2016/11/14 Knowledge Forum
Thread: Adam Smith “The Wealth of Nations”
Book 4 Chapter 2 “Restraints On Particular Imports”
The full title of this chapter is:
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Of Restraints Upon the Importation from Foreign Countries of Such Goods as Can be Produced at Home
End Quotation.
On this day in 2016, the United States is facing squarely a possible confrontation with the very subject to which Mr. Smith devotes his attention in this chapter. The electorate has chosen, by a slim margin of electoral college votes, a person who has called for massive tariffs on certain goods imported from foreign countries.
In this chapter, Mr. Smith argues that this is a bad idea.
However, the electorate which has spoken massively appears to be objecting to decades of operation of the Capitalist System, which has increased global wealth significantly, but which has delivered body blows to millions of workers in the United States, by reducing or eliminating their ability to provide income for their families.
On page 482, Mr. Smith asserts:
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Every individual is continually exerting himself to find out the most advantageous employment for whatever capital he can command.
End Quotation.
My observation is that in the economy of the United States of 2016, it is rare for an individual to live at all, let alone comfortably, on his (or her) individual efforts. Instead, it appears to me, that almost everyone is dependent upon others for daily bread, let alone the luxuries which so many of us take for granted, such as clean water, breathable air, ample supplies of power, comfortable housing and nourishing food.
In this situation, where the ability to interact successfully with others is critical, and where trust must be freely exchanged between individuals, it seems to me that many persons are prevented from achieving “the most advantageous employment” of whatever his or her capabilities may be.
Mr. Smith does not appear to address the issue at hand in the United States in 2016, in the present chapter aside from his objection to the restraint of particular imports. As I see it, the nature of work has changed so dramatically in recent years, and the need for workers has dropped as automation has assumed an increasing share of the load for simple tasks, so that millions of formerly productive individuals are left with only limited opportunities for lower skill employment, or none at all.
In this context, Mr. Smith's vision of an individual endeavoring to employ his or her capital to the greatest possible advantage seems to me to describe a cruel hoax for millions, who have limited knowledge of the present economy, or personal connections to facilitate group achievement.
Where I hope to end up over the course of these weekly ruminations is with a conclusion that the economy of the planet Earth of 2016 can support a class of distant communities with digital communications reflecting the greater variety of capability of the larger population, while at the same time providing a large and ready market for digital communications from the smaller populations, who may yet offer insights or achievements not occurring elsewhere.
(th)