> On Nov 25, 2024, at 11:46 AM, Charlie via groups.io
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> This is why “at this moment the bourgeoisie has flipped from free trade to
> tariffs.”
That quote is artesian's, and I just don't know. For one thing, where is this
supposed consensus of the international or US capitalist classes in favor of
protectionism expressed? I have not come across that in think tanks like the
Heritage Foundation that actually provide staff to US presidents. How much of
this is an attempt to coop popular sentiment, and particularly the popular
sentiments exploited by Trump? How much is simply the current state of the
relationship with China, the world's factory town, that has not opened its
markets for "free trade"? By the 2010s, much of the tech industry cognoscenti
gave up on China, which insisted on having detailed specifications on every
tech product marketed in the country. Most importantly: What is the
alternative to unfettered markets for those looking to exploit foreign labor,
land, air, and water?
I think we can agree that "the bourgeoisie" have a variety of positions with
respect to trade. I think we also agree that "Free Trade" is a euphemism for
markets that are controlled by capital rather than by the societies that are
subject to them. For us, "protectionism" is just another turn of the screw like
"free trade" in commodity markets where the people have no control but suffer
the effects of whatever economic policies capitalist countries pursue.
If there really has been a "flip" or trend towards protectionism by big
capital, I'd like to understand that better.
Mark
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