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Originally Posted by Charlatan
Pan... you can't have it both ways. Either the market is free, or it isn't. Either there is free trade, or there isn't.
What you are asking for is increased regulation and this runs counter to the ethos of your "free country".
If you are for free markets and free trade... then you will have to take these negative aspects. Your nation will have to adapt. It will have to change.
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You are right, it's more fair trade than free.
I also see it as keeping countries and people down. Countries with very little industry that rely on manufactured goods from their countries usually have extremely poor citizenry and bad economies. Whereas, a country that is self reliant has a very good standard of living, a booming economy and can educate their people to advance.
It is impossible to adapt when the other players will change the rules to keep you down. For example, as long as other countries, like China, subsidize their steel industry, keep high tariffs on ours and we don't tariff theirs because we "play by the rules" our steel industry will continue to falter. We can blame wages and benefits and lower them so we can match prices to some degree at home, but overseas we still don't stand a chance.... and here we lower our standard of living severely. I thought we were supposed to show the world how great a free market could be, how it promoted higher standards of living not lower them.
-----Added 5/10/2008 at 12 : 33 : 24-----
Quote:
Originally Posted by thingstodo
Not to put words in pan's mouth but it sure would help if there was enough information to make a global decision. If I don't know a product contains stuff from a country I don't want to globalize with if I don't have enough information to make my decision.
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I wholeheartedly agree.
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I will do my utmost best to avoid any products containing Chinese food ingredients. I also refuse to shop at Wal-Mart because they are one of the reasons behind cheapness in the way they do business to force the hand of companies that want to be in their stores. Wal-Mart killed Levis.
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They also killed RubberMaid not to mention lowered quality standards on goods so as to have repeat business.