Blog 12: Response to "Why the Rich Are Getting Richer and the Poor, Poorer:"

In “Why the Rich Are Getting Richer and the Poor, Poorer,” by Robert B. Reich he speaks of three different classes of workers; the routine producer, the in-person server, and the symbolic analysts. He then goes into a detailed discussion about each class. But, I am only going to elaborate on the routine producer, so everyone can get a detailed look into their hardships. Reich states the routine producer get paid very little wages to do most of the “dirty” jobs in a society. He also states that in the future, these types of workers will succumb to extreme hardships because of the outsourcing of their job capabilities as well as new and improved technology taking over their job positions. Reich links this class to the class that would be most like factory workers in today’s society.

Because of all the outsourcing and new technologies theses workers will be put out of jobs and this will catalyst the rest of the economy into a downward spiral which they can only get out of if they stop outsourcing. The routine producer, at one time were the people who were paid relatively well and considered the higher of the middle class. Now-a-days, factory workers (same as routine producers) are paid the bare minimum just so they can get by from week to week on their pathetic paychecks. “The consequence,” Reich states, “is clearest in older, heavy industries, where high-volume, standardized production continues its ineluctable move to where labor is cheapest and most accessible around the world. This quote is the key as to why America out-sources; for mass production to flourish, because in out-sourcing conditions we are getting large amounts of products made very cheaply (not to mention inadequately) so that way we have more to sell for a higher price than its cost of manufacturing, so hence, these greedy American CEO’s are making a large profit. But for what, is it really worth demolishing the whole middle class to rags and then letting the economy fall with them just for a profit?

Let’s take the automotive industry for example, In Detroit especially, the automotive industries are the life line to the economy, and as of right now that life line is looking more and more grim; it is dying. “The Big Three,” which would be Chrysler, Ford and GM are all out-sourcing their jobs to foreign countries, such as China and Japan. Why are they doing this you ask? For the same reasons Reich explained earlier, for their products to be made in mass amounts for cheaper wages to pay the makers, than if we had kept those cars in America and had to pay the workers more. This way the car companies can make more of a certain product and sell them as the demand heightens. Although is the demand going to heighten, probably not considering out-sourcing creates, what I like to call, the “trickle affect…” The trickle affect happens when the auto workers are being laid off or fired just because there is no work for them (because it all is going over sees), then since they have just endured a HUGE pay cut, they can no longer afford to eat out as much- so the restaurant industry starts to go under. Among restaurants, people can no longer afford to buy all these new cars that are being made by the thousands- so the car dealerships start to go under, and so on. Basically just from out-sourcing cars the whole entire economy had suffered.

So again, I ask are the hardships automotive employees suffer from, hence creating a downward spiraling economy worth the profit; so the CEO’s, owners, and presidents can get more rich while the rest of the nation get more and more poor by the day? I do not think so. I agree with Reich with all the predictions he made. His predictions may not be identical to how the industries are today, but they are very similar. Hence, because of this, Americans need to step up and speak up to put a stop to not only out-sourcing, but to put a stop to this robbery of their money to feed the wealthy. Since when did it become okay to steal from the poor and give to the already rich? What America needs is a modern day Robin Hood.

Reich, Robert B. "Why the Rich Are Getting Richer and the Poor, Poorer." From "The Works of Nations." A World of Ideas: Essential Readings for College Writers. Ed. Lee A. Jacobus. Trans. Stephen Mitchell. 7th ed. New York: Bedford/ St. Martin's, 2006. pp 417-435.