Obama: "Build on our manufacturing boom"

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werepossum

Elite Member
Jul 10, 2006
29,873
463
126
Jobs are picking up but it's not because of something Obama has done. Also, many of the manufacturing jobs are through temporary services. Toyota hires new employees for up to 2 years though a temp service before they even are considered for full time work. I wonder if the temporary workers (through services) are considered "service" jobs or "manufacturing" jobs.

Mexico jobs are coming back somewhat. My previous company had shut down 5 or 6 US plants and move them to 8 Mexico plants starting about 10 years ago. Now, every Mexico plant is gone and they have expanded or opened US plants again. Don't know about China but it's hard to compete with those wages/rules/etc.

IMO, those graphs above are exactly what is wrong with the decline of the US today. Middle class crumble should be the title of those graphs or "This is why we have a 47% that don't pay federal taxes" (along with steep tax cuts trying to make up for lost wages). It could go on and on but this is a big reason.
Major appliance jobs are also forecast to begin re-shoring over the next few years, both because consumers are starting to preferentially shop American-made and because due to wage growth in China's major manufacturing cities and shipping cost increases the major savings just aren't there.

As far as a boom - well, I'd suggest asking Mickey Mouse, for this is the kind of boom one needs giant cartoon mouse ears to hear.
 

corwin

Diamond Member
Jan 13, 2006
8,644
9
81
Anyone mention the irony of Obama flip flopping? Pretty sure he said "You didn't build that"...:D

And now back to your serious discussions;)
 

Hayabusa Rider

Admin Emeritus & Elite Member
Jan 26, 2000
50,879
4,268
126
Major appliance jobs are also forecast to begin re-shoring over the next few years, both because consumers are starting to preferentially shop American-made and because due to wage growth in China's major manufacturing cities and shipping cost increases the major savings just aren't there.

As far as a boom - well, I'd suggest asking Mickey Mouse, for this is the kind of boom one needs giant cartoon mouse ears to hear.

As I've suggested before we need more innovative solutions to build on this -call it what you like-. Our service sector society simply isn't providing opportunities for good wages and stability. We ought to be examining options beside what the Big Two present.

For example the Dems have focused on taxation, meaning more of it. What has not been stated is how that increased revenue would specifically be put to use, nor has it sufficiently explained how enough taxes could be generated without throttling business expansion or hitting the middle class and lower. Certainly people can say that over X amount of income one pays more income tax, but out of the other side of their mouths tax through other means by hitting those who provide services and goods to others. "Oh it's not a tax, it's a fee" does not cut it. Taking money directly or indirectly matters not. Even so, what good does taking that money do? How will it be used? What is the plan? Not "let's build on this", but a specific use for it.

On the other side we have "let's cut taxes and regulations" on the part of the Republicans. Which regulations? Safety? Dumping waste? Certainly the bureaucracy can be onerous which I know by nonsense regulations in my field, but again, what's the plan? Even if taxes are cut, if it is possible to make a percent more in profit by firing domestic people and moving jobs overseas that happens. Giving those who value black ink above all considerations will simply take extra monies and move them offshore or convert it to cash reserves. Spending more here for what can be had for less is what has happened and will continue to be the case. The real gain will not be realized with a no strings approach.

So use taxation as an incentive. Make it cost prohibitive to move out of the US labor market and lower taxes when businesses bring back manufacturing and needed infrastructure. We don't want another Dell situation where saving a little here and there led to losing our ability to make computers as we used to. The next technological boom according to many is in the mobile market, a potential of a trillion dollars. Who's going to benefit? Those who can actively participate. Us? We'll have clerks at Best Buy pimping them. Hardly comforting.
 

werepossum

Elite Member
Jul 10, 2006
29,873
463
126
As I've suggested before we need more innovative solutions to build on this -call it what you like-. Our service sector society simply isn't providing opportunities for good wages and stability. We ought to be examining options beside what the Big Two present.

For example the Dems have focused on taxation, meaning more of it. What has not been stated is how that increased revenue would specifically be put to use, nor has it sufficiently explained how enough taxes could be generated without throttling business expansion or hitting the middle class and lower. Certainly people can say that over X amount of income one pays more income tax, but out of the other side of their mouths tax through other means by hitting those who provide services and goods to others. "Oh it's not a tax, it's a fee" does not cut it. Taking money directly or indirectly matters not. Even so, what good does taking that money do? How will it be used? What is the plan? Not "let's build on this", but a specific use for it.

On the other side we have "let's cut taxes and regulations" on the part of the Republicans. Which regulations? Safety? Dumping waste? Certainly the bureaucracy can be onerous which I know by nonsense regulations in my field, but again, what's the plan? Even if taxes are cut, if it is possible to make a percent more in profit by firing domestic people and moving jobs overseas that happens. Giving those who value black ink above all considerations will simply take extra monies and move them offshore or convert it to cash reserves. Spending more here for what can be had for less is what has happened and will continue to be the case. The real gain will not be realized with a no strings approach.

So use taxation as an incentive. Make it cost prohibitive to move out of the US labor market and lower taxes when businesses bring back manufacturing and needed infrastructure. We don't want another Dell situation where saving a little here and there led to losing our ability to make computers as we used to. The next technological boom according to many is in the mobile market, a potential of a trillion dollars. Who's going to benefit? Those who can actively participate. Us? We'll have clerks at Best Buy pimping them. Hardly comforting.
Agreed. We've given up all our technology transfer barriers, so the technological edge we built post-war is now virtually gone. Our educational system is largely kaput, to the point that what high tech we still have largely relies on foreign-born grad students and where companies can get away with it, cheaper imported B-1B talent. Absent some notable research companies like IBM, our high tech edge is fast evaporating, and given that our commons in both electronics and manufacturing has largely fled to China it's hard to see how even these giant companies can continue to compete.

Given all that, simply cutting regulations and wages is likely to give us only slower job losses and fast-deteriorating environment and workplace safety, not a reversal. I'd like to see corporate taxes abolished (which would require taxing most capital gains as wage income) and using tariffs and taxes on money leaving the country, but that will still result in a drastically lower level of prosperity for most people as goods suddenly cost much more. I wish someone had a better answer.
 

zinfamous

No Lifer
Jul 12, 2006
111,828
31,304
146
Now now, that doesn't explicitly say "manufacturing".

Try this one instead!

us-employment-in-manufacturing.jpg


OK, so is it OK here to say "But but but but but Booooooosh!" ?

:D
 

bfdd

Lifer
Feb 3, 2007
13,312
1
0
Which regulations do you refer to?

You can start with the Federal Minimum Wage, then we can look into environmental and work safety regulations. Should probably get them out of picking winners and losers with loans/grants/etc. But ending the Federal Minimum Wage would go a long way. Taxes are a form of regulation as well, lets get rid of a shit ton of those. Fed Gov't can't pay their tab? Guess they better start cutting back what they need to spend on then. I really don't care I'm sick of playing along and paying for a sinking ship.

America you want jobs back? Take a pay cut, allow for a little more pollution, realize your life isn't going to be some perfect fucking fairy tale and you aren't entitled to shit.
 

IGBT

Lifer
Jul 16, 2001
17,972
140
106
fact of the matter is..if your obama had to speak the truth he would have very little to say. His willing accomplices in the media reiterate his lies and report them as head line news.
 

LumbergTech

Diamond Member
Sep 15, 2005
3,622
1
0
You can start with the Federal Minimum Wage, then we can look into environmental and work safety regulations. Should probably get them out of picking winners and losers with loans/grants/etc. But ending the Federal Minimum Wage would go a long way. Taxes are a form of regulation as well, lets get rid of a shit ton of those. Fed Gov't can't pay their tab? Guess they better start cutting back what they need to spend on then. I really don't care I'm sick of playing along and paying for a sinking ship.

America you want jobs back? Take a pay cut, allow for a little more pollution, realize your life isn't going to be some perfect fucking fairy tale and you aren't entitled to shit.

No.
 

kage69

Lifer
Jul 17, 2003
31,202
47,228
136
As I've suggested before we need more innovative solutions to build on this -call it what you like-. Our service sector society simply isn't providing opportunities for good wages and stability. We ought to be examining options beside what the Big Two present.

For example the Dems have focused on taxation, meaning more of it. What has not been stated is how that increased revenue would specifically be put to use, nor has it sufficiently explained how enough taxes could be generated without throttling business expansion or hitting the middle class and lower. Certainly people can say that over X amount of income one pays more income tax, but out of the other side of their mouths tax through other means by hitting those who provide services and goods to others. "Oh it's not a tax, it's a fee" does not cut it. Taking money directly or indirectly matters not. Even so, what good does taking that money do? How will it be used? What is the plan? Not "let's build on this", but a specific use for it.

On the other side we have "let's cut taxes and regulations" on the part of the Republicans. Which regulations? Safety? Dumping waste? Certainly the bureaucracy can be onerous which I know by nonsense regulations in my field, but again, what's the plan? Even if taxes are cut, if it is possible to make a percent more in profit by firing domestic people and moving jobs overseas that happens. Giving those who value black ink above all considerations will simply take extra monies and move them offshore or convert it to cash reserves. Spending more here for what can be had for less is what has happened and will continue to be the case. The real gain will not be realized with a no strings approach.

So use taxation as an incentive. Make it cost prohibitive to move out of the US labor market and lower taxes when businesses bring back manufacturing and needed infrastructure. We don't want another Dell situation where saving a little here and there led to losing our ability to make computers as we used to. The next technological boom according to many is in the mobile market, a potential of a trillion dollars. Who's going to benefit? Those who can actively participate. Us? We'll have clerks at Best Buy pimping them. Hardly comforting.

IIRC the Dems tried something along those lines not too long ago, providing incentive to stay here and removing tax loopholes for outsourcing corporations. The GOP shot that down, of course.
 

sm625

Diamond Member
May 6, 2011
8,172
137
106
This is what happens when you have a one party system. They just say whatever they want, because they have a lock on power. If Romney got elected he would do the same thing as Obama: let the central bank print more money to give to wall street. That money then of course scatters all over the world and ends up being used to build manufacturing plants where the labor is cheapest.