On Mon, Nov 25, 2024 at 04:52 PM, Mark Baugher wrote: > > If there really has been a "flip" or trend towards protectionism by big > capital, I'd like to understand that better.
The point I was trying to and apparently failed to make clear is that ideological positions in support of "free trade" or protectionism are just that-ideological positions, which, like religious hucksterism, is all about how much money there is in the collection plate, and the best way to get more. "Free market" Reagan imposed a 100% tariff on specific Japanese electronics; negotiated or imposed highly restrictive textile import quotas, etc.. Now the bourgeoisie point the finger at China for overproducing EVs, steel, cement, solar panels, and soon microprocessors will be added to the list; as if China's increased productive capacity is some sort of unintended, unanticipated consequence of the trillion dollars in FDI, as if China wasn't clear in its industrial policy about producing enterprises, private and state, capable of dominating the domestic market while competing in the world markets as "national champions. (Great study of this The Advance of the State in Contemporary China, Sarah Eaton) EU has imposed tariffs of 60% (?) on imports of EVs from China (lower rates on Teslas) as it seeks to protect regional manufacturers from loss of home markets to BYD and others. This has in part hastened BYD's attempt to build production facilities in Hungary. There is no reason for workers in advanced countries to support tariffs. The 1980s tariffs on Japanese autos did nothing to benefit US autoworkers. The bourgeoisie deployed tariffs like chaff, bright shiny metallic garbage, to distract, while closing factories, relocating production, and shrinking employments. The EU tariffs are not going to prevent VW from closing factories as the source of the overproduction is not in China, but located in the mode of production itself. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#33742): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/33742 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/109762258/21656 -=-=- POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. #4 Do not exceed five posts a day. -=-=- Group Owner: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/13617172/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
