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Does America Need Tariffs on US Corporations?

Should there be Tariffs?


  • Total voters
    35

The Giant Noodle

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Where is the manufacturing? Not here in the US. Why do you buy the less expensive products made overseas? Probably because they are less expensive.
What about outsourcing jobs to India? To other countries?
Why do companies do that? Labor is less expensive!
Companies go where labor is cheap! We go to where products are cheap!
------
Now, will US made products ever be as cheap as other countries? Nope.
Will US labor ever be as cheap as other countries? Nope.
------
Will the US survive with companies outsourcing jobs?
Will the US survive with imports that are half the price as ours?
------
Bottom Line..... should the US government provide heavy tariffs to US companies when they do outsource their jobs to another country?
Should there be heavy tariffs on MOST imported products?
 
We get more value out of the WTO than we lose to outsourcing. Free trade is an overall net positive, even if it sometimes hurts individual sectors. A lot of out sourcing isn't actually even cost effective, but is simply the result of our idiotic fantasy land MBA driven cost cutting business culture.
 
Unless tariffs are universal and solely for tax collection purposes they are stupid.
We shouldn't be protecting wasteful American jobs that require very minimal understanding to do.

Manufacturing hasn't been leaving the states, it isn't growing as much because of work place efficiency, machinery and automation/robotics.

I've witnessed this first hand.
 
Unless tariffs are universal and solely for tax collection purposes they are stupid.
We shouldn't be protecting wasteful American jobs that require very minimal understanding to do.

Manufacturing hasn't been leaving the states, it isn't growing as much because of work place efficiency, machinery and automation/robotics.

I've witnessed this first hand.

Christ! What if efficiency and effectiveness was a PRIORITY in the US????
Plus..... American companies were forced to use... *GASP* American workers?
(plus imports were Tariffed..... thus the US govt could get that $$$)
 
The Giant Noodle said:
Bottom Line..... should the US government provide heavy tariffs to US companies when they do outsource their jobs to another country?
Should there be heavy tariffs on MOST imported products?

I'm strongly opposed to both. Ideally there would be no tariffs at all, and the only trade barriers would be for quality control. And even then, it would only be for LEGITIMATE quality concerns, rather than as an excuse to keep foreign products out. I know that that won't happen anytime soon, but it's my hope that eventually we'll have a trade regime like that.



The Giant Noodle said:
Christ! What if efficiency and effectiveness was a PRIORITY in the US????
Plus..... American companies were forced to use... *GASP* American workers?
(plus imports were Tariffed..... thus the US govt could get that $$$)

No. That just raises consumer prices and promotes inefficiency in business. The market is becoming more global. If we shield our companies from competition, then eventually they won't be able to compete. That's exactly why American automobiles are (with some exceptions) not as good as Japanese automobiles.

I think Harry's point about automation is that most people ACCEPT the fact that companies replace American workers with robots, because the robots can do the same job more efficiently and cheaper. People chalk it up to progress and don't worry about it. But apply that exact same logic to foreigners instead of to robots, and suddenly people start to panic.
 
Last edited:
Let's start replacing foreign workers with robots. Then it won't matter where your manufacturing business resides.
 
Where is the manufacturing? Not here in the US. Why do you buy the less expensive products made overseas? Probably because they are less expensive.
What about outsourcing jobs to India? To other countries?
Why do companies do that? Labor is less expensive!
Companies go where labor is cheap! We go to where products are cheap!
------
Now, will US made products ever be as cheap as other countries? Nope.
Will US labor ever be as cheap as other countries? Nope.
------
Will the US survive with companies outsourcing jobs?
Will the US survive with imports that are half the price as ours?
------
Bottom Line..... should the US government provide heavy tariffs to US companies when they do outsource their jobs to another country?
Should there be heavy tariffs on MOST imported products?

Tariffs should be imposed on companies who outsource mostly to save on labor. The US government should not engage in allowing or encouraging companies to outsource seeing how this causes American companies to outsource and severely disadvantages Americans companies who don't. Those who consider or call themselves patriotic Americans should not be tolerating outsourcing or globalism in any form. OUr founding forefathers imposed tarrifs because they knew American companies could not compete with cheaper imported goods. Our politicians jobs is to serve the American people, they are employees of all American people.So politicians should not be tossing the salad of only the corporations.


BTW if a company packed up shop and moved overseas to have their things made is it really an American company?
 
Let's start replacing foreign workers with robots. Then it won't matter where your manufacturing business resides.

Robots have to be maintained,occasionally fixed and occasional replaced with more efficient models. Robots do not do these things themselves. Nor do robots completely do every thing even in automated factories. So it would still matter where your manufacturing business resides.
 
You mean it's not an accepted fact that taxing companies more means that we lose more business? Why can't people see unintended consequences? It's not that hard.
 
I don't think we need tariffs, but we should pass laws that businesses should comply with US regulations in their outside of country facilities for things like health, safety, and environment if those goods are made the the US market. (unless the host country's regulations are more strict)
 
I don't think we need tariffs, but we should pass laws that businesses should comply with US regulations in their outside of country facilities for things like health, safety, and environment if those goods are made the the US market. (unless the host country's regulations are more strict)

That would chase those companies out of the U.S. where they don't have to comply.

I think we should come to the realization that not everyone has to live by our standards to be happy and productive.
 
We get more value out of the WTO than we lose to outsourcing. Free trade is an overall net positive, even if it sometimes hurts individual sectors. A lot of out sourcing isn't actually even cost effective, but is simply the result of our idiotic fantasy land MBA driven cost cutting business culture.

what "free trade" does right now is drive wages as low as possible.
 
That would chase those companies out of the U.S. where they don't have to comply.

I think we should come to the realization that not everyone has to live by our standards to be happy and productive.

So you think they would abandon selling in the US?
 
Unless tariffs are universal and solely for tax collection purposes they are stupid.
We shouldn't be protecting wasteful American jobs that require very minimal understanding to do.

Manufacturing hasn't been leaving the states, it isn't growing as much because of work place efficiency, machinery and automation/robotics.

I've witnessed this first hand.

the problem with that is we need to have those types of jobs here in the u.s. as well.
 
So you think they would abandon selling in the US?

Banning the sale of those products in the U.S. would be quite destructive.

the problem with that is we need to have those types of jobs here in the u.s. as well.

Not really, the problem we are having now is we have a glut of brain power and not enough jobs.
This recession affected people who mostly have degrees and less so for blue collar workers.
 
Banning the sale of those products in the U.S. would be quite destructive.

I think the vast majority of manufacturors would find a way to comply as they would not want to lose their livelihood.
 
I think the vast majority of manufacturors would find a way to comply as they would not want to lose their livelihood.

Yes and no, the comparative advantage would be lost in meeting those requirements.
Even if they were to bring those jobs to the U.S. it would be a waste.
Having people with bachelors degrees, making tooth brushes, isn't exactly ideal.

The shift has occurred because other countries have less brain power and more labor power.
We all seem to look at these things through American eyes, that the little 12 year old girl working 10 hours a day, 7 days a week is being abused.
Before she would of had no access to money, to buy food and later when she has children, maybe they won't have to work to help support the family.
It's slow progression but the rest of the world can't all live by American standards at the same time.

Tariffs, subsidies and import regulations do more harm to the people, you were intending to help.
 
Tariffs and punishment when hiring illegals and other state solutions do not create incentive to create jobs. Vibrant free markets do.
 
Banning the sale of those products in the U.S. would be quite destructive.



Not really, the problem we are having now is we have a glut of brain power and not enough jobs.
This recession affected people who mostly have degrees and less so for blue collar workers.

it has? i think it's affected everyone. white, blue and pink.
 
Yes and no, the comparative advantage would be lost in meeting those requirements.
Even if they were to bring those jobs to the U.S. it would be a waste.
Having people with bachelors degrees, making tooth brushes, isn't exactly ideal.

The shift has occurred because other countries have less brain power and more labor power.
We all seem to look at these things through American eyes, that the little 12 year old girl working 10 hours a day, 7 days a week is being abused.
Before she would of had no access to money, to buy food and later when she has children, maybe they won't have to work to help support the family.
It's slow progression but the rest of the world can't all live by American standards at the same time.

Tariffs, subsidies and import regulations do more harm to the people, you were intending to help.

personally, i don't care all that much about the people in other countries when my fellow americans don't have jobs. tariffs on imported vehicles makes sense, our vehicles are taxed to the max in foreign countries. good for the goose. any countru that imposes tariffs on o0ur goods needs the same imposed on their goods.
 
it has? i think it's affected everyone. white, blue and pink.

Degree holders have a higher incidence of unemployment than non degree holders.
Yes everyone has lost jobs though.

increase-in-unemployed-by-education-level1.jpg


Unemployment-Levels-By-Industry.jpg
 
personally, i don't care all that much about the people in other countries when my fellow americans don't have jobs. tariffs on imported vehicles makes sense, our vehicles are taxed to the max in foreign countries. good for the goose. any countru that imposes tariffs on o0ur goods needs the same imposed on their goods.

I care about total progression of people and am not exclusive to America because we're all just people.

We live by high standards here, I don't mind spreading that around, through natural consequences.
 
not by much, though.

Did you run the statistics to prove that the difference is no significant? You can't really eyeball that a 20% difference is not significant.
 
Where is the manufacturing? Not here in the US. Why do you buy the less expensive products made overseas? Probably because they are less expensive.
What about outsourcing jobs to India? To other countries?
Why do companies do that? Labor is less expensive!
Companies go where labor is cheap! We go to where products are cheap!
------
Now, will US made products ever be as cheap as other countries? Nope.
Will US labor ever be as cheap as other countries? Nope.
------
Will the US survive with companies outsourcing jobs?
Will the US survive with imports that are half the price as ours?
------
Bottom Line..... should the US government provide heavy tariffs to US companies when they do outsource their jobs to another country?
Should there be heavy tariffs on MOST imported products?
Tarriffs are not put on corporations, they are put on counties. I believe to punish a corporation would be a "Bill of attainder" (Article I Section 9) and thus would be unconstitutional.
 
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