Some thoughts on tariffs

By Douglas Kohn

Kohn@Fordham.edu

Anyone who has spoken with me at length on the subject knows that I am highly skeptical of unfettered free trade. There is no question that if you take the world as one economy, free trade increases productivity, creates jobs and new wealth.

But for all the talk of the world economy, it does not exist in the manner many academic economists believe it does. Nations have competing interests and sometimes the growth of one nation comes at the expense of another. In a manner of speaking I am a cautious economic nationalist, as I am for America, first, last and always.

President Obama’s latest imposition of tariffs on Chinese tires worries me greatly, however. I believe that a proper tariff regime can only be imposed on world trade during times of economic growth. Smoot Hawley has taught us that to protect industries during recession is disastrous, but history has also taught us that some of America’s greatest periods of economic growth took place under a tariff system.

America’s capitalist economic formula was engineered by our founding father Alexander Hamilton, first Secretary of the Treasury. He knew that manufacturing was necessary for economic advancement, and that only with a large domestic market protected from foreign goods would America be able to thrive. Tariffs would enable us to keep taxes low on the people that produce our food, goods and services.

That being said, tariffs and national banks (another Hamiltonian policy) were not enshrined in the Constitution and therefore are guidelines for the future, not unbreakable law.

In my own observations I have come to conclude that free trade with nations that do not have labor or environmental standards is folly (though I would make some exceptions), but that free trade with some nations would be mutually beneficial and create unprecedented wealth and opportunity. For example, if the United States was to sign a Trans Atlantic Free Trade Agreement with the European Union, we would see the creation of vast amounts of new wealth and opportunity, coupled with greater competition to keep down prices between nations that cannot undercut each other’s economic advantage through abuse of the labor force.

However, the trading regime with China cannot be allowed to continue. The problem is, when it comes to policy regarding China, timing is everything. Right now the world looks to China to help resuscitate trade and economic growth. The United States especially needs China to keep buying our debt until such time as we are able to cut expenses and pay it down.

After such time, America should take a more nationalist approach toward China as we did in 2005 when CNOOC, the Chinese government’s main oil producer, tried to acquire American oil producer Unocal. This was particularly troubling because it was not independent investors that were trying to acquire American oil resources, but an arm of the Chinese government. Between that and nationalist currency manipulations, China has behaved in a manner that suggests it is trying to steal American industry.

A tougher line must be towed but when the timing is right.

Respect for Life meeting

Fordham's award-winning Respect for Life club will be having a meeting on Tuesday, September 8 at 7:30 PM in Keating 116.

For more information, please contact R4L President Brendan O'Morchoe at Omorchoe@Fordham.edu.

Returning soon!

The Liberty Forum will be returning in September in time for the new school year. If you are interested in getting involved with writing, editing or a number of other aspects of our organization, then please contact the LF Publisher Chadwick Ciocci at ChadwickCiocci@Gmail.com.

The Uniqueness of American Values

An interesting video by Dennis Prager, a conservative radio show host, on American values:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn4IH3yng4k

Young Americans for Liberty

Young Americans for Liberty is a new libertarian group starting here at Fordham University. The first meeting was yesterday and there was a great group of enthusiastic libertarians here at Fordham ready to get to work.

The next meeting will be Wednesday, April 29 at 1:00 PM. Dealy 115.

Please come out and join us.

Young Americans for Liberty: http://blog.yaliberty.org/



If you are interested in more information, please contact Phil Fraietta at Fraietta@Fordham.edu.

What is libertarianism? http://www.theihs.org/ContentDetails.aspx?id=38

Obama administration: conservatives the real terrorists

By Rachel Ring
Ring@Fordham.edu

Recently, the United States Department of Homeland Security issued a report stating that veterans returning from war, pro life activists and ultra conservatives are deemed security risks to the nation. The Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has approved the reports and stands by them, associating the threat of American “right wing extremists” with those of foreign terrorists. “She stands by the report sent to law enforcement that lists veterans as a terrorist risk to the U.S. and defines ‘rightwing extremism, as including groups opposed to abortion and immigration”, writes the Washington Times.

Napolitano continued with, “Let me be very clear: we monitor the risks of violent extremism taking root here in the United States. We don’t have the luxury of focusing our efforts on one group; we must protect the country from terrorism whether foreign or homegrown, and regardless of the ideology that motivates its violence”.

Despite being offended at the fact that veterans and people who hold contradictory opinions to those in power are being attacked and compared to terrorists, is anyone really surprised? It’s utterly ridiculous that post war veterans are being included in a report of terrorism potential risks. Furthermore, for the democratic, very left leaning administration which aligns itself with such groups as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), it’s ironic and humorous that they would target groups that simply just don’t agree with their ideas and then label them as terrorists. This is quintessential liberal hypocrisy: you can have free speech as long as you agree with them, and if not, then you’re a risk to free society.

President Obama would be wise to have this report re-worded or speak out against it, but of course he won’t, because he’s not the centrist leader that he ran his election campaign on. He’s truly a left leaning liberal who would support the prosecution of people who are deemed “right wing extremists” who simply just differ in opinion with him on matters of gun control, immigration and abortion. He might want to re-read the Constitution, with a Second Amendment that protects the right to bear arms, the laws of the nation which demand employees be American citizens and thus have taxable income and lastly that American citizens have the right to life.

There are pirate attacks in Somalia carried out by REAL terrorists (where was the President when that crisis was going on?) and a porous border with Mexico through which Al Qaeda terrorists are desperately trying to infiltrate (and who most like currently are). Those are real, concrete threats.

The Department of Homeland Security has better things to do than focus on Americans who are not in line with the leftist ideology of the current President.

America's Long History with Pirates

By Douglas Kohn
Kohn@Fordham.edu

The Somalia piracy, which has progressed from a benign tumor to a malignant cancer over the last few years, has at last been dealt a blow by the US. There must be a follow up and the Navy must pummel the port city of Eyl, where the pirates are based. There is a great historical parallel for this which should be explored.

The US Navy was created by President Thomas Jefferson for the specific purpose of disrupting Islamic piracy off the coast of Africa. Certain Islamic states were called the Barbary States, which are in present day Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya. The Sultanate of Morocco was the first country to recognize the independence of the United States after the Declaration of Independence and was also the first one then to begin to prey upon America’s seaborne trade.

It was thought for a long time that the best way to deal with these pirates was just to pay them off. At first this seemed like a good deal, until the pirates just decided that they would plunder again and extract more ransom from the American government.

The problem exploded when it came to the point that the payment to the pirates was consuming 20% of government revenue.

Finally, in 1794 Congress authorized the creation of the US Navy and its first three ships: the USS United States, USS Constellation and the USS Constitution, with three more on the way. This was done with the Barbary Pirates in mind. President Jefferson later ordered the navy to confront the Barbary Pirates in 1801.

The marines then earned their nickname ‘Leathernecks,’ because they wore leather collars to protect their necks from pirate cutlasses. In the marine hymn, the lyric ‘to the shores of Tripoli’ refers to the Barbary state of Tripoli, where the marines engaged in their first ever overseas operations. The Barbary War was fought against African Muslim pirates and this was the first time Americans ever died fighting overseas.

There is precedent for this action and these pirates will only understand force. Jefferson knew it and our leaders of today should know it.