How to talk to a conservative...
This article was brought to my attention by my favorite red-state Republican-- let's call this individual "X." The story, in Newsweek, is called "Does the Future Belong to China?" Now, economists have been taking seriously the decline of America for well over a decade now (Japan was the first country to scare us). The economic boom under Clinton assuaged the fear for a while, but many factors have contributed to a new concern.
Here are a few of them:
1. The falling dollar
2. The rise of the EU, China and India
3. The amazing colossal trade deficit
4. The amount of dollar reserves held by other countries (e.g., Saudi Arabia and China)
5. Outsourcing of American jobs
These have put the US in an awkward position, and all of them have gotten worse under Bush. Strange, considering that the above concepts are often the meat and potatoes of Republicans-- a strong America, national self-sufficiency, xenophobia, and a continued position as the world's only superpower.
In short, this should be a golden opportunity for Democrats. Not only does it have appeal in terms of the economic betterment of America's working class, but it's a chance to talk tough on American strength in the international community. You'd think the "tax and spend" left would be the ones to get us leveraged up to our eyeballs with loans from communist and totalitarian regimes. Nope, it's the GOP.
It's a chance to reclaim patriotism as well, and to talk about foreign policy. Encourage investment in America's own cities, especially inner cities, and stop sending jobs to other countries-- especially communist countries. Decry American corporations that establish offshore tax shelters as un-American. After all, while the working class pays their fair share, companies are not only taking away American jobs, but cheating their government out of revenue, and therefore the means to strengthen America. After all, we can't really strengthen our borders if Halliburton is busy hiding its profits from the government....
One more issue that X was concerned with: China opened a plant here, and according to the article, tried to implement Chinese managerial practices-- which includes open humiliation of employees who screw up. Naturally, that didn't fly with American workers. And with good reason. The thing is, if we lose our edge economically, we won't have the ability to encourage democratization and human rights in China. They'll laugh us away from the bargaining table, and we'll have to sit there and take it.
I didn't discuss all of this with X, but X acknowledged that current American policies aren't doing much to help our economic future. And Bush's corporatism-uber-alles stance is (to paraphrase X) "a short-term strategy" that comes at the expense of long-term security.
I'd write more, but my injury of last Friday is telling me it's time to wrap up. To sum up, this is an issue that should please the vast majority of Americans-- including large swaths of Republicans-- even as it promotes a progressive agenda. Feedback, please.
Oh, and thanks, X. Hope you don't feel like I'm taking advantage of your candor.
Here are a few of them:
1. The falling dollar
2. The rise of the EU, China and India
3. The amazing colossal trade deficit
4. The amount of dollar reserves held by other countries (e.g., Saudi Arabia and China)
5. Outsourcing of American jobs
These have put the US in an awkward position, and all of them have gotten worse under Bush. Strange, considering that the above concepts are often the meat and potatoes of Republicans-- a strong America, national self-sufficiency, xenophobia, and a continued position as the world's only superpower.
In short, this should be a golden opportunity for Democrats. Not only does it have appeal in terms of the economic betterment of America's working class, but it's a chance to talk tough on American strength in the international community. You'd think the "tax and spend" left would be the ones to get us leveraged up to our eyeballs with loans from communist and totalitarian regimes. Nope, it's the GOP.
It's a chance to reclaim patriotism as well, and to talk about foreign policy. Encourage investment in America's own cities, especially inner cities, and stop sending jobs to other countries-- especially communist countries. Decry American corporations that establish offshore tax shelters as un-American. After all, while the working class pays their fair share, companies are not only taking away American jobs, but cheating their government out of revenue, and therefore the means to strengthen America. After all, we can't really strengthen our borders if Halliburton is busy hiding its profits from the government....
One more issue that X was concerned with: China opened a plant here, and according to the article, tried to implement Chinese managerial practices-- which includes open humiliation of employees who screw up. Naturally, that didn't fly with American workers. And with good reason. The thing is, if we lose our edge economically, we won't have the ability to encourage democratization and human rights in China. They'll laugh us away from the bargaining table, and we'll have to sit there and take it.
I didn't discuss all of this with X, but X acknowledged that current American policies aren't doing much to help our economic future. And Bush's corporatism-uber-alles stance is (to paraphrase X) "a short-term strategy" that comes at the expense of long-term security.
I'd write more, but my injury of last Friday is telling me it's time to wrap up. To sum up, this is an issue that should please the vast majority of Americans-- including large swaths of Republicans-- even as it promotes a progressive agenda. Feedback, please.
Oh, and thanks, X. Hope you don't feel like I'm taking advantage of your candor.
posted by Matt Sandwich | 3:54 PM
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