I am not an economist...but I am cognizant of a few things economic, so at the risk of being pinged for stating the obvious I shall take the plunge into diary land:
Economics is all about the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services. Distribution and consumption of goods cannot occur without production....making production the cornerstone of human wealth as we know it.
This in turn makes the outsourcing of American jobs, manufacturing in particular, equivalent to the outsourcing of our wealth...and our opportunity for future wealth.
Today I was alerted to a new outsourcing of American jobs via Thom Hartman’s newsletter which was the impetus for this diary.
His source was The Economic Times of India, article here: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...
and Thom's newsletter clipping here:
The Economic Times of India is reporting that US' largest drugstore chain Walgreens on Thursday just announced a 10-year outsourcing deal with India. Walgreens is shifting its accounting processes and jobs to Genpact, a loss of at least 500 American jobs. This as The Labor Department announced as employers cut 85,000 jobs last month, worse than the 8,000 drop analysts had expected. It's time for America to repudiate the Reagan and Clinton policies of "free trade" and return to a national industrial and trade policy that will keep American companies hiring Americans instead of Chinese and Indians.
But Walgreens aside:
There is the outsourcing of our passports, which I find difficult to believe, but here it is: http://www.washingtontimes.com/...
And the not so greening of America, when those jobs appear to be going elsewhere too: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
For a list of companies known to be outsourcing American jobs: http://www.cnn.com/...
American companies can’t be blamed for wanting to be competitive in the American market, where they are just trying to survive. The fault lies once again with our legislators, whose allegiance is not to the American public, but to their corporate keepers.
For a list of companies now outsourcing American jobs: (maybe lou dobbs had his bright moments..who knew)
http://www.cnn.com/...
And to find companies by state: http://www.workingamerica.org/...
I just looked up my state, California, and found 137 known companies to be outsourcing jobs...many of those appearing to be mfg. jobs.
But you can't blame any company for doing the best they can do...the fault lies with our corporate legislators, some influenced unduly and others bought outright by corporate entities who keep them in power.
Bottom line: American jobs and wealth will continue to be sucked into the vortex of Free Trade, and nothing will change till our legislators are responsive to people instead of the special interests that now purchase their votes...and that won’t happen until campaign finance reform and other laws are changed. And since that is a sort of Catch 22, unless we the people make it happen...it won't. We will continue to tilt at all the windmills of healthcare, global warming and outsourcing of our jobs and wealth etc.
Find out what your state is doing and maybe donate help the cause of Campaign Finance Reform at: http://www.publicampaign.org/
And no, I have no interest in this group...so if you know of someone else in this fight speak up....