El Oso wrote about how he is a supporter of free trade.
I countered:
I don’t know if you know it but I’ve got a BA in economics which means I’ve got an extra piece of paper with which to wipe my ass.
Anyway, I agree that protectionism and subsidizing of some goods when trying to create free trade goes against how free trade SHOULD function, and how it would be great if people didn’t try to protect things like sugar, beets, steal, bras. However, economists tend to do a crappy job at looking at not just fiscial costs but social costs. To me this is where the real problem lies. What are the social costs of having McDonalds in Mexico? What are the social costs of having maquiladroas along the border? What are the social costs of moving away from agricultual based society?
However, wankers (commenters) started to argue that prehaps I was just trying to hold people back to make myself feel better. Here is a paper I wrote back in 2000 for an intro-geography course, about the economic impact of the Rio Grande Region.
