Quote:
Originally Posted by carpetmojo
For a perfect example, look at what happened to the British motorcycle industry in the 60's/70's. A long time ago, but the same lessons are there....
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So what motivated the Brits to try and rebuild their motorcycle industry? It presumably wasn't need, since foreign products were readily available.
Note that I didn't say "the US could rebuild those industries
and beat cheap foreign labor in the process." If there was a dire economic necessity -- one that outstrips a profit motive -- then that expertise could likely be rebuilt.
I may be wrong, but I don't believe it took China 50 years to dominate the electronics industry; more like 10 or 15. And that was starting from a much less technologically and economically advanced society.
I agree it would be very expensive. However, the basic premise -- namely that innovation suffers if the manufacturing expertise isn't in your back yard -- simply does not match what has happened in the US over the last ~25 years. Manufacturing jobs have declined, but output has slightly increased, and innovation is off the charts.
If anything, perhaps moving the manufacturing offshore has
increased innovation, since you're freeing up people from a lifetime of repetitive tasks and they are encouraged to get more education.