tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5846567313402731847.post2078473542169436853..comments2024-01-08T12:37:24.482-08:00Comments on Living Armstrongism: Mark Armstrong: "Evil is Mainstream"Redfox712http://www.blogger.com/profile/17734930967002040931noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5846567313402731847.post-82495952806570595522018-05-05T13:01:33.649-07:002018-05-05T13:01:33.649-07:00Mark has a rude awakening coming, basically becaus...Mark has a rude awakening coming, basically because he has no clue what his preferred president is bringing on. <br /><br />Indelibly etched lessons from the failed Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930 have apparently been totally missed by both Mark and our president. Repercussions from this act were a large factor in the length and depth of the Great Depression, not only in the USA, but also in Europe.<br /><br />Two factors have been responsible for the loss of manufacturing jobs in the US within the past several decades. One has been automation. I work closely with the manufacturing sector, and have observed first-hand the many ways in which the control of machinery has been taken over by computers. Many of the machines which I now sell and service are semi-unattended. One publisher with whom I closely work has two digital presses, a slitter-cutter-creaser, a creaser, a guillotine paper cutter, and a booklet-maker. Because of computer controls, one person operates all of these simultaneously, programming them, feeding them, clearing the occasional jam, and refreshing spent supplies. In the old analog days, at least five workers would have been required to maintain the same level of productivity. And, automation is continuing to advance. Much is being done with Job Defined Formatting (JDF) and robotics. The fact is, automation will continue to shrink the work force in coming years.<br /><br />Yes, manufacturing jobs have gone overseas. However, countries such as China and India are also heavily invested in automation, arguably, even moreso than the US. Ultimately, their work forces in manufacturing will also shrink.<br /><br />These trends have the potential to reverse Keynsian economics at a time when the only thing that could resuscitate manufacturing would be the creation of even more middle class consumer bases. (Paying workers sufficiently so that they could afford the products which they produced was the premise on which Keynsian economics was based).<br /><br />Tariffs and trade war are exactly the wrong policy for an era of radically changing technology and a contracting international work force. Tariffs always bring retaliation as nations act to protect their own economic interests and stability. <br /><br />There may come a time when Mark is forced to rethink his admiration for a president who takes the shallow-thinking tough guy approach. Basically, the Donald is picking a fight, a fight in which all will be injured, and nobody will win. But, then again, that has also always been the Armstrong way.<br /><br />BBByker Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15602697337552385535noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5846567313402731847.post-41982270113426756532018-05-05T04:48:15.287-07:002018-05-05T04:48:15.287-07:00No matter what kind of week it's been, Mark ne...No matter what kind of week it's been, Mark never disappoints in making it a bad one! <br />Reminding us of the false alarm in Hawaii, he failed to mention the real disaster of the Kiauea eruption. Unlike other COGleaders, Mark fails to bring in "prophetic significance" to anything, and unlike his predecessors, fails to tell everyone how all these problems will go away in The World Tomorrow...<br />Hosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13285219921252563944noreply@blogger.com