So what are your thoughts on free trade..
some argue that free trade allows products can be produced at a much cheaper price thus being more affordible to a wider range of people, and at the same time, makes the world more global and dependant on each other as components come from a variety of places..
others argue that it is a threat on domestic industries that either can’t compete, and/or end up having certain tasks (or entire companies) outsourced elsewhere. many also argue that free trade, when combined with neoliberal economic policies, keep developing countries poor as they have a lack of control over its own resources and public spending which lead to them going more to the “left”
so what say ye?
in the US, many Liberals, conservatives and libertarians are strong supporters of free trade. However those who are more social leaning and paleoconservatives are more critical of it.
By: pluto77189 - 22nd February 2006 at 14:47
Free trade is fine. When you have oppression, then it’s ugly. for
instance, coffee growers are often paid next to nothing, while th
econsumer in the West pays high proces for the beans. Who’s to
blame???
Often, people blame the “giant, western corperations”, that refuse to
pay fair prices. Well, they’re only part to blame. In South america,
many of the local growers dont’ sell to large companies, they sell to local
dealers, who have a monopoly on the local sales. they force the
growers to sell them at too-low prices. In turn , they sell to the Western
companies at low prices.
The companies are nto doign anything “bad” directly, but they enable the
process by buying. If they don’t buy, they go out of buisness.
The real problem are the corrupt dealers that price fix the cost of
coffee. Corrupt governemnts in these countries don’t help, and the
buying companies have NO financial reason to do anything… so the
poor farmers lose out.
some companies realize the problem, and are now making a killing on
fair trade coffee. Ironically, these coffees that pay the farmers fair prices
are considered premium, and ends up being more profitable than the
cheap stuff! So, the market, supply and demand, etc. has made it
MORE profitable for retailers and coffee companies in the US to deal in
fair trade coffee. Of course, the majority of their profits come from the
cheap stuff that takes advantade of poor growers situations, but that’ll
change. Have faith in the market.
By: shadowdevil502 - 22nd February 2006 at 14:19
To me it depends on the definition of “free trade”…
If it worked as well as it did on paper then I would be all for it, but the unfortunate fact is that the free trade we have today (If the definition is actually close to capitalism) mostly results in the wealth of already developed first world countries resulting from the exploitation of third world ones.
In my ideal world most countries would be relatively self sufficient enough to maintain their own economies without excessive imports, but in some cases obviously that is simply not possible, for instance North and South Korea. North Korea’s got a lot of natural resources but since it’s 3/4ths mountain, there is this small problem of FOOD. The South was pretty much the opposite, but the difference was that the South imported what it had to. In this case if it’s called free trade, I’m all for it.
But if free trade means mostly buying foreign stuff because it’s dirt cheap and your own industries suffer as a result…
I’m still stuck on the definition.
By: Gollevainen - 22nd February 2006 at 12:59
Im more on to the left and thougth market-economyes with the idea of need and supply migth work outside of capitalism…i would still be rather against it…
lot of people forgets about the cruel systems that provocates the free trade in the intress of spreading it to the others along with acconpaning ‘democracy’, ‘freedom’ and bla, bla bla…when the same time the main advagates of this ‘package’ (called ‘western’ :confused: ) behaves totally against their own thesis. Also people tend to forget that main reasons to advogate free trade is the fact that they could side link normal product trade into trade of services and employment and this by the only reason that the ownership wants to make dust from all the grand achievments of the workers movment. And when they want to open the thridword to the ‘freedom’ they do it to prevent strong working class movment to rise in these areas…
…But, reality has proven that capitalist/market economy system doesent work at its best with closed system and under protectionism so if one must to practive the ‘worser’ way of economics, I wouldnt say yes to the free trade…if it doesent do anything more than increase the bad affects of the system, then so shall it be…attleast the revolutionar movment has its ultimate opportunity to strike back when the whole machine comes to crumbeling down… No sosialist or other alternative solutions can rise from of the capitalist system, but to replace its ruins….
By: jbritchford - 22nd February 2006 at 09:24
i thought Stiglitz was against it and globalization? :confused:
Stiglitz is for globalisation, but not in its current form. He suggests a fairer and more efective means of globalisation in his books.
By: JohnCurry - 22nd February 2006 at 07:03
I’m anti-Free Trade, I don’t see why people in developing countries should work their butts off for pathetic wages so Westerners can live in extreme comfort due to cheap goods.
its not just western countries either.. some Asian countries are very active in it as well.
By: Canpark - 22nd February 2006 at 02:42
I’m anti-Free Trade, I don’t see why people in developing countries should work their butts off for pathetic wages so Westerners can live in extreme comfort due to cheap goods.
By: bperucco - 21st February 2006 at 13:34
Jeremy Rifkin has written another interesting book about the new European Dream. Its also related to the topic of free trade. Just if somebody is interested in.
By: JohnCurry - 20th February 2006 at 21:51
Joseph Stiglitz has written some excellent books advocating free trade, i would recommend reading some of his books if you are interested in this issue.
I would say that free trade is a good thing, but there are times when it has to be limited. For example, to allow your own industries to get a running start and for some, strategic industries.
But on the whole, economic theory says yes, free trade is good and we should embrace it. It might bring some pain in the short term, but ultimatel yeveryone will be better off.
i thought Stiglitz was against it and globalization? :confused:
By: jbritchford - 20th February 2006 at 20:59
Joseph Stiglitz has written some excellent books advocating free trade, i would recommend reading some of his books if you are interested in this issue.
I would say that free trade is a good thing, but there are times when it has to be limited. For example, to allow your own industries to get a running start and for some, strategic industries.
But on the whole, economic theory says yes, free trade is good and we should embrace it. It might bring some pain in the short term, but ultimatel yeveryone will be better off.
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February 20, 2006 at 6:09 pm