http://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2016/12/27/507098713/outs ourced-in-a-twist-some-san-francisco-tech-jobs-are-moving-to-india
While the above article doesn't affect Portland area tech, the cancerous outsourcing of high wage jobs may spread. Why is outsourcing technology jobs so bad? 1) It is a national security issue. If the people we outsource control of critical infrastructure to decide they want to exercise leverage over us, they can. Who is going to stop them? They are writing and supporting the critical software that we use. 2) It makes foreigners hate us because outsourcing isn't appealing if you have to pay a foreigner the same wage you would pay an American. If foreigner workers hate us in an outsourcing landscape, 1 becomes a more serious concern. 3) Jobs that pay well are drying up. Service sector jobs cannot pay what tech jobs pay. Are we ready to pay waitresses and personal care assistants a living wage? How about people working at McDonalds, WalMart, Dairy Queen, BiMart, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Chevron gas stations, etcetera? Forget about manufacturing, many of those jobs are gone and have been for a long time. 4) Poverty and housing shortages are serious issues in Portland. Go under practically any overpass and you will find tent cities. Affluent people tend to not live in tents, especially in Portland where it rains so much. The loss of middle wage jobs has serious consequences. Hopefully, Trump will tariff foreign technology and reduce the number of visas that result in Americans giving their high tech jobs to foreigners. 5) Public universities that accept taxpayer dollars have no right to outsource American jobs to people who have not pledged allegiance to our country. 6) Outsourcing high tech is bad for the environment. Foreign countries have to be networked with people over 3000 miles away which means: satellites, transoceanic cables, and ultimately significant electrical power. If the tech support is on site or closer, less power is needed. 7) Death and taxes are the two things no person can escape, but if there are no jobs available to pay the taxes there will be more tent cities. _______________________________________________ PLUG mailing list PLUG@lists.pdxlinux.org http://lists.pdxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug
