FREE TRADE IS AN OXYMORON

By Dan Reed, American Citizen

 

I have been thinking a great deal lately about all the lost jobs, stubborn 9.1% U.S. unemployment, U.S. trade deficits, and the entire issue of free trade.

What is Free Trade? Basically, a free-trade agreement is: "We won't put quotas or tariffs on your products if you won't put quotas or tariffs on our products"! However, Conservatives and Progressives have two very different views on “Free Trade.” Conservatives view the theoretical “free trade”, which theoretically creates a balance of resources between trading partners. Progressives view the “free trade” that actually happens, where corporations export high paying jobs to countries with low paid labor, and limited environmental protections. The best example of this is the trading partnership between U.S. multinational corporations and the Chinese communist government. U.S. capitalists get cheap labor, low taxes, and extremely limited environmental regulations. The Chinese Communists get access to U.S. Consumers, U.S. Technology, and U.S. Knowhow! I call this relationship CAPUNISUM!

U.S. Trade Practices

Beginning in the 1980’s, the United States entered into a number of trade agreements, which have lead to severe U.S. trade deficits for thirty consecutive years. 

These trade agreements include: the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), membership with 154 countries in the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), and Free Trade Agreements with 20 countries.

The United States believes in a system of open trade subject to the rule of law. For three decades, American presidents have argued that world trade provides American businesses access to foreign markets. To function properly, an open trading system requires trading countries allow fair and nondiscriminatory access to each others markets. History has shown that open trade, i.e.; "Free Trade” has been extremely damaging to the U.S. Government and American Workers:

a. No Tariff Taxes on foreign made imports significantly reduced government tax revenues.

b. No Tariff Taxes on foreign made imports dramatically increased U.S. unemployment.

Why Free Trade is Not Free 

Free Trade is extremely beneficial to a small group of large multinational corporations and their super wealthy stockholders. Corporate importers are not charged tariff taxes on foreign made products they import into the United States. Tariff free imports significantly lower corporate costs, increase corporate profits, and increase stockholder dividends. 

Full Story: Free Trade my Ass, by Mike Madsen

This open global trade has devastated the United States economy, and severely starved government revenues in the following ways: 

1. Corporate importers are not charged tariff taxes on the goods they import, which provides a major incentive for multinational corporations to export $15.00 per hour jobs with 8 hour work days, to countries offering $.80 per hour jobs with 12 hour work days. The resulting unemployment brought on by “Free Trade” has created huge losses of payroll tax revenue to the government.

2. No import tariff taxes dramatically increase the profits of multinational corporations, which increase shareholders incomes, while eliminating tax revenues to the government.  

3. The Reagan, Bush, Sr., and Bush Jr., tax cuts significantly reduced income and capital gains taxes on income derived from no tariff-taxed imports, which have created huge losses of tax revenue to the government. 

Free Trade is the New Global Servitude

Full Story: Wanna Trade? by Alicia

“Free Trade” agreements generally do not increase the economic freedom or liberty of American working class people. Many U.S. trade partners allow the exploitation of their workers, who are not free to negotiate wages. These trade partners force U.S. workers to compete with exploited foreign workers, which gradually forces down the wages of free U.S. workers, and lowers their standard of living! Thus, “Free Trade” is nothing more than a way to circumvent the 13^th amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which outlaws slavery and involuntary servitude! So, in this regard, tariff's on imports actually protect the liberty of U.S. working class people!