Outsourcing and consumption

This letter is in regards to Mark Morrill’s Nov. 12 guest column, “The economic future of the United States.”

I love this quote: “The alternative would be living in a country that has nothing to offer the world but our consumption. This is unsustainable.”

I am a bridge contractor whose livelihood depends on building bridges so I completely understand the importance of this quote. You hit the nail on the head when you mentioned American labor costs are higher on a global scale, which sends jobs overseas. What amazes me most is that our society tries to mask the symptoms as opposed to curing the problem. The problem isn’t American jobs going overseas; the problem is our high labor costs. It is the high labor costs sending the jobs overseas, not vice versa.

We should be focusing on how to lower our own labor costs here in America by doing things like eliminating unions, make the urban lifestyle more affordable via mass transit, better public education, health care and social security. If the cost of living was lower, Americans wouldn’t need as much and then we could lower labor costs and then jobs wouldn’t go overseas.

I hope you can do some of your own research and elaborate on this. Please spread the word and hopefully we can make a difference.

Devon Overall

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