By Allan B. Colombo
Journalist/Writer
| The LTV Corporation, the nation's No. 3 steel maker, filed today for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in its history, blaming a slowing United States economy and competition from imported steel that LTV says is unfairly priced. New York Times December 29 |
| As we approach the beginning of a new year, may we stop and consider for just a moment the long-term implications of what our liberal, leftist politicals have done and continue to do to America. For years this author has tried to talk common sense to those who believe in a utopian dream that cannot ever exist--not at least until Jesus Christ returns. But alas, only a few have listened and broken rank. |
| Just what is this utopian dream? For the sincere leftist, it includes the creation of a perfect world where everyone is equal and no one receives more than any other. It's a dream that Carl Marx alluded to in his works, The Communist Manifesto, but failed to present by virtue of the immense hate for those he refers to as the bourgeois. |
| The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.
Freeman and slave, patrician and plebeian, lord and serf, guild-master and journeyman, in a word, oppressor and oppressed, stood in constant opposition to one another, carried on an uninterrupted, now hidden, now open fight, a fight that each time ended, either in a revolutionary reconstitution of society at large, or in the common ruin of the contending classes. Communist Manifefsto Marx & Engles |
| The flaw in Marx's and Engles' communist plot was that once such a revolution would take place, the proletarians would in a sense become the new bourgeois and the contending class the new proletarians. In a word, the old proletarians would become the ruling class, which would virtually be the same animal that they had come to hate! Not only that, but in any society, in order for there to be law and order, especially where it is intended that no one gain more than another, someone must rule. Does this not violate the very premise presented within Marx & Engles prolific and enduring work? |
| And then you have today's hard and fast liberals who do not seem to share the same level of misguided sincerity as their leftist predecessors. To most liberals, the desired end justifies the means, so that if the end result appears noble on its face, that is enough reason to skirt common moral and ethical standards. An overdriving sense of self interest appears to be the prime motivator to many liberals. In fact, to attain their goals, they are willing to disassemble our Democratic Republican form of government to do it. |
| No where has that been as public and apparent as in Florida after the November election. Because losing the White House did not figure into the liberal front's overall plans, Vice President, Al Gore, was made to look very much like a small child who has yet to learn what constitutes true sportsmanship. In this regard, many of Florida's senior citizens, unjustly frightened of losing their health care benefits, sought to elect Al Gore--no matter what it took to do it. |
| And then there are the minority special interests who have latched onto the liberal front (or was it the other way around?). For profit, political or otherwise, the common man in the street is being manipulated with images of the past and mute concerns for the future. All the while those who work to stir ill sediment among the masses continue to profit handsomely from their less than sincere labors--of course to the detriment of their charges. |
| By so doing the point and justification of their original and just cause is lost in the glare of their hatred and intolerance. Of course, my comments are designed to address the present racial aggitations brought about by prominent blacks who seem to specialize in stirring anger and hate among those of like color and/or creed. |
| About three or four years ago a college economics professor contacted me about using one of my anti-global articles. His intent was to use it as a counter-point to his own pro-global teachings. We had a very good chat, back and forth, debating the issues, until I presented the following evidence: |
| Redistribution of Wealth = Cheap Labor Pool |
| In other words, NAFTA, GATT, WTO and other free-trade agreements act only to further the monetary gains of the already wealthy by way of a cheap labor force. I guess my professor friend either could not argue with what I had to offer or he did not wish to waste any more time on this old country boy. |
| What is it that I object to concerning globalism? Well, let's begin by mentioning the fact that workers in other countries receive a fraction of what our workers do by way of wages earned. Perhaps a few cents an hour will work for them, because of a suppressed economy, but here it will do little more than put workers out on the street looking for a real job, one that pays them enough to live comfortably in THIS economy. |
| If you believe that free trade is a humanitarian issue, think again. All that you have to do is add it up. There is no doubt in this author's mind that it's more about the implementation of a cheaper-than-dirt work force (without the customary tariffs) than anything else. |
| In the mean while, lookie at what takes place here. More and more industry disappears and more and more industrial workers are on the street looking for gameful employment. All the while the fat cats get richer and America begins to take on a third-world apperance. |
| Some folks have said that without industry, third-world countries can never improve their economic picture. The question is, what will happen in the United States when industry is totally gone? If having industry is essential to economic development, then shouldn't we be doing more to encourage our industrial base to remain in country instead of fleeing? |
| The LTV bankruptcy petition, which was filed in the United States Bankruptcy Court in Youngstown, Ohio, is the latest evidence of the woeful state of the United States steel industry. For several years, steel makers have been struggling with overproduction, fierce competition from lower- priced imports and more recently, with a strong dollar and a weakening auto industry, which uses much of the steel. New York Times December 29 |
| In a word, LTV has fallen victim to a failed national economic policy, specifically by way of NAFTA, GATT, and the WTO. It's a failed policy because it fails to take into consideration cost of living differences between the U.S. and third-world nations where most of these manufacturers are going. It's failed because it fails to take into consideration the needs of U.S. citizens first, and then others second--and no, our government should not have to apologize for prioritizing our national economic policy in such a manner. |
| The attack on U.S. industry, whether it be an actual frontal attack or a ploy used by the wealthy to, at most, take advantage of a cheap labor force, or, at least, buy up failed companies as they go bankrupt, is occuring on many levels. |
| First, manufacturing companies are forced to comlpy with extremely rigorous environmental policies that has cost them big bucks to implement. Add to this the fact that the WTO has routinely ruled against the United States when enforcing environmental and other laws, forcing us to import products produced in such a manner that domestic producers cannot compete. |
| Second, by establishing free trade practices, the powers that be have stacked the deck, eventually forcing all industry in the West to evaluate whether they can afford to remain in the U.S. and make any money with a labor force that costs more to operate than in third-world countries. |
| This effort, although long in the making, was recently given new life through a United Nation's agreement entitled Agenda 21. Chapter 2 of Agenda 21 specifically calls for institutions such as GATT, NAFTA, and WTO while calling on all nations to exempt developing countries from the same rigorous environmental laws that developed countries must follow. |
| To keep the rest of us quiet while this has gone on, they've told us over and over that the economy is good, that it's doing well, that Americans have never had it so good (This tactic was used by Hitler in Nazi Germany). In addition, they've allowed the common man to enter the stock exchange with less investment than in years past. Thus, more and more of us are making additional money, so we have turned a blind eye to those who depend on the industrial complex for their living. |
| Some have argued that this is now a service economy, as if that makes the evacuation of industry from the U.S. any better or easier for Americans to swallow. This author's contention is, simply put, that if having a strong industrial base is essential to third-world countries' economy, then you can bet that it's just as important stateside! |
| I can still remember upon graduating from high school how I had the choice of going to Republic Steel, The Timken Company, or a smaller firm where my had father worked. The money in each case was considered very good at the time. Because I had three years of mechanical drafting and one year in electronics, I was qualified to begin work at any one of these companies, right out of high school. As it were, I chose the smaller of the three firms and went to school at the same time to earn an associate engineering degree in electronics. At the industrial firm I worked for I was an X-Ray head techncian. |
| In closing, please step back and look at the big picture here. Do not sit idly by and watch the powers that be destroy our nation's strong industrial base--an industrial base that is absolutely necessary to maintain a strong America both economically and defensively. Please stand up and be counted before it's too late. Thank you for taking the time to read this commentary and may God Bless America!! --Al Colombo |
| Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in today's commentary are that of the author and not necessarily that of Al Colombo or others who appear in this publication. Direct inquiries regarding it's content to the author. Thank you. |
| Editor's Note: Permission is granted to reproduce this or any of the other articles and commentaries that appear on this web site, providing they appear in their entirety with the author's name, e-mail address, and www.GiantKillers.Org included. Thank you. --Al Colombo |
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