RE: [sqr-users] Re: Knowledge Transfer and naive PC do-gooders

["Alexander, Steve" <Steve.Alexander@ci.sj.ca.us>]

It's getting hard to resist this topic, even though I know this is the wrong
forum for it.  We've all benefited personally and as a society from
international trade, including the international labor market.  Where were
our high quality, low cost cars, computers, TVs, and clothes made?  Where do
we get our fresh produce in the winter?  We have a higher standard of living
because we can shop the entire world.  It's hypocritical to complain when
smart foreigners compete for our jobs.  The answer is to do our best, and
one way to do so is to learn from each other on forums like this.  I've
noticed that people with non-European names (who may be US citizens) provide
as many answers as questions.

The definition of "us" in the statement "They are taking jobs away from us"
changes with each generation of bigot.  Originally, "us" was only the
English-Americans.  Later, "us" included northern Europeans but not southern
Europeans nor eastern Europeans.  Irish-Americans were among the last
Europeans to be accepted in the "us" club.  In the 70s and 80s, most people
let African-Americans and female-Americans join.  Each group faces the same
discrimination as the last, in almost exactly the same words.  That's what
discredits racism/sexism/xenophobia for me.  We're a better society for
having the Irish, the Italians, and now the Indians among us.

-----Original Message-----
From: EricRection@aol.com [mailto:EricRection@aol.com]
Sent: Friday, September 19, 2003 9:22 AM
To: sqr-users@sqrug.org
Subject: Re: [sqr-users] Re: Knowledge Transfer and naive PC do-gooders


I don't think you can complain if work goes overseas, e.g. shifting 
manufacturing to Mexico, or if foreign workers comes "over here", e.g.
Injuns coming to 
the US. I believe in the free flow of all factors of production, of which 
labour is one. 

Anglo-saxons have a competitive advantage over Indians because our 
communication skills are usually better: I've worked with Indian, Russian
and Nigerian 
DBAs whose accents were sometimes so impenetrable they were an unwise choice

(and one of the Indian guys got canned because his work was shit, too). I
don't 
have a problem with economic migrants if their work is good and it isn't a 
strain to talk to them, but my blood boils when the opposite is true. So I
don't 
object to all foreign labourers - I've worked in six countries so that's me 
you're talking about - but I often wish management knew a false economy when
it 
saw one, and that's how the problem can be solved.

I'd love to go to the US to be a visa slave labourer (hey, you can piss in
my 
face too, so long as I can keep my mouth closed). Does this make me The 
Enemy?

_______________________________________________
sqr-users mailing list
sqr-users@sqrug.org
http://www.sqrug.org/mailman/listinfo/sqr-users

_______________________________________________
sqr-users mailing list
sqr-users@sqrug.org
http://www.sqrug.org/mailman/listinfo/sqr-users