NOT JUST HERE! It has happened in every state in Union, and yet in amazes me many or our manufacturing industries have gone overseas. I can understand how a town which suddenly which finds itself gone and their jobs no longer available. To be declared excess baggage in the employment area is tantamount to an attack by a major disease. Our job loss is in an epidemic state in many parts of the nation.
In truth we had adequate wanning a such a massive change was in progress when businessman Ross Perot ran for the Presidential Office. He used a rather dated professor-like displays of charts, diagrams, posters, graphs, lists and statistical art work showing large dollar signs being siphoned off to Mexico. Many of us felt his judgment was sound and precise. Perot's political adversaries, managed to curb any feelings they may have had as a result of his edifying campaign. They, by and large, related his campaign to humorous sideshow. They misuse his suction sound gimmick which described so-aptly his view of our jobs seeping off to South of the Border.
Perot was right. He was also wrong.
Those jobs overshot Mexico for places where goods can be made at a fraction of what it would cost make them in Mexico. My closet is stocked with shirts, pants and other such mens war. One pair of pants were made in the United States, one pair of men's shorts is tagged "Made in Mexico". Both are older items - and all of the rest, by the numbers, came from Nepal, followed by Bangladesh, Indonesia, Kenya, India, Costa Rica, Guatemala, China, Taiwan, and one lonely pair of shorts was made in Romania. Shoes, caps, hats, scarves, heaver jackets - all from China as well a belts. Metal buckles for those belts are, however, are still stamped "Made in U.S.A".
It is, day-by-day, becoming more urgent that we give some reason to our attempts to "Help Mexico!" One way to assist Mexicans is to reclaim even a portion of the vast array of jobs Ross Perot and others thought were Mexico bound.
We can help Mexicans and also solve some of our illegal migration problems by encouraging re-location of our former "make it" skills back to Mexico and less to off-shore locations.
Mexico is on-shore. We live or die together in more ways than we are ready to admit.
Andrew McCaskey Sr. amccsr@adelphia.net 12-21-06
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