Reply #60: I've addressed your argument before. [View All]

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

So I'll address it again, but I must admit this is getting rather tiring. To recap: You want to make it impossible for Americans to buy automobiles from other countries. And you at least seem to think, in theory, that China should only sell cars to China and nobody else, Europe should only sell cars to Europe and nobody else. Basically, you seem to be fundamentally opposed to allowing countries to trade with another, at least in the case of the automobile industry.

Putting aside for the moment the fact that implementation of such a worldwide scheme is at least very, very improbable, if not completely impossible, let us look at what the effects would be if the United States were to unilaterally implement such a policy for its own trade, barring export of American cars abroad, and import of cars into America:

1) Relatiation against our exports by other nations, severely weakening any American company that relies on exports. What if other countries did the same thing to our airplanes that you want to do to their cars? The collapse of Boeing might not be as severe a problem as the collapse of GM, but it wouldn't be a good thing.

2) Hikes on export duties to the United States, raising the cost of imported goods here (assuming you're not *completely* against all imported goods, but you haven't made that clear.)

3) A large increase in unemployment due to all of the above.

And all that follows on from that. Not good. Not good at all. No respected economist would ever support such a plan. No politician would implement such a plan. I do not think it is worth discussing this idea any further.