. Thanks to Paul Theroux for telling it as it is.
There are two additional points which should be made:
. Every T-shirt, TV, shirts, shoes, toys, piece of furniture, computer, cell phone...etc which has been outsourced to China is contributing to the funding of China's military budget through taxes and through the hundreds of companies owned by China's governement, from steel mills to manufacturing companies, which have been benefitting from Western countries outsourcing. So, Americans, by their massive purchase of chinese made goods, actually contribute to financing their most formidable future enemy, much more than they contribute to the Pentagon's budget!
. in America, this globalization process which has hollowed out many American (and European) communities has been driven by a God, the actual God Under which America claims to be living, who, for many capital owners and business people is actually money, money empowered by greed and hypocrisy.
The moral of the story is that, for over 30 years, American business "elites" have been driving their country off a cliff, for the sole short term purpose of making more money for their businesses and for themselves.
These are the FACTS, but very few people are telling them as they are, and greed and hypocrisy reign supreme. Thanks to Paul Theroux for telling it as it is.
3
"It seems obvious that executives of American companies should invest in the Deep South as they did in China." Only if that assures the investor s/he will give her a good enough margin of profit. Read Krugman. Capital is currently on strike and investments are increasingly lower across the globe. Apple and other companies instead give money to shareholders. Investing in new equipment is not as profitable as before. It seems globalization has reached its limits.
China's wages have increased and cheap labor cannot longer be obtained there due to relative stability of population growth. With time salaries across the globe tend to equalize, which means the overall pauperization of vast numbers of people in the world. China was the only country in which official poverty diminished in the last 3 decades. However, Globalization has mainly enriched corporations and impoverished the rest of us.
China's wages have increased and cheap labor cannot longer be obtained there due to relative stability of population growth. With time salaries across the globe tend to equalize, which means the overall pauperization of vast numbers of people in the world. China was the only country in which official poverty diminished in the last 3 decades. However, Globalization has mainly enriched corporations and impoverished the rest of us.
An excellent article. In Germany with a higher per hour rate for salaries and unionized workers, they are still manufacturing clothes and shoes in addition to the high value engineering products and autos. Family owned Mittelstand companies drive Germany's economy and are often the major employers in small towns. While low cost consumer goods went offshore to China as in the USA, the Germans have targeted high quality, high price niches for products and keep on manufacturing. What Mr. Theroux is saying here is quite feasible for the kind of products that Apple and others market. It would mean a little less profit to an already hugely profitable companies. In the US, whether its business or politics, money is the only thing that matters.
5
to real world....Thank you for citing Germany's example.....a sharp contrast to US. A few op ed pieces detailing more on your post would be welcome in the Times.
The question is why German and businesses in other countries have a different attitude than American business, which is enabled to exploit. And they can do it b/c our elections are auctioned off to the highest bidder. Other countries use more public funds for elections and thus can free up lawmakers to work for citizens, not rich sponsors. The trickle down effect is seen in lack of jobs, low pay, under funded education.
What trickles down in America is financial insecurity, and lowered living standards.
The question is why German and businesses in other countries have a different attitude than American business, which is enabled to exploit. And they can do it b/c our elections are auctioned off to the highest bidder. Other countries use more public funds for elections and thus can free up lawmakers to work for citizens, not rich sponsors. The trickle down effect is seen in lack of jobs, low pay, under funded education.
What trickles down in America is financial insecurity, and lowered living standards.
The New York Times has many excellent articles, but this is one of the best I've read in a long time. Thank you so much for pointing out the hypocrisy of the fabulously wealthy. The Clintons have done good things in Africa, so have people like Jimmy Carter, but Theroux is right to point out how towns in the deep South resemble Zimbabwe. The fabulously wealthy need to remember the mantra: think globally, act locally. Sadly acting locally seems to lack glamour, or I suspect for many Americans, but especially the rich, it's too much a source of shame. How do you feel heroic when all you're doing is putting a band aid on a gaping wound your actions and voting practices have helped to inflict?
40
To add a bit broader perspective... The factories that closed in the South and moved overseas are often the same industries that moved from the NorthEast to the South back in the 1920's and 30's to find cheaper labor. I grew up in a former mill town that nearly died when the companies moved south in response to workers trying to unionize to improve working conditions.
Big business has had a long history of relocating to cut labor costs. The only thing different now is their use of better euphemisms for their greed.
Big business has had a long history of relocating to cut labor costs. The only thing different now is their use of better euphemisms for their greed.
272
Moving factories south in the USA is a bad analogy to moving factories overseas. Factories in the south of the USA still must meat minimum wage laws, health and safety laws, and environmental laws. Factories abroad do not have to meet these standards.
1
I am a tad surprised that Theroux's come-to-Jesus moment on outsourcing arrived while touring the South. Like me, he's a Massachusetts native old enough to remember our paper and textile mills heading for Dixie and our Main Streets, once bustling, turning into deserted places even the police don't like to patrol after dark. (The main growth industry these days is drug-dealing.)
"Cheap prices make for cheap goods; cheap goods make for cheap men; cheap men make for a cheap country." - William McKinley
11
The first thing to do is make corporations illegal....
4
The poor have benefited tremendously from the reduction in prices and the greater availability of goods that resulted from technology and outsourcing.
The poor, on average, live better today than middle class people did when I was a child.
Transfer payments are also much greater than they used to be.
It would actually be a human rights violation to have corporations put aside economic progress and the growth of prosperity in order to become charitable institutions, or agents of the state or the intelligentsia. The whole nation, the whole world would suffer.
The poor, on average, live better today than middle class people did when I was a child.
Transfer payments are also much greater than they used to be.
It would actually be a human rights violation to have corporations put aside economic progress and the growth of prosperity in order to become charitable institutions, or agents of the state or the intelligentsia. The whole nation, the whole world would suffer.
3
With every election cycle, a part of me deflates when I think about how the money that is used for campaigning (and especially TV ads) could have gone to improving the lives of people in the country in so, so many ways.
18
The problem isn't that the CEOs of Apple, Nike, and other companies have outsourced factory and other work overseas. The problem is that it is the job of the CEOs to maximize profits, and one part of that is by minimizing costs. If any given CEO did not outsource jobs and minimize costs, he or she could, in fact should be fired for incompetence.
Sure, there are exceptions - companies which can be profitable with factories in the US. But there are many other companies which fell to competitors with lower costs.
So, if we can agree on the real problem, rather than just the red herring of evil, overpaid CEOs, maybe we can move towards a real solution.
Sure, there are exceptions - companies which can be profitable with factories in the US. But there are many other companies which fell to competitors with lower costs.
So, if we can agree on the real problem, rather than just the red herring of evil, overpaid CEOs, maybe we can move towards a real solution.
41
That is simply not true.
A corporation does not owe any such duty to its shareholders to maximize profits. The duty owed by directors and officers is to exercise reasonably prudent business judgment.
If the duty was to maximize profits, corporations would not be able to donate to charities. Any "good will" gained is worth far less than the pecuniary value of the monies paid. But, because corporations are not bound to act solely in the interests of shareholder value, a corporation may act in a manner that does not maximize shareholder gain but otherwise is in keeping with good business judgment.
But don't take my word for it. Take the word of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito in his majority opinion in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby.
A corporation does not owe any such duty to its shareholders to maximize profits. The duty owed by directors and officers is to exercise reasonably prudent business judgment.
If the duty was to maximize profits, corporations would not be able to donate to charities. Any "good will" gained is worth far less than the pecuniary value of the monies paid. But, because corporations are not bound to act solely in the interests of shareholder value, a corporation may act in a manner that does not maximize shareholder gain but otherwise is in keeping with good business judgment.
But don't take my word for it. Take the word of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito in his majority opinion in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby.
1
Neal, I don't think anyone would call for a CEO to be fired because of his/her failure to demand a high salary. I think you've confused CEO salary with corporate profitability.
1
Hard for the US to complete against China when it comes to manufacturing, since we have all those pesky occupational safety regulations they don't bother with in Asia. Life is cheap over there, which is just how US corporations seem to like it.
7
Sadly, this article seems to be based more on emotion than logic.
Putting aside the fact that millions of Americans benefit from big corporations like Apple either as employees, suppliers, or shareholders, the author seems to believe that we should care more about Americans than Chinese or other nationalities. If the effect of outsourcing is to lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty across the globe isn't it worth even if say ten or even twenty million Americans became impoverished as a consequence? Over time overseas wages will rise, making American workers more competitive. In the mean time foreigners will have more money to buy American goods. Plus countries with growing economies tend to be more stable and less prone to war.
I know it's hard not to get angry when you see people suffering in the richest country on earth, but we need to look at the bigger picture here.
Putting aside the fact that millions of Americans benefit from big corporations like Apple either as employees, suppliers, or shareholders, the author seems to believe that we should care more about Americans than Chinese or other nationalities. If the effect of outsourcing is to lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty across the globe isn't it worth even if say ten or even twenty million Americans became impoverished as a consequence? Over time overseas wages will rise, making American workers more competitive. In the mean time foreigners will have more money to buy American goods. Plus countries with growing economies tend to be more stable and less prone to war.
I know it's hard not to get angry when you see people suffering in the richest country on earth, but we need to look at the bigger picture here.
4
But can't the can't the Chinese be lifted from poverty by making appliances for buyers in their own country? And unemployed Americans can make a claim on my income while unemployed Chinese cannot. Those reasons seem adequate to support his thesis.
One assumes that you've inherited, and can easily afford to be so generous with other people's lives.
What a short-sighted article. The world is much bigger (and poorer) than the US, you know. The poor of the US live a pampered life compared with the hundreds of millions of Africans, Indians, and Haitians, for god's sake. There's nothing hypocritical in trying to help the real poor of the world.
94
reply to nomad: Was wondering when the "truly needy-really poor" argument would surface. Comparing who is the world's poorest is an academic exercise of uselessness: Poor/poverty is when you don't have the basic life necessities; food water, clothing, shelter. Come to my part of the nation (anywhere USA) and you will find plenty of the "real poor". In fact, I just finished making the rounds of some homeless camps delivering some liquid gold (H20) to some real-poor citizens. The article is only short-sighted to those choosing to "not" see.
4
i see we missed the part wherein was described clawing the loot from the poor of the world in the first place.
3
I will be sure to let the vagrants living on the streets of American cities know that you care. You should go to the streets of New York, where I remember seeing "pampered" people huddling over steam grates for warmth in the winter, while fur-wearing, top-coated families decamped from taxis mere yards way. That was in 1986, and its only gotten worse since. Yes, there are poor everywhere, but its an act of egoism to help the poor abroad instead of at home in your own community. That is, unless its no longer your community.
4
Not all that much will change for the better until American consumers change and demand home-grown goods and then must be willing to pay more for them. That in turn suggests we will buy less stuff. All good. Carl, Portland
7
The answer to Mr. Theroux's earnest question is that goods will be manufactured where it is cheapest to do so.
Thomas Friedman has observed that the world is now 'flat'--by which he means that there are fewer traditional barriers tot he free flow of information and goods. Something grown or manufactured cheaply can be economically transported wherever the market needs it to be,
The implication then is that at least some components of our privileged Western lifestyles are destined to disappear over time. After all, why pay an American radiologist $750,000 a year to read medical films when it can be done by an equally competent Indian doctor for pennies on the dollar and the technology allows this to be done contemporaneously?
We were the envy of the world and our industry allowed a uniquely American lifestyle to be supported. We then exported our technology and taught others to do what we do better and cheaper. The world caught up.
I am sympathetic to Mr. Theroux's point of view-- why shouldn't we manufacture the goods we consume right here on our shores and let our workers get paid good wages for doing so?
The answer, sadly, is because it can be done more cheaply and just as well elsewhere.
Thomas Friedman has observed that the world is now 'flat'--by which he means that there are fewer traditional barriers tot he free flow of information and goods. Something grown or manufactured cheaply can be economically transported wherever the market needs it to be,
The implication then is that at least some components of our privileged Western lifestyles are destined to disappear over time. After all, why pay an American radiologist $750,000 a year to read medical films when it can be done by an equally competent Indian doctor for pennies on the dollar and the technology allows this to be done contemporaneously?
We were the envy of the world and our industry allowed a uniquely American lifestyle to be supported. We then exported our technology and taught others to do what we do better and cheaper. The world caught up.
I am sympathetic to Mr. Theroux's point of view-- why shouldn't we manufacture the goods we consume right here on our shores and let our workers get paid good wages for doing so?
The answer, sadly, is because it can be done more cheaply and just as well elsewhere.
6
Thank you for writing this very important article.
Just wait until after the TPP kicks in hard.
Then we'll ALL go third world country here in the US. Almost there folks.
Just wait until after the TPP kicks in hard.
Then we'll ALL go third world country here in the US. Almost there folks.
6
Maybe we need to think about imposing tariffs again. How have we been helped by most of the plastic junk flowing in from China? The manufacturers who've been outsourcing their factories need to be called out for what they are - people with a greed for profit that transcends every other consideration, regardless of how many Americans lose jobs, how many American towns become ghost towns. These executives who make the decision to outsource are the opposite of patriotic.
Strong tax incentives are needed to reward keeping jobs at home and impose penalties on outsourcing. Let's promote "Made in the U.S.A." again. Our country's future is worth our having to pay a bit more for what we buy.
Strong tax incentives are needed to reward keeping jobs at home and impose penalties on outsourcing. Let's promote "Made in the U.S.A." again. Our country's future is worth our having to pay a bit more for what we buy.
4
My earlier comment has not yet cleared, just want to point out that a lead breaking story here in NW Arkansas is how Walmart is laying off 500 people at HQ in a corporate restructuring.
3
All the more reason to cheer--
"Go, Bernie!"
"Go, Bernie!"
11
People like this author hate it when companies provide honest jobs to foreigners in their own foreign countries in which they lawfully reside, but they love providing welfare payments, job opportunities (which may not be taken, given the availability of welfare), sanctuary cities, and a path to citizenship for those very same foreigners when they migrate unlawfully to the US. That is a much bigger hypocrisy.
3
Great article. The unethical irresponsibility of our so called best educated and most powerful citizens towards their own country is frightening as there seems to be no end in sight to the self destruction. I hold some hope seeing those who have begun to fight and win the battle for a decent minimum wage of $15 an hour when everyone said it was impossible. If the rich and powerful are going to outsource manufacturing jobs then they will simply have to pay the jobs that remain whether they be service jobs or other jobs that were never paid decently before a true living wage.
3
I understand the thesis to be that the rich and especially the CEOs should focus on job creation in America. But I do not see suggestions as to how beyond support for small farms - and re-shoring industries to make low-margin products more expensive.
The problem is that profit is the motivation of our free-market economy: moving capital from rich companies to effective philanthropy must be driven by an external agent: perhaps a government which seeks to promote the general Welfare: the common good.
But so long as Congress focus upon protecting the accumulation of immense wealth from the morality of redistributing it for the country that enabled it, so long as Congress minimize spending on "the Poor", America will continue make the rich richer and the poor ...
The problem is that profit is the motivation of our free-market economy: moving capital from rich companies to effective philanthropy must be driven by an external agent: perhaps a government which seeks to promote the general Welfare: the common good.
But so long as Congress focus upon protecting the accumulation of immense wealth from the morality of redistributing it for the country that enabled it, so long as Congress minimize spending on "the Poor", America will continue make the rich richer and the poor ...
3
Until you have experience first hand, day after day, what today Rural South has become, it is hard to understand what it is like for someone to live there. As to why or what led to the current conditions as they are today is not as important as it is to identify solutions to revitalize the Rural South and all of the other distress areas here in the U.S. I can attest it is a lot harder to find solutions and implement them to revitalize the Rural South or any other area of economic distress than it is to make some of the blame it on ??? comments that have been added to this comment section. While these kind of comments may make you feel good for the short term, when you roll up your shelves and work for the revitalization of the Rural South and other distress area you will really be making a difference and not just a comment. It is time for everyone to work together to address the issues.
4
No doubt that Mr. Theroux is making an important point in this piece. Part of me hates to say this, but as someone who in his early life (and after) seemed to prefer to go far afield (Mali in the Peace Corps, Uganda later), he should understand why the Clintons and so many American (and let's say European) charitable organizations seem to prefer to do their work in faraway countries. It's more interesting to travel somewhere exotic to help people who don't look or live like basic impoverished Americans.
2
The fact that the globalization of unfettered capitalism has run concurrently with Clintonian economic policy raises suspicion about what might be in the "private" emails Hillary has labored so forcefully to secret away. What foreign donors or foreign leaders have "contributed" to the Clinton Foundation while she was Secret(ary) of State should be made public. It would be naive in the extreme to counter this idea by stating that she relinquished her controlling interest in the foundation while Secretary. Also, as Pope Francis has pointed out, globalization has added a new and evil dimension to the historical paradigm of the exploitation of the poor by the rich. As Theroux observed in the American deep South, the poor are no longer even exploited, but rather simply left behind. This insidious economy of exclusion dehumanizes people to the extent that people themselves are just as "destined for the dump" as the cheap merchandise their souls have been sold for.
2
Change the geographical names and move the dates back a few decades and you have the story of New England's mill towns when companies moved south looking for cheap labor.
4
And yet the same people whose jobs have been sent overseas continue to re-elect representatives and senators who are owned lock-stock-and barrel by these corporations. They keep looking for scapegoats for the results of their own actions, but they have no one to blame but themselves - the ignorant, the reactionary, the disengaged American electorate.
9
How much better the OWS movement would have been, if instead of ranting on unseen bankers, they had all thrown their IPhones into the Hudson.
1
In post-feudalism Stage 1 the Chinese had their uptick with the rise of manufacturing work outsourced by other countries to cheaper labor pools. That growth seems to have tailed off as its labor base moved up a notch on the wealth ladder. Prior to that were the Japanese (and others), each giving way on manufacturing competitiveness as its citizens' lots improved. There will surely be a replacement for the Chinese unskilled and even (to some degree) skilled labor.
Perhaps what countries should worry about earlier is what they should plan for Stage 2.
Perhaps what countries should worry about earlier is what they should plan for Stage 2.
1
Not just outsourcing for cheap labor, but also because a much lower, if any, environmental cost as clearly evidenced (pun intended) by the air/soil/water quality through China.
5
I lived for seven years in the Mississippi Delta. I moved there from a poor state (Oklahoma) and yet I was shocked to see the level of poverty in the Delta. People lived in shacks that didn't look habitable. They often had no electricity and certainly no air conditioning in that oppressive, humid heat. All over people talked about the factories that used to be there, just as Mr. Theroux mentioned. I worked in a museum and blues fans from all over the world visited. Here's what European visitors said to me over and over as they looked out the windows of the museum, "So much poverty..." Is this really what Americans want Europeans thinking about our country? Are we, as a people, proud that tourists from other nations look at the U.S. and think, "Such poverty?"
35
The problem is not "shipping jobs overseas." The problem is shipping jobs to the most desparate people. We don't see corporations shipping jobs to Europe, because European countries protect their workers and environment with rule of law. We see corporations shipping jobs to places where the government is not fulfilling a social contract with all its citizens. Places like Bangaldesh, where corporations can employ people at substandard wages in substandard factories. Until our government stops signing treaties that neuter laws ensuring a safe environment and humane working conditions for all workers, we will continue to suffer from this race to the bottom.
521
Τhe TTIP and TTP are only going to make this much, much worse. Companies will be able to sue countries for laws or regulations that protect their citizens safety or income.
Here is the irony. Those most desperate people are willing and happy to take those jobs and they do not have the sense of entitlement. And guess what the result is. Unprecedented growth for those people and millions out of poverty.
That is what Americans need to do. Become desperate to work and get rid of feeling entitled, just because they are in America.
That is what Americans need to do. Become desperate to work and get rid of feeling entitled, just because they are in America.
There is no inherent contradiction in saving Africa's elephants vs. helping the poor in small towns. Moreover, I could argue that saving the elephants is more important, because once a species is gone it's gone forever, whereas there is certainly no shortage of Homo sapiens; in fact, our problem is that there are too many of us.
Otherwise, what Mr Theroux says here is exactly what many of us have been saying for a long time; but we are not as famous as he, so no one paid attention to us.
Besides, the right loves organized religion, and religion needs the poor as its raison d'etre; as William Blake noted, 'Pity could be no more, If we did not make somebody Poor; And Mercy no more could be, If all were as happy as we.' Mother Teresa is praised for doing the minimum possible - a mat, a roof, a bowl of gruel, and a prayer - spreading it as thin as possible to the maximum number, but not actually lifting anyone out of poverty. There is a difference between loving the poor and loving poverty, and she didn't know it.
This condescending view of the poor and miserable, loving them because they give us an opportunity to pin medals on ourselves for being Lord and Lady Bountiful to them, is not peculiar to the right wing; it's at least as common among liberals. But I have no space to explore that here.
Otherwise, what Mr Theroux says here is exactly what many of us have been saying for a long time; but we are not as famous as he, so no one paid attention to us.
Besides, the right loves organized religion, and religion needs the poor as its raison d'etre; as William Blake noted, 'Pity could be no more, If we did not make somebody Poor; And Mercy no more could be, If all were as happy as we.' Mother Teresa is praised for doing the minimum possible - a mat, a roof, a bowl of gruel, and a prayer - spreading it as thin as possible to the maximum number, but not actually lifting anyone out of poverty. There is a difference between loving the poor and loving poverty, and she didn't know it.
This condescending view of the poor and miserable, loving them because they give us an opportunity to pin medals on ourselves for being Lord and Lady Bountiful to them, is not peculiar to the right wing; it's at least as common among liberals. But I have no space to explore that here.
22
What a great, perceptive piece. Thanks Paul (and thanks also for all of your wonderful, perceptive work over the years.)
“What the poor need is not charity, but capital, not caseworkers but coworkers. And what the rich need is a wise, honorable and just way of divesting themselves of their over-abundance.”
- Clarence Jordan
“What the poor need is not charity, but capital, not caseworkers but coworkers. And what the rich need is a wise, honorable and just way of divesting themselves of their over-abundance.”
- Clarence Jordan
52
Charity is discretionary, payroll mandatory.
21
Mr. Theroux' s article adds to the impression I have of most of our southern states consisting of great pockets of poverty, wastelands created by subservience to the fossil fuel industries and gambling and development lobbyists. His point is well taken that we have only ourselves and our Captains of Industry to blame for the lack of decent job opportunities.
17
Let us not forget that many of those empty factories in the Deep South were businesses formerly located in the Northeast. The move south was prompted by cheap land, low taxes, and anti-union laws that resulted in low wages. Now the Deep South has fallen victim to others with the same policies.
124
Slavoj Zizek noted all our complicity when he said that 5K runs are just conscience-washing stations for us to try and purge our guilt from supporting a system that is so unfair. This is just the same phenomena for the 1 Percent. Thanks for this article!
18
True, but I forget...where's Slavoj living these days, again?
Can I safely assume that the author of this piece is against illegal immigration and wants our immigration laws enforced? After all, illegal immigration is really just "insourced outsourcing". The jobs stay here but the illegal immigrants are "imported" to do the work, depressing wages below what a legal resident will accept.
Did the author, by any chance, check out who is doing the work in the catfish farms and other low value add industries in the areas he visited? He will find illegal immigrants.
Did the author, by any chance, check out who is doing the work in the catfish farms and other low value add industries in the areas he visited? He will find illegal immigrants.
33
Give us 5 examples--quantitative examples with sources and data--proving that immigrants take jobs from legal residents. No cheating by simply babbling idiocy you got from Fox
3
Citations? Here in Michigan, the local teen-agers aren't the ones doing the back-breaking vegetable and fruit picking for the most part. There are LOTS of jobs that Americans do NOT want to do. ...
When you can figure out how to get Americans to take the low value jobs like cleaning hotels and picking fruits and vegetables,then we can talk more. Farmers were offering good wages, but many Americans, even poor ones, felt the work was beneath them so the crops rotted. There are jobs that Americans simply won't do, even if they're unemployed. It's been shown by economists of all stripes to benefit our economy, not depress wages as you would like to think. Plus the issue is the exporting of jobs. Stay on the topic or write your own article and back it up with evidence.
I buy a lot of things at thrift stores and estate sales. A lot of those things were made a long time ago, and outlasted their owners, and might outlast me.
I'd much rather give money to Goodwill and the Salvation Army, than to Walmart and the Chinese.
I'd much rather give money to Goodwill and the Salvation Army, than to Walmart and the Chinese.
45
Great article! Reminiscent of the plight of U.S. furniture manufacturing in the Carolinas, and dare it be said, the horrific ruin of Detroit, once proudly one of our nation's largest, most productive cities.
Thank you - let's hope the CEO PTB (powers-that-be) awaken to how harmful this trend is for American society, redirect their business investments homeward, and rethink their philanthropic gifts from animals to people!
PS/ Comment for Impedimentus (below) -
Who appointed you the bellwether of political opinion and righteousness? Your polarizing, unconstructive ranting is heavily tainted by rancor and completely misses the message of Mr. Theroux's article. Condolences.
Thank you - let's hope the CEO PTB (powers-that-be) awaken to how harmful this trend is for American society, redirect their business investments homeward, and rethink their philanthropic gifts from animals to people!
PS/ Comment for Impedimentus (below) -
Who appointed you the bellwether of political opinion and righteousness? Your polarizing, unconstructive ranting is heavily tainted by rancor and completely misses the message of Mr. Theroux's article. Condolences.
5
This is a stunning take down of the conventional wisdom that has been ruling this country for 40 years. I'm happy Theroux nailed the sanctimonious self congratulation of that class of elites who are thrilled that their choices have reduced poverty elsewhere, even as they have nourished deprivation at home. Free trade advocates take note: the winners do not compensate the losers. Our economic values and policies must change. I for one will never vote for Hillary Clinton (or anyone!) unless the candidate addresses these issues in no uncertain terms. For the sad truth is, when it comes to supporting outsourcing, the Democrats are as bad if not worse than the Republicans.
41
Check out Bernie Sanders, though.
You had me right up to the partisan false equivalence...
"If these wealthy chief executives are such visionaries. then why don't they understand the simple fact that what people want is not a handout along with the uplift ditty but a decent job?"
It isn't so much not knowing, it is not caring. You don't rise to the level of visionary CEO by giving a damn about other people. You get there by not caring about them. You get there by returning "value" to your shareholders. You get there by pushing the envelope of what is legal and moral.
Maybe they give away their fortunes in the end seeking redemption for what it took to make the fortune.
It isn't so much not knowing, it is not caring. You don't rise to the level of visionary CEO by giving a damn about other people. You get there by not caring about them. You get there by returning "value" to your shareholders. You get there by pushing the envelope of what is legal and moral.
Maybe they give away their fortunes in the end seeking redemption for what it took to make the fortune.
57
Perhaps Alabama might ask what makes Fairhope special, different from the rest of AL, and take a hint from the ideas on which it was founded. It was a demonstration project for a radical, wise, just idea that was well known in the 1800s, and is largely unknown today.
In a state with high sales taxes and low property tax, Fairhope was founded on the idea of deriving public revenue from the rental value of land, and not taxing buildings, wages or sales. It found a way of doing that in the context of a state whose constitution seemed designed to tax poor people, and has, by all accounts, created one of the nicer places to live in all of Alabama.
When we tax land value, and not buildings or other improvements, the owners of factories are not taxed on those improvements.
When we tax land value and not sales, poor people buying necessities are not taxed; the rent they pay their landlord is, in part, for the locational value, and that part gets passed through to fund local services.
When we tax land value heavily, land speculation stops, and land becomes inexpensive to buy, while the disincentives to improve it are largely eliminated. Factories become more affordable. Homes become more affordable. The cost of living goes down. Landlords make less. Young people prosper. The local economy prospers.
A wise businessman wrote to his governor as follows:
NEVER TAX ANY THING
THAT WOULD BE OF VALUE TO YOUR STATE,
THAT COULD AND WOULD RUN AWAY, OR
THAT COULD AND WOULD COME TO YOU.
In a state with high sales taxes and low property tax, Fairhope was founded on the idea of deriving public revenue from the rental value of land, and not taxing buildings, wages or sales. It found a way of doing that in the context of a state whose constitution seemed designed to tax poor people, and has, by all accounts, created one of the nicer places to live in all of Alabama.
When we tax land value, and not buildings or other improvements, the owners of factories are not taxed on those improvements.
When we tax land value and not sales, poor people buying necessities are not taxed; the rent they pay their landlord is, in part, for the locational value, and that part gets passed through to fund local services.
When we tax land value heavily, land speculation stops, and land becomes inexpensive to buy, while the disincentives to improve it are largely eliminated. Factories become more affordable. Homes become more affordable. The cost of living goes down. Landlords make less. Young people prosper. The local economy prospers.
A wise businessman wrote to his governor as follows:
NEVER TAX ANY THING
THAT WOULD BE OF VALUE TO YOUR STATE,
THAT COULD AND WOULD RUN AWAY, OR
THAT COULD AND WOULD COME TO YOU.
8
If only it were that easy. To ignore globalization is akin to ignoring technology. Yes, there is a race for cheaper production. Because, if not for one company, another will. They will sell their product cheaper. Higher profit margins and a lower price for consumers is a winning combination. This could easily be the difference when there are highly competing products (eg: iPod vs. Zune). If Cook refused to harness the labor power in developing countries, he likely would be replaced by someone who would. Further, to succeed in selling consumer goods means selling them abroad. It means meeting price thresholds abroad. Ultimately, the cat is out of the bag on globalization. The consumer production and consumption world doesn't belong to the USA. Unfortunately, there is no panacea to help the states that greatly benefited from relative cheap US land and labor. It is up to the entire country to figure if better education, infrastructure or services combined with investments technology will lift our Buffalos, Flints or Tunicas up to the levels of our Houstons, San Franciscos and Miamis.
115
"Everybody has to do it" is a facile excuse: Apple most definitely does not compete on price with anybody. Tim Cook would not be fired if he replaced cheaper Chinese workers with American ones, nor would he have to raise the price of any Apple product, given their healthy profit margins. No Apple customer is shopping on price or considering a competitor's product because it is slightly cheaper.
Aside from Walmart's suppliers, the same is true to a lesser extent for many other American companies. I will believe the competitiveness argument when corporate profit margins, and executive salaries, are not at historic highs.
Outsourcing companies are not being squeezed on costs, and are not being forced into using cheap labor: at this point it is almost entirely a choice based on convenience and a desire for excess profits.
Aside from Walmart's suppliers, the same is true to a lesser extent for many other American companies. I will believe the competitiveness argument when corporate profit margins, and executive salaries, are not at historic highs.
Outsourcing companies are not being squeezed on costs, and are not being forced into using cheap labor: at this point it is almost entirely a choice based on convenience and a desire for excess profits.
"Higher profit margins and a lower price for consumers is a winning combination."
No. The winning combination is (a) getting obscenely rich destroying the nation's industrial base and at the same time (b) successfully selling that nation on the story that "the markets made us do it."
No. The winning combination is (a) getting obscenely rich destroying the nation's industrial base and at the same time (b) successfully selling that nation on the story that "the markets made us do it."
Actually, we could use the power of our market and our democracy to push labor and environmental standards up around the world instead of down.
We do not have to import products made by companies that pay a tiny fraction of what US wages and dump untreated waste into the local water or global air.
The cheap product high profit model is destroying our country. Paying good wages and buying qualiity products that last for decades (the way they used to) at a higher price that actually pays for to real costs of production is going to make a much more pleasant world.
A race to the bottom is not progress it is folly, destructive to the spirit and the environment.
We do not have to import products made by companies that pay a tiny fraction of what US wages and dump untreated waste into the local water or global air.
The cheap product high profit model is destroying our country. Paying good wages and buying qualiity products that last for decades (the way they used to) at a higher price that actually pays for to real costs of production is going to make a much more pleasant world.
A race to the bottom is not progress it is folly, destructive to the spirit and the environment.
It's not just the Deep South that has been severely impacted by globalization and the transfer of jobs overseas. Go to rural Maine, an area that once was one of the leading manufacturers of textiles, shoes (Bass Shoes, Dexter, etc), woolen goods, wood products (furniture,medical tongue depressors,wood splints, pencils). You have a skilled work force and an abundance of large plants that were set up for these industries. All are shuttered as the manufacturing of clothing, footware, etc. was sent overseas after it first went to the South. Go to these areas and see a similar situation...almost developing country poverty, abysmal health conditions, poor living conditions, drug dependency, alcoholism, etc. I'd say that these CEOs can definitely make an impact throughout this country and lift thousands of people up by giving them a job that will provide a decent living.
300
Amen to Linda's comment. In Clinton, MA there are beautiful brick buildings that used to house the textile mills of the Bigelow brothers.
The trail of American manufacturing of mass goods described above. First in Mass., as Puritans went to England to learn & snuggle back the knowledge to Mass. Later those manufactures were moved to Maine, as wages were lower there. Mass. workers made guns, i.e. the Civil War & higher end clothes etc.
Again many of simpler goods manufacture went to Maine before moving to the impovered South, replacing cotton picking, as it was mechanized. Then came the big move to China.
Mass. replaced simple clothing & common goods with building Computers and related Computer Programming. CT. & Mass still make guns. The schools of Maine & the South don't educate their people to build computers or teach programming. Look at the success of IT jobs in NYC replacing cheap garment manufacturing; Note high end clothes are still made in NYC.
The big Northeast Corridor cities & suburbs are centers of College Education, Medical Research, Finance. Computer Programming & Design, etc.
As to these areas, esp. in the South, Philantrpists could give buckets of money with little or NO impact. Note: Foriegn car makers are building factories in the South and Boeing, maybe Airbus, like garment makers of past years. However, their people-black & white- must be upgraded for that to happen; much harder than simple clothes making.
Again many of simpler goods manufacture went to Maine before moving to the impovered South, replacing cotton picking, as it was mechanized. Then came the big move to China.
Mass. replaced simple clothing & common goods with building Computers and related Computer Programming. CT. & Mass still make guns. The schools of Maine & the South don't educate their people to build computers or teach programming. Look at the success of IT jobs in NYC replacing cheap garment manufacturing; Note high end clothes are still made in NYC.
The big Northeast Corridor cities & suburbs are centers of College Education, Medical Research, Finance. Computer Programming & Design, etc.
As to these areas, esp. in the South, Philantrpists could give buckets of money with little or NO impact. Note: Foriegn car makers are building factories in the South and Boeing, maybe Airbus, like garment makers of past years. However, their people-black & white- must be upgraded for that to happen; much harder than simple clothes making.
Alleviating poverty, making it a poverty, especially for children, is not a US priority. Patchwork programs, platitudes, political kicking the can down the road - those will full stomachs pretend to be experts on the poor, and it is not working.
For a nation with a high level of educated people, where is the problem -solving that is applied to other tough problems? Where is the vision? Before people jump on this with "we've tried everything, the programs don't work, they are lazy, trickle down economics or best left to religious organizations " - think about the children in poverty who are innocent and have only "educated" adults and leaders to guide their future . . . .no matter the quality of parenting, our children our here and need our help.
For a nation with a high level of educated people, where is the problem -solving that is applied to other tough problems? Where is the vision? Before people jump on this with "we've tried everything, the programs don't work, they are lazy, trickle down economics or best left to religious organizations " - think about the children in poverty who are innocent and have only "educated" adults and leaders to guide their future . . . .no matter the quality of parenting, our children our here and need our help.
Global capitalism supported by political bipartisanship, investor pressure and the all-American demand for lower prices. A true tragedy: we've all done this to ourselves.
4
A few years ago, I had a short discussion with a man who has owned an antique store in the historic district of this small town for years. I had asked him how business was, and he said it was okay, but not great. He said he remembered when people in town used to buy from each other rather than go to Wal-mart for their purchases. Somewhere around that same time, a locally owned hardware store a few blocks away had closed its doors. All I could say to the man was that things change.
For every big corporation that outsources jobs from America, and for every big corporation that grabs natural resources from foreign countries, there are locals who participate in these economic activities, in a way similar to the fact that it was some black Africans who sold other black Africans into slavery in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries while this exercise in our most despicable form of economic commerce was taking place.
Yes, those at the top of the capitalist food chain benefit the most from these activities, but that is due to our own laws about wealth and taxation. And in the same manner, those in other countries who sell us their natural resources sell out their own people, often in cooperation with corrupt local governments. To assess blame so specifically about what is wrong with America and the world is to miss that it takes the participation of many to put such changes into effect. Things change, but many are involved in these changes.
13
But you can refrain from shopping at Walmart (as I have done for decades) and peruse labels looking for Made in the USA or at least ABC (anywhere but china). But, as I said, I've been doing that for decades. It takes collective action -- and ultimately legislation -- to remove the incentives for greed and contempt for the poor. It takes a tax structure that does not reward selfish acts. It takes an academic culture that does not teach and reinforce values that put a top priority on profits for the few. It takes a corporate structure that does not pay those at the top thousands of times more than it pays production and service workers who provide the products. And it takes communication media that not only shine the spotlight on corruption, greed and selfishness but condemn it uniformly.
And where's the federal government in all this? Asking billionnaire CEO's to be more compassionate to their fellow citizens is like asking wolves to take pity on the lambs.
Corporations do not have an obligation to be moral, compassionate or helpful to the citizenry. The government does. It's the taxes that do it all. Other countries, like Germany, tax heavily the exportation of labor and importation of goods, so as to maintain a healthy base of domestic jobs. That's the long and short of it.
Fingers should be pointed at the legislative body that allows and facilitates the outsourcing of jobs. But apparently, Capitol Hill is a thick brick wall.
How about a NY Times story detailing the voting of this kind of taxes? How does Apple or Nike actually influence, or buy the politicians' votes, so they can just shut down their factories and offshore their operations?
Corporations do not have an obligation to be moral, compassionate or helpful to the citizenry. The government does. It's the taxes that do it all. Other countries, like Germany, tax heavily the exportation of labor and importation of goods, so as to maintain a healthy base of domestic jobs. That's the long and short of it.
Fingers should be pointed at the legislative body that allows and facilitates the outsourcing of jobs. But apparently, Capitol Hill is a thick brick wall.
How about a NY Times story detailing the voting of this kind of taxes? How does Apple or Nike actually influence, or buy the politicians' votes, so they can just shut down their factories and offshore their operations?
23
Mr. Theroux is a keen observer and eloquent writer (except for "mystagogies"...what the heck...?) but I would recommend staying away from the economics of poverty. Having spent a few years in the developing world, I can say that I would be hard put to find similar vast reservoirs of crushing acute poverty in the US. To the extent that American wealth can lift people overseas out of poverty I think it is being put to good use. We need to despise all poverty, here and abroad.
4
Wouldn't this be a worth while in depth discussion during our presidential "debates"?
Thank you for this, Mr. Theroux.
Thank you for this, Mr. Theroux.
19
Help starts at the voting booth. Poor southerners need to vote, and vote for candidates who support their interests. And it continues to baffle me why poor white southerners vote for Republicans.
22
If adapted properly, consumer sentiment could be harnessed to provide a strong incentive to return some (but not all) of the relatively low wage manufacturing jobs that have disappeared from America. What we need most of all is to develop a desire by some American consumers to buy American-made products- usually at a higher price than those produced with exploited labor in China. We don't need to resort to national chauvinism to bring this about. We don't need to simply return to the same kind of "Buy American" movement of the 80's.
Imagine a website that eventually became as popular as, for example, Ebay, that gave people extensive information and relative ratings about many categories of behavior by all of the world's major corporations. There are a few that try to do this now, but they are scattered and little known. I, for instance, don't buy Nike products, but I don't have easily accessible information about most of the products I buy.
What if it were very easy to do a quick search on a smart phone app to check immediately on how much a particular company's practices are congruent with our personal values? Multiple organizations catering to different sets of values could appeal to different consumers. One person might want to primarily support companies that are environmentally responsible; another could choose to buy from corporations that support the NRA.
Best of all, no one could complain that it was an interference in capitalism by the "nanny state."
Imagine a website that eventually became as popular as, for example, Ebay, that gave people extensive information and relative ratings about many categories of behavior by all of the world's major corporations. There are a few that try to do this now, but they are scattered and little known. I, for instance, don't buy Nike products, but I don't have easily accessible information about most of the products I buy.
What if it were very easy to do a quick search on a smart phone app to check immediately on how much a particular company's practices are congruent with our personal values? Multiple organizations catering to different sets of values could appeal to different consumers. One person might want to primarily support companies that are environmentally responsible; another could choose to buy from corporations that support the NRA.
Best of all, no one could complain that it was an interference in capitalism by the "nanny state."
9
Galen: I was thinking exactly the same thing the other day, in response to the article about Toys R Us using the H1B visa program to ship jobs abroad. We need a web site that tells us about every product, every company -- the good and the bad -- so that we can boycott more efficiently. I would do it, but I'm involved in other pursuits. Someone has to do it. It's an idea whose time has come.
There is so much money to be made in outsourcing, corporate relocation to lower tax havens, eternal war profiteering, arms sales, for-profit health insurance, and other hugely profitable ventures that politicians can generate enough campaign contributions to completely ignore the legitimate concerns of everyday working Americans. Democracy has consequently died a slow and painful death, because campaigning now includes so many blatant lies that most Americans vote against their true interests. The sad conclusion will be a second American Revolution---much bloodier and more dangerous than the first. No other means will wrest the trillions of profit dollars away from the oligarchs and plutocrats who manage virtually every aspect of domestic and foreign policy.
6
Outsourcing is good. Free trade is good. If we do not want the rest of the world to hate America and to be stuck in a quagmire of endless poverty, then trade and free flow of opportunity is necessary. Yes, this has huge negative impact on a number of industries in the US, but the alternative future is even more bleak. No trade would mean higher cost and prices for everything we enjoy in the US. No trade would mean more radical, poor in many more places around the world.
This article ignores that free trade has huge, positive impact to global levels.
This article ignores that free trade has huge, positive impact to global levels.
8
Think local -not global. Charity begins at home. Outsourcing is bad at all levels. See Linda from Massachusetts's remark
How ironic that textile mills - whose technology was stolen from the English by Francis Cabot Lowell two hundred years ago - abandoned New England for the Deep South and its cheap labor one hundred years ago and then abandoned the U.S. altogether a hundred years later for Asia. Mr. Theroux, you grew up here. You must have seen the quarter mile long empty brick buildings in Lowell, Lawrence and Manchester. This is nothing new. At least we invested in education and new technologies and kept reinventing our economy. The Deep South relies on outsiders to do that.
16
Hmmm, valid point Kathy.
I don't want to oversimplify, at least not any more than Mr. Theroux has.
But if the people of the South were to recognize that their electoral fealty to the Republican Party overall holds them back as much as any factory relocated to China, that would be progress.
Imagine the southern states being energized politically by Bernie Sanders rather than Rush Limba8ugh and Sean Hannity.
But if the people of the South were to recognize that their electoral fealty to the Republican Party overall holds them back as much as any factory relocated to China, that would be progress.
Imagine the southern states being energized politically by Bernie Sanders rather than Rush Limba8ugh and Sean Hannity.
120
This is a good summary of the traditional "blue collar" part of our workforce that has been outsourced and left decimated. I wish the author had gone further. Outsourcing is also far up the value chain into traditional "white collar" jobs. Business process workouts streamline the job then ship it off shore. Call centers all went off-shore (some have come home b/c of lack of quality). The tech industry is employing many developers in India, Ireland, Philippines to write code for 25% of the cost, and at the same time begging for more H1V's b/c they can't find the talent domestically (translation - we want to pay 25% for the same talent). Outsourcing impacts many levels workers.
Outsource is made with a focus on the company bottom line, without calculation of the impacts to society. Its easy to say "They will be alright, there's lots of work out there." But the trend caught fire, leaders "had" to outsource to remain competitive, and after doing it without regard for 30 years the impacts are coming home on a grand scale.
Outsourcing has always been morally squishy...requiring one to hold their nose. America must adjust. Business leaders must recalibrate decisions not just for stockholders but also for the society within which they live. Politicians must see their job is to balance Big Business's drive with societies needs. Citizens must vote with their wallet first (Buy American) and then for people who understand the balance. We are all in this together.
Outsource is made with a focus on the company bottom line, without calculation of the impacts to society. Its easy to say "They will be alright, there's lots of work out there." But the trend caught fire, leaders "had" to outsource to remain competitive, and after doing it without regard for 30 years the impacts are coming home on a grand scale.
Outsourcing has always been morally squishy...requiring one to hold their nose. America must adjust. Business leaders must recalibrate decisions not just for stockholders but also for the society within which they live. Politicians must see their job is to balance Big Business's drive with societies needs. Citizens must vote with their wallet first (Buy American) and then for people who understand the balance. We are all in this together.
231
Val in Brooklyn, NY to Scott Willis in CA.
Your last paragraph really grabbed me, especially. And your last sentence describes precisely how I feel about life. I'm glad Mr. Theroux wrote about this and I hope he keeps it coming. Hope you heard that, Mr. Theroux.
While I agree with your comment, one thing I notice is everyone: journalists, politicians, and my fellow readers, always speak of the middle class. How often do we hear anyone mention the plight of the poor? I mean really poor, as in absolutely destitute? Those rarely championed souls are the people I think of and want to know how to help. Mr. Theroux described them perfectly: the hungriest, most desperate, the least organized, the most exploitable--in this country. I'm unaware of any one running for office, who's actually mentioned them. If I'm wrong, feel free to correct me.
Mr. Theroux, THANK YOU.
Submitted 10-3-15 3:38 a.m. EST
Your last paragraph really grabbed me, especially. And your last sentence describes precisely how I feel about life. I'm glad Mr. Theroux wrote about this and I hope he keeps it coming. Hope you heard that, Mr. Theroux.
While I agree with your comment, one thing I notice is everyone: journalists, politicians, and my fellow readers, always speak of the middle class. How often do we hear anyone mention the plight of the poor? I mean really poor, as in absolutely destitute? Those rarely championed souls are the people I think of and want to know how to help. Mr. Theroux described them perfectly: the hungriest, most desperate, the least organized, the most exploitable--in this country. I'm unaware of any one running for office, who's actually mentioned them. If I'm wrong, feel free to correct me.
Mr. Theroux, THANK YOU.
Submitted 10-3-15 3:38 a.m. EST
"Outsourcing has always been morally squishy..."
A job is a job, no matter where it's located. Do you think there should be a law that says jobs have to stay in the country where the company's headquarters is located? If so, say goodbye to all the foreign car company jobs that are here in America (BMW, Honda, Subaru, etc.).
A job is a job, no matter where it's located. Do you think there should be a law that says jobs have to stay in the country where the company's headquarters is located? If so, say goodbye to all the foreign car company jobs that are here in America (BMW, Honda, Subaru, etc.).
We can't compel corporations to do the morally right thing and keep their manufacturing in the U.S. Corporations with publicly traded shares have a fiduciary obligation to maximize returns for shareholders. We as a people can, however, compel corporations, shareholders and private equity companies to do the ethically right thing by taxing their profits at an appropriate rate, and planting the receipts in American soil. Job training, education, affordable, portable healthcare: these things cost money. Let's make sure that we don't have to wait for the wealthiest among us to die and leave us their ill-gotten gains in the form of philanthropy. Tax overseas profits. Tax carried interest as ordinary income. Raise the inheritance tax. Let's tax the 1%'s money while they're alive.
To achieve this, we must have leadership that doesn't come from the 1% and isn't beholden to it.
Bernie Sanders For President.
To achieve this, we must have leadership that doesn't come from the 1% and isn't beholden to it.
Bernie Sanders For President.
16
Why is it that it is the morally correct thing to move those jobs in the u.s? Or rather, to deprive those in china now doing them of a job? It's a false morality question. Many of the people who run these companies come from other countries, why should they feel compelled to prop up our communities when desperate people in their own home countries need jobs, and are in a greater level of poverty. To be clear, the lack of jobs is a problem, it's just not clear that moving jobs from china to America is a morally superior decision, unless you think poor Americans are more deserving than poor Chinese, which strikes me as a ridiculous claim to make without some form of xenophobic reactionism behind it.
I appreciate Mr. Theroux's sympathy for impoverished communities, and his expose of the hypocrisy of billionaire CEOs. But it's not new; Richard Wright's book _Native Son_ showed the same relationship between Mr. Dalton, the protagonist's employer, and Bigger. Back then, racism helped define who was most exploitable.
I am troubled by the implication that investing in China is destructive and in the U.S. is constructive. One of the problems that plagues our society is the rhetoric of false binaries. Another way to look at this issue is the expansion of resources now that globalization makes such expansion possible.
It seems to me the greater issue is not where the MNC executives invest, but how responsible they are to those who lose jobs due to their overseas investments. They should not be rewarded for simply finding cheaper, less-skilled labor, and never, ever outrageously rewarded.
I am troubled by the implication that investing in China is destructive and in the U.S. is constructive. One of the problems that plagues our society is the rhetoric of false binaries. Another way to look at this issue is the expansion of resources now that globalization makes such expansion possible.
It seems to me the greater issue is not where the MNC executives invest, but how responsible they are to those who lose jobs due to their overseas investments. They should not be rewarded for simply finding cheaper, less-skilled labor, and never, ever outrageously rewarded.
5
How to solve the problem, first find those candidates for the House, Senate and the Presidency who do not owe their allegiance to Super-Pacs, millionaires, union moguls or any of the 1 per-centers. Second vote for those candidates regardless of party affiliation.
If we get enough of them in DC they may be able to raise the taxes on the rich to 90 percent or better thereby saving the country and eliminating poverty, or at least eliminating the rich.
Chances of this happening 0 percent. But it's something to think about.
If we get enough of them in DC they may be able to raise the taxes on the rich to 90 percent or better thereby saving the country and eliminating poverty, or at least eliminating the rich.
Chances of this happening 0 percent. But it's something to think about.
3
The overwhelming majority of products produced in China (and other (currently or previously low-wage countries) and destined for the American consumer markets were not make by American companies that "outsourced" their jobs. Chinese companies -- and Korean or Japanese-invested companies that are operating in China -- are able to produce increasingly high quality goods at a lower cost than factories operating in the U.S. To bring back American manufacturing jobs from countries that have lower production costs, it would be necessary to effectively prevent the import of these products. Even if that were possible (despite WTO rules and agreements to the contrary), the result would be much higher prices for American consumers and a loss of jobs for the desperately poor in other countries. Sorry, but this is not a realistic option. Instead, there is a need for government programs and private philanthropy to help those who can no longer hope to work in manufacturnig jobs that are no longer cost-competitive.
5
Globalization is a good thing. Raising millions of Chinese out of poverty is a good thing. Making products more cheaply so that they can be sold to customers is a good thing. Rich successful billionaires using their money to give back to those who have been hurt/left behind by the globally rising tides of the last three decades is a good thing.
find Mr. Theroux's anger incoherent and misdirected - against the system ranting from someone who could/should do better.
find Mr. Theroux's anger incoherent and misdirected - against the system ranting from someone who could/should do better.
4
Why is it that most of the South votes republican against their own good? Why is it that these mostly Republican states are also the beneficiaries of most of the governments benefits? http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_reckoning/2012/10/25/blue_state_red_face_...
12
China is painted as an adversary to the US, and our President often makes it known that we must somehow "control" or stop China's expansion. Yet, we allow our corporations, with the tax breaks we give them, to move millions of jobs to foreign countries and direct their investment into their economy. We've invested in our corporations and businesses through tax breaks; where is OUR return? Our response to China's growth is the expansion of US military, which just fills the pockets of military contractors. The media often paints China or Russia as an enemy of the American people, but I feel that our greatest adversaries is our own government.
5
There will always be poor people, but poverty is relative. America's poor have homes, cars, TVs and obesity. The true poor our on our streets are victims of mental illness. To say that poverty is the result of economic policies is true with socialist/liberal policies being the worse example thereof...see Cuba, a glowing example of liberal, anti-capitalistic policies that all lead to the same place...more poverty. Now socialistic based poverty may be more level, in that there are fewer rich people, there are always some rich people...in socialism that is the government's cronies and the political class.
Sometimes I feel that Liberalism is like that old Russian joke about two farmers.: One of which find a genie in a bottle while plowing his field. He rubs the bottle and out pops the genie, "Lucky you" says the genie "you get one wish. " "What? Only one wish" says the farmer, "I thought genies gave out three wishes," "I am a Russian genie" says the genie "you only get one". "Well Okay" says the farmer, "my neighbor has a goat and I don't have a goat,,,, I wish for you to kill my neighbors goat". "Done" says the genie and disappears.
Liberalism would rather have no one rich and all suffer in poverty rather than some rich and a small fraction poor. Go figure.
Sometimes I feel that Liberalism is like that old Russian joke about two farmers.: One of which find a genie in a bottle while plowing his field. He rubs the bottle and out pops the genie, "Lucky you" says the genie "you get one wish. " "What? Only one wish" says the farmer, "I thought genies gave out three wishes," "I am a Russian genie" says the genie "you only get one". "Well Okay" says the farmer, "my neighbor has a goat and I don't have a goat,,,, I wish for you to kill my neighbors goat". "Done" says the genie and disappears.
Liberalism would rather have no one rich and all suffer in poverty rather than some rich and a small fraction poor. Go figure.
2
One of the stupidest things I've read all day. You must be one of those 'Republicans' we hear about in the UK but can't believe actually exist...
1
I used to work in a factory. I tend to think those who mourn the loss of manufacturing jobs have never had one.
6
Read the late Joe Bageant's Deer Hunting with Jesus for an appreciation of what happens when whole communities no longer have decent-paying factory work.
Paul Theroux is describing here the latest political moves -"The strategy of getting rich on cheap labor in foreign countries while offering a sop to America’s poor with charity seems to me a wicked form of indirection " - of what Bageant a decade ago described as the beginning of the culture wars in America.
Paul Theroux is describing here the latest political moves -"The strategy of getting rich on cheap labor in foreign countries while offering a sop to America’s poor with charity seems to me a wicked form of indirection " - of what Bageant a decade ago described as the beginning of the culture wars in America.
They were jobs. That is the point.
Decent-paying factory jobs, not Mcjobs - that is the finer point .
Human labor is now an international commodity. The companies are constantly looking for a cheaper source of it. This is happening all over the world. These companies constantly move their operations to cheaper and cheaper locations without any regards or the considerations for what happens to the people and communities they leave behind. While we can blame these companies, the American consumers also share the responsibility by never ending demands for cheaper and cheaper products, without ever thinking why and how these products become so cheap. Nobody wants to pay more for an American product in order to support the living wage. If that were the case, there would not be any foreign car producers in US. So first we have to change the consumer attitude. The true change will come only when the consumers will demand products made in USA and are willing to pay the price it will take pay the living wage.
6
Our prominent tech companies and their respective CEO's make extraordinary profits by sending jobs overseas.
A equal tragedy is that China routinely harvests our best technology advances and hand them over to their military hackers.
A equal tragedy is that China routinely harvests our best technology advances and hand them over to their military hackers.
10
Thank you Paul Theroux for putting to words the obvious. What disappoints is that this is so exceptional.
6
Why should I care more about poor Americans than the poor of Thailand, or China or any other country? Because we speak the same language, have similar faces or read the same books in 10th grade english?
Globalization in a sense redistributes wealth to progressively poorer individuals. The Americans living in the delta may not have much, but they surely have much more of a safety net than the rural vietnamese moving into factories to take their jobs.
Globalization in a sense redistributes wealth to progressively poorer individuals. The Americans living in the delta may not have much, but they surely have much more of a safety net than the rural vietnamese moving into factories to take their jobs.
3
Private equity has also played a huge role in this process of job destruction in American cities. Private equity firms over the last 2 decades bought out many local and regional manufacturers and retailers that used to provide steady jobs to everyday people - many of which had stable pension funds and prime real estate - loaded up those companies with debt, stripped them of assets, raided their pension funds, and then rolled them into bankruptcy, leaving employees without jobs and dumping pension obligations onto taxpayers. This is how oligogarchs like Mitt Romney made their money. So much for being "job creators."
18
"It is true that the rich exported jobs (and did so for profit, not for altruism), but the Left ensured that American workers were priced out of the market and now is importing illegal aliens as cheap workers (assuming, reasonably enough, that once they have been amnestied, the illegals will vote for the Party of Welfare and Illegal Aliens)."
Thanks for solving the mystery of where all the jobs went. I will immediately start flagellating myself for being responsible for pricing myself and all my peers out of the market...was it all those pesky safety or OSHA related things? I guess if we just went back to the Triangle Shirt Factory days, everything would be cherries. Also thrilled to learn that the Left is hiring all those cheap illegal workers...who knew?
Thanks for solving the mystery of where all the jobs went. I will immediately start flagellating myself for being responsible for pricing myself and all my peers out of the market...was it all those pesky safety or OSHA related things? I guess if we just went back to the Triangle Shirt Factory days, everything would be cherries. Also thrilled to learn that the Left is hiring all those cheap illegal workers...who knew?
6
Mr. Theroux is a talented travel writer and I have enjoyed many of his books. He is not an economist and over simplifies a complicated topic. In capitalism there are winners and losers, but a society as a whole benefits. If we switched to communism, society would be much worse off and we could simply all be losers, but at least more equal. Coming from a family of immigrants who came to America for a better life, I am sure we have displaced people, because we worked harder, moved to where the work was and not where we wanted to live, and maybe we were luckier or smarter. I am sure with the businesses we started we displaced other businesses that didn't care about the customer as much or perhaps couldn't compete with the prices we charged. As someone who has also traveled to Africa, I don't think most of the people in the towns Mr. Theroux visited would prefer to grow up in Lagos or or on the outskirts of Johannesburg. There are plenty of opportunities in America and if your town is dead, please consider moving to where there is an opportunity and stop wallowing in the pity of the past and blaming a billionaire from Alabama who moved for opportunity.
5
This is an illustration of the mentality that foments the situation Theroux decries. Just elicit the communist scare, formulate the situation join terms of the false binary of capitalism (even global capitalism) and communism. Which one do you want to support and flourish? It is a new spin to the Cold War issue. Global capitalism, unregulated capitalism, no matter the devastation and debris it leaves behind (in the USA) while enriching a few, is a safeguard against communism. That avoids the need to address the issues within capitalism itself that would rein back the ruin: tax corporate profits abroad and the rich, issue regulations, provide incentives, more public investment in education and human resources, (perhaps even set up protective tariffs?). We need interventions. It is not a matter of capitalism vs communism. This is an old distractive scare, or a distractive "shining object" as a new coined term circulating around these days puts it.
If the people of the south went along with what you're suggesting, there would be no population in the south.
We should all pack up and move to China or India perhaps?
We should all pack up and move to China or India perhaps?
I think most people figured out this would happen as a result of Globalization. We learned the lesson when NAFTA was signed. Globalization is not good for the AMerican people.
13
Thank you, Mr. Theroux, for such an eye-opening article.
1
Great essay, Mr. Theroux. One of your statements should be studied by every business leader and government leader in the US:
"The strategy of getting rich on cheap labor in foreign countries while offering a sop to America’s poor with charity seems to me a wicked form of indirection."
One of the most alarming aspects of this phenomenon is how infrequently the dead and dying zones in the Deep South and elsewhere are being brought to light and fully described in our media.
Thank you for your excellent and insightful work.
"The strategy of getting rich on cheap labor in foreign countries while offering a sop to America’s poor with charity seems to me a wicked form of indirection."
One of the most alarming aspects of this phenomenon is how infrequently the dead and dying zones in the Deep South and elsewhere are being brought to light and fully described in our media.
Thank you for your excellent and insightful work.
3
Maximum wage laws...
1
I wonder whether the 0.1%-ers give as much to charity as to the politicians they buy to keep these jobs overseas?
5
Policy types should also skip the train and drive through eastern Pennsylvania and NY state to see the devastation and drug use of those in despair. Journalists too live in a bubble. All over the US towns which made America prosperous are almost ghost towns in terms of jobs.
13
Sorry Mr. Theroux, but your focus on corporate executives and the Clinton and Gates Foundations gives far too many people a pass. Why do voters in all the states you mention elect Republicans and pass right-to-work laws? Why do they support federal and state policies contrary to their own interests? Because Barack Obama is coming for their guns and religious liberty?
Blaming corporations for acting legally is like blaming baseball players for playing by the rules. Corporations don't make the rules but they're not philanthropic organizations. Blame should be laid where it belongs, with federal and state lawmakers who make shipping jobs overseas so easy and profitable.
Blaming corporations for acting legally is like blaming baseball players for playing by the rules. Corporations don't make the rules but they're not philanthropic organizations. Blame should be laid where it belongs, with federal and state lawmakers who make shipping jobs overseas so easy and profitable.
5
And yet the free-trade juggernaut rolls on, as if none of this had happened, as if the free-trade promise of better jobs for everyone, everywhere, and of unprecedented global prosperity, had been fulfilled. As if the world wasn't mired in the deepest most protracted slump since the Great Depression, for which the only solution is, of course, even more free-trade deals.
1
The only way this is ever going to get fixed is if people boycott US-based multinationals. Do you really want to make Phil Knight wealthier by buying Nike sneakers produced in a sweatshop for a few bucks and then sold in retail stores for $200-$300 a pair? As for GM/Ford/Chrysler, who want to build cars in Mexico? Go for it and good luck selling them to workers making $3/hour. These companies are not loyal to us so why should we be loyal to them?
6
Its really a very sad experience that a country as great as America {actually the greatest} will keep its impoverished people more poor while maximizing the profit on the backs of India and China. If this is what capitalism does then why support a system which doesn't care for the people of this country. What a farmer in Alabama or Georgia got to do with how much a Chinese factory worker makes. They need the help here. and need it right now. But the bosses of Nike and Apple computers don't give a hoot to a poor man or a woman in Arkansas or Louisiana . They want to make sure a Chinese worker gets his or her salary otherwise their merchandise will not be produced in time . And these CEOs have to cut a sorry figure to the board members of their respective companies.So this is what sums up pretty much what we can expect in this state of globalization when these giant corporations move all the jobs to China and India and American workers have to stand in the line in unemployment offices to collect doles for 21 months or less. After that what ? Abject poverty.Evictions from their homes. And the worst thing is the taunting from fellow Americans that they're suffering because they're lazy.That they love to be on the welfare. And they love to collect food stamps.
Now this is a horrible situations that I don't wish on anybody but millions of Americans are going through this day in and day out for no fault of their own. This system is forcing them to be where they're now...tkb
Now this is a horrible situations that I don't wish on anybody but millions of Americans are going through this day in and day out for no fault of their own. This system is forcing them to be where they're now...tkb
5
Factories left the NE for the South last century, looking to reduce costs. Since 'Free Trade' they have left the US altogether. I gawk in wonder as people believe that 'Free Trade' has been to the advantage of the US economy. Of course it hasn't.
5
Paul - how can you not recognize that those outsourcing decisions employed people far more poor than those you describe.
Surely, if helping the most poor is important to you, you would help those same people.
Surely, if helping the most poor is important to you, you would help those same people.
8
Outsourcing is not motivated by helping the poor. It is, as Paul Theroux said, a race to the bottom.
1
Those poor people overseas would have been helped even more by loans to local entrepreneurs and the formation of trade blocs of countries with similar standards of living.
Indeed. Many people -- self-proclaimed progressives as well as conservatives -- talk about income/educational/wealth/etc inequality as if it's a virus that appeared out of nowhere, rather than the result, in some part, of governmental and corporate policies. Therefore, their "anti-viral" is either charity, for which too many donors pat themselves on the back, regardless of how they treat their employees or whether they advocate for underlying change that would mitigate the need for their donations, or government programs that don't' affect true systemic change. Fortunately, there are many people and organizations who are challenging that status quo, but no one has any illusions that it won't be a long row to hoe.
1
It always amazes me how naive Americans are and how they adulate the rich and powerful - not realizing that these are the same people who are more than happy to see them starve to death while they increase their ever-growing wealth. Yet, these same people in these Southern states would rather elect politicians who advocate for the rich and corporations as long as these politicians don't take away their weaponry nor allow women to access birth control and abortions. Wake up America - the only politician who actually is advocating a future that will benefit the majority of the population is Bernie Sanders. He is the only one who has articulated a vision for our country that increases our well-being as a society vs. just a fortunate few (Tim Cook).
Be prepared for the Hunger Games to commence in this country if we don't radically change both our leadership as well as our willingness to embrace publicly financed elections, single-payer healthcare, increase Social Security, bring back living-wage jobs (get rid of the H1-B visa) and repeal Citizens United for starters.
Be prepared for the Hunger Games to commence in this country if we don't radically change both our leadership as well as our willingness to embrace publicly financed elections, single-payer healthcare, increase Social Security, bring back living-wage jobs (get rid of the H1-B visa) and repeal Citizens United for starters.
5
No words can describe this obvious economic injustice. In union-friendly Upstate New York, we lost our jobs to the right-to-work U.S. South and West. Now the U.S. South and West have lost their jobs to Mexico and Asia. Why did Americans stop believing in -- no, rather hate and disparage -- the power of collective effort to stand up for a fair day's wage in their communities?
14
Thank you for writing this.
Add to your story all the per-worker productivity improvements brought by advances in technology. Are workers getting paid better because they're more productive? No, not on the ground. CEOs and their C-level peers are.
This is not the American dream: To work harder and make some other guy rich, while your own family falls behind.
Add to your story all the per-worker productivity improvements brought by advances in technology. Are workers getting paid better because they're more productive? No, not on the ground. CEOs and their C-level peers are.
This is not the American dream: To work harder and make some other guy rich, while your own family falls behind.
7
Thank you for this fabulous piece. We don't need globalization. We need to have companies that are proud of the product they make and the workforce they employ, not of the empty profits they give to their bloodsucking vampire shareholders.
8
And that, my friends, is Capitalism at its finest.
13
This view is predicated on the assumption that before off-shoring,US companies were efficient and productive,resulting in productivity that justified high wages and benefits.The reality is that those the "good old days"were when there was little or no competition from the "losers" in WWII or from other yet to emerge countries.Moreover,it was technology,where we remained in a leadership position, that enabled globalization and the ensuing "off-shoring".Free enterprise is based on competition.Without such off-shoring US companies would continue to lose market share and profitability to the detriment of all concerned,including those who would inevitably lose their jobs.Time to realize that progress means change.We are all accountable for recognizing secular trends and equipping ourselves for the new reality.
5
When did Americans go from fierce competitors to such big complainers? Complaining is neither worthwhile nor effective. The reality is that people who are productively enaged do not listen to complainers. They are too busy trying to compete.
It's fair that those who work hard get wealthy if they're smart and ambitious. We have a system that rewards that handsomely.
But it's also a system that seemingly also specializes in delivering easy "marks," "cheap labor," and now even whole states to serve no other purpose than to make the ambitious wealthy.
Are the rest of us losers who deserve nothing better than enough to eat if we work hard, a warm dry place to sleep?
That's not fair.
I didn't sign up for that and it's not what any school teaches our nation's belief system is supposed to yield in results. Yet the two co-exist, like Jekyll and Hyde, in the same body. We celebrate the one and try to hide the other when it becomes obvious.
I've never settled for that and I wish more Americans would join me in resisting the race to the bottom. I'm glad to see Mr. Theroux hard at work here, couldn't be in better hands. We need a United States that works for all, unlike the monster we find ourselves trapped with.
But it's also a system that seemingly also specializes in delivering easy "marks," "cheap labor," and now even whole states to serve no other purpose than to make the ambitious wealthy.
Are the rest of us losers who deserve nothing better than enough to eat if we work hard, a warm dry place to sleep?
That's not fair.
I didn't sign up for that and it's not what any school teaches our nation's belief system is supposed to yield in results. Yet the two co-exist, like Jekyll and Hyde, in the same body. We celebrate the one and try to hide the other when it becomes obvious.
I've never settled for that and I wish more Americans would join me in resisting the race to the bottom. I'm glad to see Mr. Theroux hard at work here, couldn't be in better hands. We need a United States that works for all, unlike the monster we find ourselves trapped with.
13
so, maybe donald trump is right: when an american company chooses to set up shop outside our borders--for lower wages or any other reason--we should "modify" our free trade mantra from decades ago and require that those non-u.s. manufactured products be fairly heavily taxed when/if they are brought back into this country.
capitalism has its dark side--but let manufacturers pay a "fair share" of revenue to the land of their customers. and maybe reconsider the "benefits" of obtaining cheaper labor.
capitalism has its dark side--but let manufacturers pay a "fair share" of revenue to the land of their customers. and maybe reconsider the "benefits" of obtaining cheaper labor.
13
Wow. Great article.
Its very interesting that CEOs/founders/investors who are praised for their management skill and business acumen when all they did was ship jobs overseas to take advantage of cheap labor or lobby for massive immigration, throwing Americans under the bus either way, get praised for spending a little money to alleviate poverty in the US, which is off course tax deductible.
You can also mention dodging taxes by corporations and then giving a little away it's practically the same thing.
Its very interesting that CEOs/founders/investors who are praised for their management skill and business acumen when all they did was ship jobs overseas to take advantage of cheap labor or lobby for massive immigration, throwing Americans under the bus either way, get praised for spending a little money to alleviate poverty in the US, which is off course tax deductible.
You can also mention dodging taxes by corporations and then giving a little away it's practically the same thing.
17
Rare to see so trenchant a piece on American poverty in the Times--or anywhere. Isn't it ironic that those who demand more corporate accountability are branded, by mostly working-class people, as socialists.
27
There is little doubt that the cynical pairing of the religiously fervent with the machinations of WALL ST and the scions of industry is a toxic combination. It is only enhanced by those committed to the maniacal pursuit of Second Amendment rights. That penchant for purchase without the perspective of mental health assessment is to the grave disadvantage of those now slaughtered by deranged men who kill armed with military grade weaponry. I suppose that it is miraculous that we still have elections given the efforts at voter suppression that never ceases.
This is the context for Theroux's plaintive call for social equity but none will be forthcoming for the ultra wealthy now own the political process supported by the outrageous citizens united SCOTUS tragedy, "When will we ever learn?"
Democracy belongs to those willing to fight not just complain. We need to rise up to take our Nation back and we can do so at the ballot box.
You know who belongs in office. Go out and support them and take our democracy back from the feted elite.
This is the context for Theroux's plaintive call for social equity but none will be forthcoming for the ultra wealthy now own the political process supported by the outrageous citizens united SCOTUS tragedy, "When will we ever learn?"
Democracy belongs to those willing to fight not just complain. We need to rise up to take our Nation back and we can do so at the ballot box.
You know who belongs in office. Go out and support them and take our democracy back from the feted elite.
6
And offshoring is a perfect storm of a moral horror, because there are not only lost jobs and human poverty/suffering damages, but ecosystem and species genocidal destruction effects as well. There is absolutely no way to insure that the mounting unnecessary flood of unprocessed biological goods from other continents - raw catfish, tilapia, tiny "salmon" fillets, from China, ginger root form Thailand, bark on birch logs from Estonia, flowers and vegetables from south of the border (super-corrupt nations that have no meaningful quarantine procedure from stuff they import for overseas) to name a few at a local grocery store are not contaminated with all manner of invasive species. The devastating 'whirling disease' attacking our trout came over in trout meat from Europe, Dutch elm disease and chestnut blight in wood and plants from Europe and Asia, emerald ash borer from Asia ... I cut open ginger root from Thailand yesterday, and it had a rotten section containing weird colored fungus that I had to throw into the microwave to kill then sterilize the whole area with bleach. The Wildlife Society weekly bulletin alerts about another invasive species that will inflict billions in damages almost every week!The US. and or certainly this continent has every climate and ecosystem type in the world. We could and should grow everything that could be contaminated with Old World invasives here, and in so doing give our people jobs and save our native environments and species as well.
4
Charity abroad is a lot safer for this very reason. The donors can look like white knights sweeping down from on high, with recipients showing proper gratitude instead of pointing out that they wouldn't need the charity if the donor had done right by them in the first place.
Getting capitalists to open factories in the U.S. is more complicated than just greed. Sometimes, they won't ever GET rich, or even stay in business at all, unless they can undercut their competition on costs. This is especially true of B2B businesses - large-scale hardware manufacturers, for instance - rather than retailers.
Getting capitalists to open factories in the U.S. is more complicated than just greed. Sometimes, they won't ever GET rich, or even stay in business at all, unless they can undercut their competition on costs. This is especially true of B2B businesses - large-scale hardware manufacturers, for instance - rather than retailers.
2
I have been ranting for years now that many of Walmart's problems are the direct result of their shipping their customers jobs to China. As one of the leading proponents of corporate outsourcing, they have a history of helping their vendors find manufacturing "Partners" in China.
And these rural manufacturing plants were the basis of a large sector of the local economy throughout the portion of the nation where they have focused their growth.
And now they (Walmart) wonder why their lunch is being eaten by Dollar General, etc. Their customer base are the ones who have lost the most ground to their corporate polices for the last generation.
And these rural manufacturing plants were the basis of a large sector of the local economy throughout the portion of the nation where they have focused their growth.
And now they (Walmart) wonder why their lunch is being eaten by Dollar General, etc. Their customer base are the ones who have lost the most ground to their corporate polices for the last generation.
11
The lead story emailed me today by the local paper, Walmart HQ is laying off 500 people TODAY in a corporate "Restructuring".
To add insult to injury, much of that otherwise employable work force ended up in and out of the so-called justice system, rendering them unemployable and less desirable than un documented immigrants for the low skilled jobs that are available.
2
The irony is that the south is GOP territory. The same group of deeply reactionary conservatives keep getting elected and re-elected despite the fact that jobs are leaving and the rich are getting richer and it is harder and harder for a person to stay in the middle class. Are people asleep?
The only way change comes is for individuals to realize their vote really matters and by exercising their vote they can influence elections. People have to get out to vote!
The only way change comes is for individuals to realize their vote really matters and by exercising their vote they can influence elections. People have to get out to vote!
9
Alas, the "moderate" wing of the Democratic Party was equally guilty of pushing "free" trade deals, and Obama has been pushing the TPP, a proposed treaty that has horrified people all around the Pacific Rim for the way it gives carte blanche for corporations to circumvent national laws.
Only the much maligned "far left" Democrats care about this issue.
Only the much maligned "far left" Democrats care about this issue.
Great essay demonstrating true compassion. The fact is that charity pledges like Cook's and Clinton's global initiatives are about their own vanity. Shame on them for turning their backs on fellow Americans.
5
Why 'shame on them'. They are helping the poorest of the poor. The US is a rich country that can afford to look after their own. Why you don't bother to do so is a question you have to answer yourself...
This brings up an interesting argument - are we supposed to help our own "blood" before we help others? Is there something wrong with choosing to help non-Americans before/instead of helping Americans? I don't think the answer to the question is a definite yes.
2
When people buy products, the money they spend goes, at least in part, to pay the workers who made the products. And those workers spend money on housing, food, cars, etc, as well as paying the taxes that keep the schools open and the roads repaired.
That money can either go to American schools, housing, etc, or overseas. What is wrong with saying it should go here before it goes overseas?
That money can either go to American schools, housing, etc, or overseas. What is wrong with saying it should go here before it goes overseas?
2
The decision to outsource labor is not based on the idea of helping others. It's about maximizing profits. If you wipe out the American labor force you are also destroy a whole class of consumers. Henry Forfd had it right when he figured he should pay his workers enough to buy his product. Walmart, on the other hand, tells their pathetically underpaid employees how to get food stamps and other "free stuff."
...“lifting more than 600 million people out of poverty.”
I don't see the hypocrisy. Net global poverty level has gone down as you yourself indirectly alluded and stated more clearly in recent NYT article:
htp://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/01/opinion/nicholas-kristof-the-most-important-thing-and-its-almost-a-secret.html?src=me
It is only natural to care about our own poors but wouldn't the author rejoice at any factory in the deep south even one that made "most of the destined-for-the-dump merchandise you find on store shelves all over America"? Why the fake outrage?
The author is venting his frustration that American companies don't directly invest in uneducated poor Americans. I thought the cycle was more complicated than that.
I don't see the hypocrisy. Net global poverty level has gone down as you yourself indirectly alluded and stated more clearly in recent NYT article:
htp://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/01/opinion/nicholas-kristof-the-most-important-thing-and-its-almost-a-secret.html?src=me
It is only natural to care about our own poors but wouldn't the author rejoice at any factory in the deep south even one that made "most of the destined-for-the-dump merchandise you find on store shelves all over America"? Why the fake outrage?
The author is venting his frustration that American companies don't directly invest in uneducated poor Americans. I thought the cycle was more complicated than that.
5
Back in the very late 70's, my dad, a blue collar guy, bought a pretty expensive vacuum cleaner (a brand still available). I inherited that vacuum, it's built like a tank and still works phenomenally well. It was of course, built here, by people who cared about quality. Now, you can't find a weed wacker for under a $100 that will last a yr., we know where they come from. and where they soon wind up - in a landfill.
My point is, my dad believed if you want a good quality product, you pay for it, and factoring in the life span of well made goods makes the initial expense a good investment. I believe that largely still holds true.
I will never buy anything Nike makes, nor Apple, or any other high cost product made in a sweat shop overseas. Also, to the chain grocers who find it cheaper to send US caught fish, livestock, veggies, etc., to China for processing, I will not buy those products, even if it means doing without.
When I see people living in 3rd world conditions, within 5 miles of my home, it puts the lie to how "exceptional" we are. To the 1% and above, how many mansions, yachts, jets and sports cars do you really need? I don't begrudge your wealth and success, but we used to consider it rather gauche to brag about spending 150 million for a painting while a large part of the populace is homeless and hungry because they can't find work.
My point is, my dad believed if you want a good quality product, you pay for it, and factoring in the life span of well made goods makes the initial expense a good investment. I believe that largely still holds true.
I will never buy anything Nike makes, nor Apple, or any other high cost product made in a sweat shop overseas. Also, to the chain grocers who find it cheaper to send US caught fish, livestock, veggies, etc., to China for processing, I will not buy those products, even if it means doing without.
When I see people living in 3rd world conditions, within 5 miles of my home, it puts the lie to how "exceptional" we are. To the 1% and above, how many mansions, yachts, jets and sports cars do you really need? I don't begrudge your wealth and success, but we used to consider it rather gauche to brag about spending 150 million for a painting while a large part of the populace is homeless and hungry because they can't find work.
27
"Sanctimonious" is not nearly a harsh enough description of the cynical porky rich, who like to appear to be stalwart pillars of the nation, but have thanked their country, for all their undeserved privileges, by making every effort to destroy half our population. Never forget that they are not patriots, and we are the 47%
10
And we taxpayers in South Carolina are being told we will spend $400 million to build a factory for China to build Volvo cars. And since we are a 'right to work" state (translation: right to work for low wages) it will take how many years (centuries?) to earn back that investment, since they are also being offered "tax incentives."
14
I lived in the small town of Lancaster, SC for about a year and saw exactly what Mr. Theroux describes here. Lancaster, a once bustling factory town that was home to the Springs cotton mill - the largest such mill under one roof in the world at one point, is now an empty and starkly desolate place. The skeletons of a vibrant downtown remain, yet the doors remain closed.
Like much of the deep south, there remains a wealthy white aristocracy that was able to survive the storm; however, on the other side of town people live in shacks and trailers on dirt roads that look much like the third world as Mr. Theroux describes.
I had the pleasure of getting to meet a great number of the people who lived there, and contrary to what Republican politicians spew, they don't want handouts - they need handouts. The people there want to work, but they lost their jobs to Mexico, and then to China in a constant race to the bottom. They would gladly give up government welfare for the chance to support their family through a well paying factory job, the kind the town used to run on. This is what Republicans need to understand.
Like much of the deep south, there remains a wealthy white aristocracy that was able to survive the storm; however, on the other side of town people live in shacks and trailers on dirt roads that look much like the third world as Mr. Theroux describes.
I had the pleasure of getting to meet a great number of the people who lived there, and contrary to what Republican politicians spew, they don't want handouts - they need handouts. The people there want to work, but they lost their jobs to Mexico, and then to China in a constant race to the bottom. They would gladly give up government welfare for the chance to support their family through a well paying factory job, the kind the town used to run on. This is what Republicans need to understand.
21
Meanwhile, how do we get them (the unemployed southerners) to turn out and VOTE for anyone with a (D) after their name, too many of them are convinced by the Propaganda Channel (or their grandparents, watching it down at the senior center) that Tax Cuts for the Wealthy and defunding planned parenthood will solve all our problems. Sitting next to one right now here in the public library, she just does not understand what a different world young people live in today.
You don't have to go down South to find these problems. The Times just this past week ran a detailed piece on the struggle of communities in New York State's Southern Tier. And even here in the metropolitan NY area there are cities like Bridgeport and Waterbury, CT and Patterson, NJ. Once all were major manufacturing centers. But, no more.
21
It isn't only that American workers would have to be paid fairly that jobs are outsourced. The "rules" encourage the shift with tax breaks. The profits remain offshore and the taxes are not collected.
4
I prefer Paul Theroux to V. S. Naipaul. Good essay.
6
The best way for the rich and powerful to help the poor and powerless is to stop corrupting our politicians and political system through their lobbyists and campaign contribution (i.e. bribes), and pay their fair share of taxes. When they do that, our politicians and political system will design and implement social and educational programs "to lift people out of poverty".
3
Two issues with Paul's opinion piece:
1) excluding a very few including the Gates and Warren Buffet, the wealthy give very little to social causes. They mainly give to education (and mostly ivy league schools at that), medical research and the arts - all places where they get name recognition.
2) I don't see the point in shaming the few wealthy who do help the poor. Shame never made anyone give more. If you could get voters in the poor areas you visited to vote and vote Democrat, we can make progress in pulling more Americans out of poverty.
1) excluding a very few including the Gates and Warren Buffet, the wealthy give very little to social causes. They mainly give to education (and mostly ivy league schools at that), medical research and the arts - all places where they get name recognition.
2) I don't see the point in shaming the few wealthy who do help the poor. Shame never made anyone give more. If you could get voters in the poor areas you visited to vote and vote Democrat, we can make progress in pulling more Americans out of poverty.
8
Thank you, Mr. Theroux, for investing your time and thought locally. An aspect of the painful picture that doesn't get filled in here is the shame that people feel when they can't just pull themselves up by their bootstraps as they should according to American mythology, while the opportunity to open a small business on Main Street, Anywhere, USA has be robbed from them by the multi-nationals who are beyond competition -- who keep wages down, while flipping houses turn homes into commodities traded by investors . . . We need a new American dream.
17
More like this, please.
26
Tim Cook and other CEOs are paid by the shareholders who own the company and are supposed to work for them. If they keep production in the U.S. for non-business reasons, and reduce the profits of their companies, they are not doing their jobs. They are, however, free to use their personal funds to help Americans, which is what they are doing.
2
CEOs are not paid to expand the middle class of other countries at the expense of American workers.
14
The shareholders don't actually pay Tim Cook. They invest in the company. Tim Cook makes his outrageous salary on the backs of the workers who produce the goods.
6
If by "doing their jobs" CEOs turn our country into a third world wasteland then maybe it's time for shareholders to go back to the drawing board. Once the parasite kills the host, game over.
167
Well-written, dead-on article, undercut by the gratuitous, backhand, irrelevant slap at the Clintons--or did I miss a report that the Clinton Foundation is exporting American manufacturing jobs.
1
And when some work does trickle in you can bet it comes with beaucoup costs to the taxpayers in the form of tax forgiveness and infrastructure but no guarantees of numbers of new jobs. South Carolina's governor takes taxpayer funded jaunts to India supposedly to get new business but it's Indian immigrants who are getting many jobs in SC
2
We need to challenge all the self-proclaimed job creators to be sure they are creating jobs in the US as well as overseas. For a rich nation, we are very poor in spirit at times.
"Spirit" has nothing to do with it. The Obama Administration has seriously dropped the balI. Its job is to ensure American workers participate in this new economy. It has tools such as tax rates, regulations, subsidies, etc., to make this happen. It doesn't happen by itself and it sure won't happen out of the goodness of the CEO's heart.
1
AACNY, spirit has EVERYTHING to do with it, as in the mean spirit of a party that put every possible obstacle in President Obama's way; among other things, it prevented him from using the best tool available to him, public spending that could have created all kinds of J-O-B-S in infrastructure, renewable energy, and a TVA-style broadband project, not to mention all the secondary jobs that would have serviced those areas.
The wealthy assuaging their guilt by throwing a few sops to the underclass they created is not new. It was called "noblesse oblige."
3
I have personally witnessed what Mr. Theroux has so eloquently written here in Ga and throughout the South. It is heart-wrenching and depressing to see and can quickly dissolve any sense of American patriotism, however fleeting.
It's not just the empty physical structures like the photo of the plant in Toccoa.
You only need to have an ounce of empathy to clearly see the faces of hard working, devoted employees that were once there even if they are not in the photo. Too many people in this country have become invisible. Far too many.
It's not just the empty physical structures like the photo of the plant in Toccoa.
You only need to have an ounce of empathy to clearly see the faces of hard working, devoted employees that were once there even if they are not in the photo. Too many people in this country have become invisible. Far too many.
4
Wow, this article is dripping with nationalist entitlement (I try not to accuse people of racism, but....).
It is not more important that we Americans have these jobs. It is not more important to stop poverty in Mississippi than poverty in China. The real ethical question here is, "Is more human suffering eliminated by offshoring the job, or keeping it in the US." Typically (though not always) the answer is offshoring. yes, working conditions in China are bad—the crippling poverty most of China knew until very recently was worse.
The wealth the West has enjoyed has been built not only on oppression of Blacks, Indians, and immigrants, but also on global hegemony. It is sad—pathetic even—that someone one the left would give that hegemony moral weight.
And even if Americans were fundamentally more entitled to good jobs than Chinese people, it is the responsibility of government, not of CEOs, to ensure such things. CEOs answer to their shareholders. That's how it works. Faulting them for doing that is like faulting a coyote for eating your cat. That's what they do. Duh.
It is not more important that we Americans have these jobs. It is not more important to stop poverty in Mississippi than poverty in China. The real ethical question here is, "Is more human suffering eliminated by offshoring the job, or keeping it in the US." Typically (though not always) the answer is offshoring. yes, working conditions in China are bad—the crippling poverty most of China knew until very recently was worse.
The wealth the West has enjoyed has been built not only on oppression of Blacks, Indians, and immigrants, but also on global hegemony. It is sad—pathetic even—that someone one the left would give that hegemony moral weight.
And even if Americans were fundamentally more entitled to good jobs than Chinese people, it is the responsibility of government, not of CEOs, to ensure such things. CEOs answer to their shareholders. That's how it works. Faulting them for doing that is like faulting a coyote for eating your cat. That's what they do. Duh.
2
If you let me know this often and loud enough, I will, even if it is only subconsciously, avoid buying anything tainted, since I might be ignorant but not callous.
West Virginia has the country's highest unemployment rate, at 7.6%. An additional three to 11 jobs are lost for every job lost in mining itself. MarketWatch reported that less than half of West Virginia’s adult civilians have a job. Data compiled by the U.S. Labor Department shows our employment-to-population rate had fallen to 49.1 percent in January. Our Congressman David B. McKinley (R-W.Va.) made it very clear President Obama’s, “war on coal” is the reason for the high unemployment numbers.
McKinley said in a press release. “When President Obama was elected, West Virginia was tied for seventh in unemployment. But after seven years of relentless hostility towards coal and, more recently, natural gas, West Virginia is ranked dead last. That’s outrageous.”
While West Virginia in the past has been traditionally Democratic, the labor unions in the mining and energy industries who have suffered under this administration have awakened, and we aren't about to let ourselves be lied to again. Big business is not the enemy. Big government is.
McKinley said in a press release. “When President Obama was elected, West Virginia was tied for seventh in unemployment. But after seven years of relentless hostility towards coal and, more recently, natural gas, West Virginia is ranked dead last. That’s outrageous.”
While West Virginia in the past has been traditionally Democratic, the labor unions in the mining and energy industries who have suffered under this administration have awakened, and we aren't about to let ourselves be lied to again. Big business is not the enemy. Big government is.
3
Good article.
When outsourcing to China first started, we had an option to "buy in America" or by the cheaper version made in China. Most folks opted for the cheaper product. Now you can find hardly anything made in America.
Yes we can blame the wealthy for moving manufacturing overseas, but we need to look at our buying habits and alter them if we are to have meaningful change.
When outsourcing to China first started, we had an option to "buy in America" or by the cheaper version made in China. Most folks opted for the cheaper product. Now you can find hardly anything made in America.
Yes we can blame the wealthy for moving manufacturing overseas, but we need to look at our buying habits and alter them if we are to have meaningful change.
2
Thank you for this very insightful essay. "Globalization" is the new code-word for "imperialism" and "tax havens". The "Captains of Industry" and leading politicians are doing quite well but the poor get poorer and the middle-class disappears.
How much do we really know about--or care about--the social injustice, the extremely abusive and exploitative working conditions, and environmental and ecological damage caused by the growing global oligarchy?
And they can get away with it and pat themselves on the back: it's time for our politicians to get out of bed with Wall Street and for out top 1% to get some honest perspective on their debt to society. Everyone should be readingthis article and even more articles like this.
How much do we really know about--or care about--the social injustice, the extremely abusive and exploitative working conditions, and environmental and ecological damage caused by the growing global oligarchy?
And they can get away with it and pat themselves on the back: it's time for our politicians to get out of bed with Wall Street and for out top 1% to get some honest perspective on their debt to society. Everyone should be readingthis article and even more articles like this.
4
The kicker is that all these exploitive fortunes have further contributed to homelessness in America, not only because Americans no longer have jobs - or stable jobs - but because Chinese factory fortunes are being parked in American real estate. This has driven up home prices and rents beyond what ordinary Americans can afford, especially on fast food salaries. When will Americans get that the globalized 1% don't have any problem with profiting off slavery, and are empowered by driving former homeowners into serfdom?
3
So this is the guy Donald Trump has slated for his new U.S. Trade Representative? Seriously, this story is going to resonate with (nearly) every American. However, this issue has a serious Pandora's Box problem. And there is no "Mr. Big" (including The Donald) who can control international trade so that every American can have a $30 an hour job assembling cars. But maybe a de-stabilizing world depression (Smoot-Hawley tariff, anyone?) is just the thing to get the U.S. economy back on track. So while Paul Theroux is a national treasure and a curmudgeon par excellence, he's no Paul Krugman.
1
Setting aside Theroux's valid concerns about corporate outsourcing, it's surprising that he of all people would place higher value on helping poor Americans than uplifting poor people in other countries. Exactly what, elementally, makes our poor different or needier than Zimbabwe's or Vietnam's? The only possible answer is, "Well they are American." Okay, wave the flag if you like, but it seems a rather shallow argument from a sophisticated global traveler.
4
How about we just rewrite the tax code so profits go to creating jobs instead of to offshore accounts?
The point is that outsourcing has nothing to do with charity or lifting up the poor, but finding the cheapest, most exploitable labor. Eventually you end up destroying the consumer base in America and making people dependent on what JEB! calls "free stuff."
For one thing, having people desperately poor in our own country is like a family enjoying prosperity but keeping one child starved and locked in a closet. It is something to be ashamed of. It is saying that these fellow Americans are not worthy of our consideration, that it doesn't matter if they're poor because they are not "our kind of Americans."
Besides, this is not an either/or situation. We need to cut our whale of a military budget, pull back on foreign entanglements (which within my lifetime have caused more problems than they have solved), reform our tax system to close the loopholes and restore progressivity, and put people to work repairing and modernizing our infrastructure, which is looking mighty shabby these days.
With a reduced military budget and our own people at a decent standard of living, then we can help other countries, as the Scandinavians do, contributing more foreign aid per capita than the U.S.
It's like they tell you on the airplane. "Please put your own oxygen mask on before assisting anyone else."
Besides, this is not an either/or situation. We need to cut our whale of a military budget, pull back on foreign entanglements (which within my lifetime have caused more problems than they have solved), reform our tax system to close the loopholes and restore progressivity, and put people to work repairing and modernizing our infrastructure, which is looking mighty shabby these days.
With a reduced military budget and our own people at a decent standard of living, then we can help other countries, as the Scandinavians do, contributing more foreign aid per capita than the U.S.
It's like they tell you on the airplane. "Please put your own oxygen mask on before assisting anyone else."
This is an enormous issue to tackle but I am so glad you did. The pursuit of profits, market share and the earning per share number that is reported each quarter has been the demise of our country and its economy. Sure, there are lots of very rich people benefiting from this focus but the average worker is caught in the whirlwind. Just pretend for a moment that companies decided to make enough money to pay its workers (CEOs down to the janitor) a living wage (enough to buy stuff and save some each month), reinvest in their business and float a little cash on the stock market. No outrageous salaries for the executives, no private jets for said executives, no lavish stock offerings etc - would we be so badly off? If the janitor made enough to buy a house, a car, shop at Target and go on vacation wouldn't the economy just hum along quite nicely? It doesn't appear to be now - it goes up, down and all over the place. We need to rethink the whole system and we need to make it more equitable so it is less us vs. them. We may be "them" one day and there will be nothing.
7
It should be beaten like a drum over and over: Trickle down economics does not work because rich people only create jobs when there's profit in it. Otherwise they will invest somewhere else. Like offshore accounts that give them tax breaks. So, if the tax code is designed to funnel profits to the rich then it is a disservice to the country.
Add to this Toys R Us and Disney, which forced its own employees to train foreigners how to do their jobs, foreigners brought here on temporary visas, and then firing those workers. These corporations are not citizens, and their loyalty is to their shareholders, not their employees and not our country. (links to the articles are below)
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/30/us/toys-r-us-brings-temporary-foreign-...
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/05/us/politics/senator-bill-nelson-seeks-...
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/30/us/toys-r-us-brings-temporary-foreign-...
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/05/us/politics/senator-bill-nelson-seeks-...
8
In the words of William Blake,
Pity would be no more
If we did not make somebody poor;
And Mercy no more could be
If all were as happy as we
Pity would be no more
If we did not make somebody poor;
And Mercy no more could be
If all were as happy as we
2
Locust capitalism
6
The saddest part in all this misery for the man on the street with no job, no money, no savings, no hope whatsoever is that he believe in these hypocrites, these shenanigans. We believe in them, even when they are giving us body-blows, essentially leaving us in the rubbish heap. But as they say, "Hope springs eternal" we believe that the few bones that come our way will perhaps lead to a steak. Shame on the Politicians, the1%, the faux do-gooders. Shame on these hypocrites for manipulating our hopes.
6
What if we took the 5 billion dollars we send to israel every year, added the 45 billion we are sending in new weapons and spent the money right here in the US on veterans, jobs, roads, bridges, schools, libraries, airports, tunnels, etc., etc. Why are the needs of israelis, who already have universal healthcare, thanks to US taxpayers, more important than our own people?
Lets demand that our legislators focus on the US for a change!
Lets demand that our legislators focus on the US for a change!
11
Truer words were never spoken; not only the small-town south, but the rural midwest as well, have been economically destroyed by off-shoring. What Mr. Theroux didn't describe was the devastation of our un-and under-employed citizenry by meth and other drugs.
We know exactly what to expect from our elected leaders in dealing with this problem: nothing.
We know exactly what to expect from our elected leaders in dealing with this problem: nothing.
15
That is so true. I live in Ohio, the state profiled in the book "Dreamland", about the pain pill/heroin epidemic in the small-town Midwest. You are right; little will be done until there is an absolute scandal, as here was in Scottsburg, IN not long ago, when the HIV rate increased exponentially due to shared needles. Gov. Pence, to his own great chagrin, was forced to institute a clean-needle program. In small-town Midwest, the "Mayberry Days" are passed into oblivion
if I remember correctly, William Blake:
"Pity could be no more
If we did not make somebody Poor
And Charity could no longer be
If all were as happy as we."
i also recommend his "Holy Thursday."
"Pity could be no more
If we did not make somebody Poor
And Charity could no longer be
If all were as happy as we."
i also recommend his "Holy Thursday."
3
Those of us who own stock in these companies have to realize that we contribute to this inequity when we don't complain. We contribute by continuing to buy products made overseas. We contribute by continuing to vote politicians into office who don't vote for fair taxation.
We are the hypocrites.
We are the hypocrites.
2
Bravo! Well said. These oligarchs, along the politicians they have purchased, are determined to turn Americans into slave labor. Through their influence in government, they are behind coups around the world (Ukraine is the latest) in their endless greed to corner the world's wealth.
Hillary Clinton is their puppet, and that is why we are going to elect Bernie Sanders.
Hillary Clinton is their puppet, and that is why we are going to elect Bernie Sanders.
4
If your neighbors are living below the poverty line then that's a bad thing. If your neighbors work for you and they live below the poverty line then you are a detriment to the community. If you're making millions and your employees have to worry about feeding their kids you are being greedy.
Blaming those who have actually figured out how to compete globally is misguided. What are companies supposed to do? Go bankrupt so that Americans can feel better and not left behind?
While companies have figured out how to compete in the global economy, the Obama Administration has yet to figure out a role for government to ensure the American workers have a role in it.
All that money sitting offshore is a good place to start. Tie its return at a low interest rate to job creation. It's clear by now that it will take a republican president to make that happen.
And that is why people vote for republicans They want jobs not an increase in immigration or an Iranian deal. This Administration has its priorities mixed up.
While companies have figured out how to compete in the global economy, the Obama Administration has yet to figure out a role for government to ensure the American workers have a role in it.
All that money sitting offshore is a good place to start. Tie its return at a low interest rate to job creation. It's clear by now that it will take a republican president to make that happen.
And that is why people vote for republicans They want jobs not an increase in immigration or an Iranian deal. This Administration has its priorities mixed up.
3
But the facts show the people don't vote Republican - the GOP relies on gerrymandering and voter rights suppression on a vast scale to survive.
Well, as we know from your posts--the chief purpose of government is to slosh money and prosperity your way.
the signing of NAFTA allowed massive outsourcing of jobs
But there was already a war on poverty
It seems that is the monies spent on the government business of managing the the war on poverty had actually been given to the poor - the billions spent would have made them wealthy
But there was already a war on poverty
It seems that is the monies spent on the government business of managing the the war on poverty had actually been given to the poor - the billions spent would have made them wealthy
It's a little ironic that Mr. Theroux says "everybody moans about" globalization, yet his article is basically even more moaning, without any concrete suggestions as to how to address its consequences. He says that corporations SHOULD keep jobs in the U.S. instead of running to the cheapest source of labor, which is like saying drug dealers SHOULD be selling health food to addicts instead of getting rich from selling drugs. That would be nice, but it's not going to happen without external intervention.
So suggestions? Trade tariffs? Job retraining? Massive tax cuts for companies that move jobs back to the U.S.? Resurrect the Ex-Im Bank? Not saying these are good or effective solutions, but propose something... Otherwise it is just more moaning.
So suggestions? Trade tariffs? Job retraining? Massive tax cuts for companies that move jobs back to the U.S.? Resurrect the Ex-Im Bank? Not saying these are good or effective solutions, but propose something... Otherwise it is just more moaning.
2
Great. Contact your Congressman with the proposal and thank Paul for bringing it out to the discussion forum.
One of my favorite authors making a point that many of us in rural America have known for years. The loss of manufacturing jobs all across this country has been more devastating than either the press or politicians recognize. It is the single source of many of this country's ills. Every time I have hired a capable, sturdy, young man to work retail in our greenhouse, I have wondered why something better isn't available for this good guy. And when the older, angry version of him comes in even I have to say no.
3
Theroux is a great writer. What he describes is in fact the full historical narrative of capitalism, in which ambitious businessmen exploit cheap labor for their creations, flout the laws, make themselves ghastly rich at the expense of everyone else, and then finally do a "self-cleansing" late in life by creating charitable institutions, public endowments, libraries, etc. Carnegie, Rockefeller, Gates, Knight and many more fit the pattern. Their Randian argument is always the same: the product improved people's lives, and the meager wages were still better than what people could find elsewhere, so just shut up about the excesses. The only problem is: with business leaders running everything like this, there never can be anything better, and that was the intention all along.
2
How did Google outsource its manufacturing?
just as Mr. Theroux (one of my favorite authors) doesn't (as far as I know) seek to sub-optimize his book deals with his publishers, the directors of US companies are paid to optimize their operations and maximize the profits they make for their shareholders... if that means outsourcing to more efficient and cheaper sources of land, labor, etc., so be it... if/when the Deep South becomes more competitive - for example, by lowering wages (not exactly on the union agenda) - they will come back to life... this is not rocket science
A couple of thoughts: The focus began to shift for corporate America, I believe in the 1970s and '80s, from "business and the citizenry are all in this together". where CEOs paid attention to their corporate citizenship duties as well as the bottom line, to the Wall St. demand of "quarter-to-quarter increase in revenues, profits, stock price, etc".
In the '90s, stock brokerages lowered the cost of trading, more people began to 'play the market', and wanted ever higher stock prices (hey, they were no longer buying a piece of the company, they were buying chips at the table). The go-go '90s dot.com boom revved this up as well. And the laws were changed, in an attempt to tie CEOs' interests to those of the company through stock options as compensation. This backfired, as it made the CEO even MORE desperate to cut costs and improve the bottom line, get that stock price up, then cash in in a few years.
It has been a perfect storm that has nearly annihilated the American worker. It's not that we demand cheap goods; we can't afford anything else!
In the '90s, stock brokerages lowered the cost of trading, more people began to 'play the market', and wanted ever higher stock prices (hey, they were no longer buying a piece of the company, they were buying chips at the table). The go-go '90s dot.com boom revved this up as well. And the laws were changed, in an attempt to tie CEOs' interests to those of the company through stock options as compensation. This backfired, as it made the CEO even MORE desperate to cut costs and improve the bottom line, get that stock price up, then cash in in a few years.
It has been a perfect storm that has nearly annihilated the American worker. It's not that we demand cheap goods; we can't afford anything else!
1
Globalization has meant creating an equilibrium of US wages with those countries where pay was less than a dollar a day. Theroux has identified this hypocrisy for what it is. Corporate greed with US government blessing has led to a massive decline in US working wages with the glamorous window dressing of "benefiting mankind". Bill Clinton's treacherous cliche: "A rising tide raises all ships" was the coded permission to massively export decent-paying US jobs overseas and maximize corporate profits at any cost to the nation as a whole. Thank you Mr. Theroux for this analysis of the sham that is called "Globalization".
3
Instead of hiring American workers and lift them into the middle class, American companies like Google hire cheap workers on H1B visas. Some companies like Toys `R' Us even brings in foreign workers to observe American worker at their job and be trained on that job. And then, that job is outsourced. These companies lobby our politicians to make it easier to get H1B visas. This is absolutely shameful on the part of companies and politicians.
2
It is so refreshing to have a well-written article like this in the New York Times. This is in stark contrast to the sentiments aired on public radio where some correspondent had the temerity to suggest that the solution to all those jobs going to China is to send them off to Mexico.
As a deterrent to this practice it would be wise to insist that making goods domestically would be necessary to maintain a company's intellectual property: patents, trademarks and copyrights.
As a deterrent to this practice it would be wise to insist that making goods domestically would be necessary to maintain a company's intellectual property: patents, trademarks and copyrights.
1
Finally, someone who , at least, acknowledges and recognizes the ripples of profiteering, (and the close relationship of Corporations' officials serving on one anothers' boards). It is , in a twisted way, a sort of poetic justice that southern jobs that were "outsourced" to stridently non - union right - to - work states from Northern Union states were outsourced to Asian economies by American businessmen. How I