« No Task too Large or Small | Main | Bubblicious» Russell Roberts
April 21, 2005
Pedronomics
Russell Roberts
The US has negotiated a so-called free trade agreement called DR-CAFTA with six nations, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Nicaragua. It's a pretty good agreement in that it moves these nations toward more open trade. Unfortunately, it's not really a free trade agreement because it maintains restrictions on US imports of sugar, making trivial changes in the amount these nations can export to the US. But overall, it's a step in the right direction. Ratification of the agreement is up in the air both here and abroad as fears of the impact of trade are fanned by those with a financial stake in the matter.
I was recently in Costa Rica to talk to people about trade issues and encountered the exact same fears that Americans have about trade. It's a little embarassing to be in a country that is dramatically poorer than the US and have to admit that some people in the US are afraid of CAFTA, too. It's also just a little weird to have two partners in a trade agreement both worried that they are going to have jobs stolen from the other side. They both can't be right.
I was telling my kids about this and they wanted to know why Americans are afraid of trading with poor countries. I explained that while trade would be good for America and good for those countries we trade with, not every American would benefit. If we had real free trade, sugar workers here in the US would probably lose their jobs. They'd have to find something else to do. And that scares them. So they fight free trade.
I said it's like when African-Americans weren't allowed to play major league baseball. A lot of white players liked that because otherwise they wouldn't have had jobs.
This explanation produced a reaction of shock and dismay from my seven year old son. "But it would be good for the team to have better player. Like Willie Mays!" That's right, I agreed. And then he looked me in the eye and said, "And it's not nice."
That a pretty good way to sum it up. It's not nice to keep out Costa Rican sugar.
BTW, coming into this season, there were 385 baseball players from the Dominican Republic who have played in major league baseball, including Pedro Martinez, Sammy Sosa, Manny Ramirez, Vladimir Guerrero, Albert Pujols and Miguel Tejada. Those imports have certainly displaced some native players, players who have turned to other careers. But trade in baseball, as in everything else, surely enriches our lives in ways beyond the monetary.
Posted by Russell Roberts in Sports, Trade | Permalink
TrackBack
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d834518ccc69e200d83423554953ef
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Pedronomics:
» Free trade: the next killer of baby seals... from Stalinist Orange
While at Reed I found a lot of support for "fair trade," which essentially opposed all trade agreements, saying that free trade destroys America's jobs and alienates workers abroad.
Simply put, there is no right to a job. Jobs arise from protectin... [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 22, 2005 2:19:29 AM
» Friday's Daily News from The Club for Growth Blog
DeMint Wants Bush to Act on Social Security - Human Events The Case For Flat Taxes - The Economist Taxed to Death - Roger Bate, Tech Central Station The Lowdown on High Taxes - Mike Rosen, RMN The Democratic Benefits... [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 22, 2005 10:20:33 AM
» Let's Give Them Something To Think About from Funmurphys: the Blog
The ChicagoBoyz take on reproductive freedom and marvel at the attempt in Illinois to restrict ultrasound so that pregnant women can't get an ultrasound without a doctor's permission because it's an effective tool in persuading women not to have an... [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 22, 2005 2:22:45 PM
» Trade Agreements and the Demographics of Voting Habits from Eloquence
For a few good thoughts on trade agreements in the Americas, Russel Roberts discusses CAFTA here, here and here. [Read More]
Tracked on Jun 10, 2005 6:56:34 PM
» Number Of Older Meth Addicts Booms from effects worsen
but those effects can hit baby boomers harder than younger addicts. It also [Read More]
Tracked on Mar 30, 2006 7:59:39 AM
» MP3 Downloads, Full Albums, Latest Hits, MP3 Search from Global Media Search Engine
Big Mp3 Archive, Mp3 Search, Mp3 Albums, Mp3 Songs, Mp3 Software, Mp3 Traffic Exchange, Advertising... [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 5, 2006 3:58:25 PM
» Crane Adds New Muscle to Warhammer Military Miniature Maker, Games Workshop from is the philosophy
tabletop war gaming and the makers of Warhammer. They have made a major investment in a new moulding workshop, including a [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 5, 2006 7:57:07 PM
» Auto Search: 1937 chevrolet vin number from Online Auto Guise
Search and Compare Certified Pre-Owned Cars. Car Shopping Tools and Advice · 2006 Auto Shows · New York Auto Show Check out 2007 models and cool concepts ... [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 27, 2006 6:49:45 PM
» SmartPhone Today: Motorola i930 from Smartphone Reviews; Best SmartPhones
The Internet's 3rd Party information center for SmartPhone Shareware, SmartPhone Freeware, Reviews, Hardware, Discussion, and more! Updated Daily... [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 30, 2006 1:04:21 PM
» National Day of Action for Immigrant Justice - Houston Updates from to build a better
Contengent at March for Immigrant Justice ". Most of these folks are here to work, to build a better life, and they want to carry the anti-capitalist [Read More]
Tracked on May 1, 2006 4:58:25 PM
» Calkins: Win Tonight is Crucial for Griz's Future from Not even the
win I've ever had in Memphis. Not even the first win that first year, when we started 0-8, would be anything [Read More]
Tracked on May 20, 2006 12:07:06 AM
» All services on the Internet from Internet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
All services on the Internet make use of defined application protocols. ... Similar to how the commercial Internet providers connect via Internet exchange ... [Read More]
Tracked on May 20, 2006 5:05:51 AM
» Wizards Get Tough, Muscle LeBron to Tie Series from coincidence that
not only stopped him from sashaying to the basket for an easy hoop, but turned his face into a mask of momentary anger and [Read More]
Tracked on May 21, 2006 8:44:53 AM
» Dictionary Search Page from Dictionary Search
An unabridged dictionary from aalii to zymurgy, including a pronunciation guide... [Read More]
Tracked on May 22, 2006 2:48:57 AM
» New Study Finds Botox Effective Treatment for Depression from the eyes) were
who were treated with Botulinum toxin A, commonly known as Botox, for glabellar frown [Read More]
Tracked on May 23, 2006 2:55:17 PM
» Job Growth Expected to Continue from Rate Is Expected
Rate Is Expected to Hold at 4.8 Percent With About 187,000 New New Jobs Created [Read More]
Tracked on May 27, 2006 3:20:47 AM
» Tornadostream, LLC Releases myBlogTunes Beta Version from web site via
online radio stations and post them on their own blog or web site via the myBlogTunes player. (PRWEB [Read More]
Tracked on May 29, 2006 6:40:31 AM
» Iraq Swears in 3 Key Security Ministers from Parliament Approves
Parliament Approves and Swears in 3 Key Security Ministers to End Impase [Read More]
Tracked on Jun 9, 2006 6:05:55 AM
» Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines Receives Award for Their Geology Ontario and CLAIMaps Applications from for disseminating
in recognition of creating a GIS-based application for disseminating Ontario's geology and mining [Read More]
Tracked on Jun 15, 2006 1:33:36 PM
» loan mortgage
from equity home loan rate
Loans Home Equity Loans - Home Mortgage Student Loans [Read More]
Tracked on Jun 18, 2006 8:29:44 PM
