Why do we need global trade?

Why can't America just say...To hell with it all, we're bringing home our troops, closing the borders, and will sustain ourselves? Sure, China might be pissed, but who cares? What exactly do we need from China anyway? their rice?
What does the outside world provide America that we can't provide ourselves?

Why can't America just say sorry, we can't meet our debt obligations with foreign nations...we apologize deeply, but it is what it is...It has come to our attention that we must take strong, immediate action within our own borders for the sustainable future of the American people.

What exactly is it that we need from the outside?
We have the military to defend.
We have the room to grow.
We have fuel, water, food, shelter.

Am I missing something here?
Please enlighten me.
Thanks.

The Internationals wouldn't make any money if we didn't have global trade.

reply to post by helltick


Where should I start? We don't produce enough oil to meet our demands. Rare earths are far more rare here.... we need to import them for a lot of our industry. Those strawberries you may eat other than the short bit of time they have ripened and gotten to market here, all year round? Shipped in..... as is a great deal of our food supply. Alllllll the stuff we no longer manufacture in America anymore. No tvs. No binoculars. No.... the list is very long. Parts. Lots of parts. Really.... we gave up making a great deal of items that we must import. Manufactured goods, chemicals, minerals, foods....... look it up. Don't just post without doing some basic research on your own. We are interdependent but scary for us because we don't export as we used to, hence our trade deficits. You can't ship out a service industry nation at our costs..... which is why when you need help on the phone, it may be an India phone center, for example. We just don't make enough stuff on our own anymore.

There are a ton of reasons. I was taught all of them. I used to believe. Increasingly I feel like it was nothing but indoctrination. I cannot find any way to escape the reality that if there is X total GDP to go around and right now U.S. has 40K per capita (rough average across several years) then to increase GDP per capita elsewhere necessarily brings down GDP per capita in U.S.
This would also hold true for other developed nations.

U.S. should lock up tight and maybe answer the door when Europe comes knocking. Trade (and not necessarily "free trade' with other developed nations and leave the rest to figure out their own deal. The people of the "abandoned' nations would like us better for this approach in most instances, and there would be enough jobs "in house" for western civilization.

The price of goods would rise and there would be a very possible slowing of new tech developments. But with the speed at which tech is moving we could all afford to slow down. And, I would rather have job security to save up for a $ 700 vacuum that would work for 20 plus years than buy one on credit for $79 and hope I was still employed in six months after the vacuum had stoped working.

Very few people seem to agree with me right now (left or right). Right seems to feel the sentiment economically but disagrees with the "math". Right also doesn't like the idea of more isolationist approaches militarily. Left just doesn't seem to like the sentiment.

I have been doing a lot of studying and reading. I think we were sold a line of BS and this country (though it would have to make some adjustments) would do much better to go back to being on our own.

Originally posted by helltick
Why can't America just say...To hell with it all, we're bringing home our troops, closing the borders, and will sustain ourselves? Sure, China might be pissed, but who cares? What exactly do we need from China anyway? their rice?
What does the outside world provide America that we can't provide ourselves?

Because that would make to much sense where would be employing responsibility, self sufficiency and independence and away from the global banking cartels greedy mitts.

How would they make their billions and control over the masses off of slave labor in this NWO if everyone is not a player in their schemes?

reply to post by jaxnmarko


This country did quite well before a system was arranged in which we grew food to ship out and shipped in replacement food from some place else. No, we couldn't all eat fresh this and that all year. Maybe we were not meant to do so.

In terms of oil, we are set to be the number one fuel exporter by 2020. That includes oil and natural gas. The steps are being taken right now to convert to natural gas for a number of sectors previously served by other fossil fuels. We could take up an infrastructure project to move up that timeline.

The rare earth metals. On that you have a valid point. So we could enter into some trade with stuff we have in spades to places that don't but it doesn't have to be the big free trade "interdependency will end aggression' model that surfaced in Europe post WWII. I think that model is broken and I don't think some of its champions are honest about it.

Rare earth metals seem to be primarily used in electronics.
The horror of not being able to use my iphone while the country gets it's # together.
Sure there are other areas at home to extract REE's if we looked hard enough and heaven forbid didn't offshore the research expedition.

reply to post by helltick


Good Question. A couple of my opinionated and naive answers for you,,,

1. The current system of profit is based on Ownership and Intellectual Property Rights.
2. In general, the manufacturing process tends to create really difficult to deal with byproducts.
3. Cheap Labor
4. Resource Acquisition.
5. Demands of the Consumer/Population/Standard of Living.
6. Last but not least, Debt.

I understand your concerns, and have mulled over this question myself on many occasions.
The fact is, that Global Trade is Necessary and Healthy. I have come to the conclusion that some of the
current problems/difficulties are directly due to Trade Imbalances and the Lack of a Global
Human Rights Agreement. Many Countries do not have a Minimum Wage Standards nor
Global Recognized Human Rights.

These Basic Fundamentals should have been put into place
BEFORE the Free Trade Agreements were implemented. If you look at the charts, and do some
research , I am confident that your own intelligence will "paint by numbers" the True Picture.
A quick assessment of the current conditions of the Geopolitical Rats Nest /World Economy today
will confirm that the current system is in dire need of reconfiguration into a Fair Trade Agreement
System. Lastly, Global enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights is a Mess.
As well as the Patent Office. So in effect, the problem is not Global Trade itself, but the way it
is conducted.


In the old days, if you invented something, Patented/Copyrighted it, and someone tried to STEAL
your stuff without proper monetary compensation,they got their rear ends kicked into prison.
Period. This basic rule of law is proving to be more difficult to enforce on a Global Scale evidently.
At any rate, Happy New Year to You and Yours,
Wildmanimal S&F

P.S. Can you imagine the most advanced Societies of the World working Butter Churns and
Anvils rather than T.V. Remotes/ Cellphones/Internet. That would be a wake up call.

reply to post by watcher3339

Yes, but I'm not sure what time frame you mean about our earlier ability to feed ourselves, as much of the farmland is gone to strip malls, and so on. And of course, the fish stocks have been drastically depleted in many areas and types of fish so that reduces our ability to feed ourselves....... I would love to slap tariffs on China and other countries for their crappy products.... selling us baby formula and dog food with poison in it? Practically an Act of War. Prison made products sold cheap here? Not cool, not fair. Right now its below zero outside and the ability to eat strawberries is nice I kinda wish we could nationalize our oil to some extent so the American public can benefit from American resources, instead of feeding the fat cats at the top of Exxon and others...why are we still subsidizing the oil companies when the make record profits and pay no taxes? I don't like being dependent on others though, I just don't see how we can go back in time.