Thursday, July 22, 2004
The New York Times > Opinion > Shrimp and Mischief:: Shrimp from Vietnam and China has been slapped with tariffs. Don't they realize the effect this will have on my shrimp-cocktail consumption rate?! The Bastards!!!
I really wish policy makers would get the notion through their heads: trade is not zero-sum. We "protect domestic industry" with tariffs (i.e. corporate welfare), but fail to realize that there is need to protect businesses at home only in a world without free trade. Having multiple sources from all across the globe for each good makes our economy stronger, not weaker. Why are domestic shrimp farmers important if we can get shrimp elsewhere?
Also, I wonder what the authors of the editorial think about the people who will be swayed by it. More likely than not, the only people to be swayed are those who love free trade and are on the fence for Bush; this will take more votes from Bush than from Kerry because economic conservatives are center-right.
But Libertarian hawks shouldn't be distracted by this, at least with respect to the presidential election. As has been pointed out before, you're kidding yourself if you think that a vote for Kerry would make America more to your liking.
I really wish policy makers would get the notion through their heads: trade is not zero-sum. We "protect domestic industry" with tariffs (i.e. corporate welfare), but fail to realize that there is need to protect businesses at home only in a world without free trade. Having multiple sources from all across the globe for each good makes our economy stronger, not weaker. Why are domestic shrimp farmers important if we can get shrimp elsewhere?
Also, I wonder what the authors of the editorial think about the people who will be swayed by it. More likely than not, the only people to be swayed are those who love free trade and are on the fence for Bush; this will take more votes from Bush than from Kerry because economic conservatives are center-right.
But Libertarian hawks shouldn't be distracted by this, at least with respect to the presidential election. As has been pointed out before, you're kidding yourself if you think that a vote for Kerry would make America more to your liking.
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