Sure distributors/middle men are still making a living as product goes thru their hands...really does not matter where it comes from. However a manufacturer creates MANY more jobs then a distributor or drop ship sales team. As far as the hypothetical $2 going to China for product X, they still probably carry 80% or better margin on it because of slave type labor rates and the way they ship en mass to overseas clients. The distributor with his $4 markup I doubt can manage an 80% margin even tho he is just a handler.......his overhead (and Govt imposed overhead) with all the taxes, legal fees, licensing, and insurance will assure of that. Sure that $4 is still getting spread around in the US but not much of it ends up in his pocket or his employees, a good chunk of it supports lawyers, risk agents and slobs in government.
Import Tariffs are a dangerous thing: The Smoot-Hawley act being a great example. Protectionism has rarely helped anyone in America but sometimes I think that is a temporary result...maybe we just were not patient enough to stay the course. So many US based companies are moving production operations out of country yet there largest customer base is right here. Tariffs can have an effect on that....since NAFTA I do not see any radical upward swing of out exports to this continent...of course our imports from this continent have had steady increase. It is a such a complicated issue. It would be nice if our "so intelligent" representatives would get off the back of companies that are based here and manufacture here....punish the ones that are foreign owned and manufacture elsewhere with the extreme taxes and costly regulations. You are not breaking any of the foolish free trade acts by doing that. Companies need a way to be competitive with the rest of the world...opening up free trade is not doing that. It makes sense for any company to move for the long term...Between America and Europe they are the most costly places to operate in the world. So many silly laws have been enacted because of one simple thing and everyone here knows it....Greed and kickbacks to the lawmakers. "Damn that put money in our pockets but we lost some revenue....make a new Tax/regulation or whatever to put screws to the guys still here" Kinda of a viscous cycle that has been going on for the last 25 years or so. China is successful here because of the Greed of a few relatively speaking.
I would love to see lobbying become an illegal or even treasonous activity.....for every one private truly non profit lobbyist (say a rep of some tree huggers or religious group) there are 500 well paid snakeoil salesmen chasing those representatives around with a pocketfull of cash. NONE of them are representing my interests...that's what the guy I voted for is suppose to be doing. Let political contributions for high office be limited to 10 million straight from the Goverment....everything else is illegal. If those companies want someone elected let them go door to door but do not let them spend one dime on advertisement etc. Ok I am rambling like crazy, sorry I will shut up.
I cannot afford $.02 so I will put an I.O.U. in the pot....that's how our Government operates why can't I?
Tommy
BTW. Here is a good site to get a bit of information on how trade and tariffs are used around the world and the effects.
http://internationalecon.com/Trade/Tch10/T10-1A04.php
partB, pissin and moaning about it won't put food on your table.....sounds like you've had it good, count your blessings that you have made better money in the past than someone just starting out. Good for you, but quit already with the sour grapes...What is sickening is hearing you discouraging someone from trying to get a job and actually working for a living. If you are scared of work, then keep your bartending job.
