In these tough economic times, some people might be asking themselves: why hasn't our President, free-market proponent that he is, come out and publicly supported the off-shoring of American jobs? Because unless you're a corporate bigwig or an economist, outsourcing might actually seem like a bad thing. In fact, for the general public, outsourcing and off-shoring are dirty words. Why? Uh, because as Americans, we really don't like the idea that jobs are being moved away from America.

Of course, the general public doesn't seem to count; amongst large corporations, economists, and their lackeys in the government there is no question at all: Outsourcing is absolutely, positively, the most positive development in business since junk bonds. Anybody who's against it is nothing better than a lousy Communist.

Outsourcing. It's all the rage with those crazy companies these days. Yes, there's currently nothing more fashionable for a stylish corporation than laying off American workers and hiring foreign ones to replace them at significant cost savings. However, like many dedicated followers of fashion, these companies and their friends in government are a little confused about why so many people are mad at them just for wanting to look good.

Proponents of oursourcing like to charge their critics with being anti-free market. According to American economic theory, that's the worst possible thing anyone could be accused of. And, of course, however true it might or might not be, this line of attack isn't going to help our poor, embattled President.

The reason for that should be obvious: Current conservative ideology states unequivocally that free-markets improve everything. The freer the market, the better, as far as they're concerned; and they've sought to indoctrinate the American public with that belief -- hence their traditional stance on deregulation. Quite frankly, they've done a pretty remarkable job of it too. At least, until now.

During the nineties, when the economy and the employment situation weren't quite so bad, most people thought that deregulation was a good idea. Hey, free markets, right? Sounds good to me! I love free markets! Then came Enron.

Fortunately for conservatives and libertarians, the American public didn't make the connection between deregulation (thus freer markets) and heinous corporate theft. But then, along came outsourcing – a new threat to the people who believe in free markets above all else. The hemorrhaging of American jobs overseas is placing those free market folks in a precarious position because, this time perhaps, the public might finally realize the fundamental truth of Laissez Faire capitalism: for all it's benefits, people get hurt. Sometimes, they get hurt really badly.

This is not the kind of talk that free market proponents want to get around, because the people who most often get hurt by capitalism are middle and lower class workers – not business leaders and economists. But those leaders and economists need us workers because we buy their products, and vote for the various public officials who allow them to enjoy the benefits of the free market.

What about the opposition, the liberals and Democrats? (They're not always the same, you know.) Well, because they're American politicians, and therefore brought up to believe in capitalism, they're all for free-ish markets. But, many of them, while they like capitalism a whole lot, understand that it hurts people, and have enacted programs to cushion the blow a little bit. That's why we have Medicare and Social Security -- and yes, income tax. Because your child's asthma doesn't care whether or not you have a job, and the market doesn't care if your employer's accountant stole your pension on your 64 ½th birthday.

Sounds like a good idea, right? Trying to ameliorate some of the more pernicious effects of unfettered capitalism? So why don't we do it more often? Well, because when there are safe-guards in place to protect people from the ravages of a free market, rich people find it slightly more difficult to get richer.

The problem is that all those ivory-tower economists are so disconnected from the general population, that they will actually try to convince those of us who have lost our jobs that our unemployment is a good thing. They really believe that they can comfort a person who lost his job and his family's health insurance by telling him that it's ok, because it's good for the economy. Why? Well, because American companies have an opportunity become more efficient and more profitable than they've ever been before. That's more important than your job, they'll happily tell you. Never mind that, as a displaced worker, you won't have a chance to share in that bounty.

Boil down all that fancy talk and the positivist language, and what are you left with? Well, here is the unobscured core of their message: you are a martyr for free market principals. Your job has been sacrificed at the alter of Adam Smith.

There, doesn't that make you feel better? As our current Commander in Chief believes, if you're poor, it's your own damn fault.

-B. C. Silvia
-3/24/2004