I hope that your livelihood is secure in these chaotic times.
Americans are becoming aware of the consequences of off-shoring industry for immediate gains in affordability of consumer products. We have replaced manufacturing with financialization. Wealth has flowed from middle-class workers to owners of capital assets.
If faith in the dollar is lost, our ability to import necessities may be greatly diminished, with grave consequences to national security as well as our standard of living.
Will protective tariffs be enough? The graph suggests that the legacy car industry has already been destroyed.
It is not possible to build a factory overnight, no matter how much tariffs increase the cost of imports. Americans need to examine what factors caused companies to move abroad, and what it would take to reverse the flow.
One factor is the stability of the business environment. Will tariffs be enormous one minute, only to be drastically reversed the next day? Will new regulations be imposed, such as nearly impossible emissions rules, or a ban on sales of gasoline-powered vehicles? Is a skilled and willing work force available? Are components readily obtainable, and are there adequate facilities to ship product? Are unions cooperative or will they block adoption of innovations? Will products be affordable to Americans?
The social determinants of health include affordable living costs and stable employment. Thus, the health of a major industry is relevant to physicians, patients, and public health.
Additional Information:
- Proposal to California Air Resources Board (CARB) regarding small particulates and health.
- Comments at public meeting on CARB regulations
- Effects of phase-out of gasoline-powered cars
