THE THREAT TO WESTERN CIVILIZATION [+] serious ballot by patch22us created Wed Aug 08, 07 This ballot stems from the comments made by two very intelligent users. The issue of off-shore outsourcig of manufacturing, particularly to China, is heating up once again. In my other ballot, I pointed out that the media, especially the Internet and "blogs" have blown the issue out of proportion in some ways. For example, if you believed the likes of Lou Dobbs and some bloggers, China is the largest manufacturer and expoter in the world and the planet is doomed to sucombe to China. Really? Reality: The United States, by a wide margin, is still the largest manufacturer in the world and the USA and Germany are pretty much tied for the number 1 spot as top exporter, with both exporting about $1.1 trillion in hard made goods in each respective country. So what about China? China is credited with exporting about $900 billion per year. But, what the mainstream press, like Lou Dobbs, leaves out, is that 60% of that is actually NOT theirs! A little of 60% of that $900 billion is actually goods they manufacture FOR compaines/country's like the USA, the UK, Italy, etc., etc. So in fact, China is only exporting about $360 bllion dollars. But there is a major crisis facing the entire Western world, and that is the cost of goods. Another user on here today said that in his country, workers in McDonald's earn about $14.00 per hour, vs. .57 center per hour for the same worker in China. Now consider manufacturing. In the USA or any Western nation, a factory worker might earn $20, $25, $30 or even $40 per hour! Why? So a factory worker in the United States might make $25.00 per hour, or $1000.00 per week or...$52,000.00 per year (not including overtime, which I read can be time and a half or even double time!) So realistically, that worker may actually earn $60,000.00 per year and that does NOT include benefits, which I read could cost the company aobut $5,000.00 per year for health coverage. Now add to that retirement benefits and it could actually mean that in addition to the $60,000.00 per year salary, the company may still be spending $10,000 more in benefits. So how can we as a "civilization" expect to compete with countries like India or China, where the total they pay per worker, per hour, might only be $3 - 4 dollars? I'm not making a statement and not making a judgement, but I hear this all the time: unions and greed have literally put the Facorty worker in the USA and Western Europe on the endangered list. My question is, do you reasonalby think it is a good value to compensate a Factory worker $40, 50, 60, 70, 80 or even $90,000.00 per year? Yes. It is reasonable to expect a company to pay a factory woker that much money. No. I do not think it is reasonable to pay a Facotory worker that much money. Economically, it is unreasonalbe to pay a factory worker that much and we need to reassess it Ballot #116823 : SEE RESULTS Comment: show your vote with comment?

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