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Just wanted to mention something else. There is a sister plant in Ireland to EMC. And thanks to European labor laws most of the layoffs happen in the US. Yeah I wouldn't mind a level field. -----Original Message----- From: discuss-admin at blu.org [mailto:discuss-admin at blu.org]On Behalf Of Scooter Scooter Sent: Saturday, June 07, 2003 6:13 PM To: flucifredi at acm.org; discuss at blu.org Subject: re: H1B >Dear BLU, [snip] >I appreciate the balanced and economics-aware point of view of this one. >However, more "I got the right answer here" points of view are doomed to >appear, as the *obscene* one following: > >> off-shore, we need to have a "if you want to sell here, you have to >> employ from here" trade policy. Corporations can move off-shore but >> then they can't make money off the 300M people in the U.S. >Stop whining, in Europe the level of unemployment the US has right now would >be considered good, in South America (in "Free Trade" mode) it would be >considered outstanding.... [snip] This is not about level playing fields. If you see the Argentine government taking money from Microsoft in exchange for promising *not* to use locally developed, free software, how would you feel? Now say you raised this topic because you were concerned about corporations corrupting your government in exchange for bribes or personal gain. Now hold that thought. How would you feel then if someone belittled (or "spun") your concerns as being "anti-Microsoft"? You'd be screaming "that's not the bloody point is it?". See? :-) On the whole, you are talking to a smart bunch that (I'd wager, or assume) support "fair trade", market economics, sustainable levels of immigration and open-source software. Probably none of us support an information industry dominated by Microsoft... even though this position WILL lose us some jobs. Think about that. > There are millions of people out there dying of famine, and the US is the >place where people (on average) have the most (materially speaking). Wanna >complain ? Move to Buenos Aires, and I will be glad to introduce you to 30% >unemployment - this while the White House keeps telling the Argentine >government that the most important thing is, lest not forget, Free Trade. The most important thing to George is campaign contributions. This is a guy who allowed Enron buddies to execute the California high-tech economy, with a *nasty* ripple-effect back to the tech market in Mass. > >I am not an H1, before you wonder, and I lived both in South America, Europe >and the US for extensive periods of time, I have the passports of two >countries in the areas mentioned, and perhaps because I am so cosmopolitan, >I am revolted by these outbursts of xenofobia of "H1B's *stealing* jobs from >veterans" or "ya gotta employ here" bull. This is the country that felt it >perfectly appropriate to send a fleet of dreadnaughts into the bay of Tokio >with the message, "you trade with us or we shoot" in the name of "Free >Trade" - something that is otrageous enough without the notion that, all of >a sudden, it is OK to be protectionistic when it is American jobs that are >lost. Good of you to join us. Most people in the world want to be our guests, and earn a USA "return address" on their mail. However history is full of examples of unfairness... warships to Tokyo, the Spanish Inquisition ("our chief weapons are surprise! And ruthlessness!"), genocide of native Americans from the tip of Alaska to the southernmost point of Argentina and Chili. We all like to point at the misdeeds of others, while forgetting our own past. Anyways, portraying a debate over what essentially is government corruption (these are government-sponsored programs) as "protectionism"... that's a disservice to everyone who cared about this thread. __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Calendar - Free online calendar with sync to Outlook(TM). http://calendar.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Discuss mailing list Discuss at blu.org http://www.blu.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
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