Zero Tolerance for Protectionism

December 30th, 2007 · No Comments · ·

Lately, I’ve been pondering the closely held positions of pure libertarian and pure free trade advocates. And I’ve concluded that they’re all hypocrites. No matter how much they tout the benefits of globalization, how hard they sell the wonders of a world economy fully-unfettered, or how subtle their soft-sell of open borders might be, they don’t really advocate what they pretend to want. What they really do is play a shell game with it.

They insist that theirs is a “complete” desire/demand for government to never intervene in trade. Even though there is currently serious damage being done to many Americans in the name of “free trade,” it’s better, they say, that some are harmed by change today because more will benefit later on. They promise. Although they’re not often even a little specific as to whom the future beneficiaries will be; that is, aside from themselves. And their loathing of “protectionism” is certainly far from unequivocal.

This is a new idea…well, at least it is to me…so please pardon what follows, as it may still lack a little clarity:

Yesterday, I was doing a bit of political reading. Blog hopping, if you will. While link skipping between various free trader sites and blogs, it slowly dawned on me that even the most rabid of these “economics trumps all” dogmatists, particularly those who make up the “fiscal con” bloc of the Republican Party, are actually completely addicted to the very government protectionism that they decry.

They’re just as “unreasonable” about the boundaries government can offer regarding trade and economics as I am about the boundaries government should offer regarding sovereignty and tradition. The difference is that political correctness doesn’t mandate that they be called racist xenophobes for their beliefs.

In light of my new vision, as far as I’m concerned the free traders can have all the completely free trade they desire…so long as it is truly bereft of every aspect of government regulation. Let’s take them at their word and make them live by it for a while. I believe they’ll be cured of their insanity post haste.

Here’s the kicker: If we’re going to have completely unfettered free trade in a global economy, let’s do away with all government involvement that benefits the free traders…including government protection of patents, copyrights, etc. Let’s see how long “free trade” works when it is left solely in the hands of whores and thieves who don’t pretend to call themselves something less onerous or pat themselves on the back for “making things better” for nebulous future beneficiaries.

So, all this gibberish we hear from business interests that desire the importation of cheap labor, the exportation of jobs and the advent of a new world order where corporations are king is really about where they’d prefer the lines be drawn for their best, greedy interests.

Here are three questions that might be asked related to the impact of free trade upon various interests depending on where government draws the lines:

“You actually expected to have a long career in Public Relations and not have to learn to write in spanish along the way in multicultural South Florida?”
“You actually expected to have stable income after getting all those fancy high-tech certifications when it’s cheaper to send projects to India?”
“You actually expected to recoup your research and development costs and profit greatly for a while from your innovation when your ideas were so easily duplicated by others, in other lands, and more cheaply?”

The first question is a version of a one posed to me by one of my ignorant former friends after I’d missed out on a new position that might have been a career-maker…because some HR hack intervened, insisting that a far less-qualified bi-lingual Hispanic be hired over me…even though the particular position never would have required me to speak or write in any language but english. The second is a version of a question many of my former business associates were asked soon after they were replaced by imports or saw their contracts sent overseas. The third question is one I’d like to ask a free trader after we’ve really made trade “free.”

All of the nonsensical “don’t worry, be happies” we hear from people who aren’t concerned about or affected by mass immigration, or H1B visas, or offshoring, are possible solely because their economic and political positions remain protected by boundaries drawn by government.

If companies are going to gorge at the trough of free trade and no longer be fully-immersed in dependence on and loyalty to America, then it’s only fair that they’re similarly no longer immersed in the protections our laws provide. If they want their patents and ownership interests protected by American tax dollars, then there must be a quid pro quo.

So, from now on when we deal with these people…the elites, corporatists, and such…let’s demand they part with every vestige of protectionism in their lives. Let’s insist that if we’re going to have open borders, then they’re not going to be allowed to escape the results of it behind walls or in gated communities. Let’s insist that their kids spend at least a significant chunk of their educational hours immersed in public schools.

And, while we’re at it, let’s make sure that Congress doesn’t get to live outside its creation either.

I think it would fix a lot of things pretty quickly.