Protecting People and Jobs

Non-American companies would love this as it would make US products uncompetitive. The only way around this would be to put trade barriers up against Sony, Samsung, LG etc etc etc which would kill imports and retail.....

Can't work. Take an iPad, it would cost, I don't know, say, twice as much as it does now to produce so it would be uncompetitive in the rest of the world. Meanwhile Samsung sells its iPad clone in the US at high price and in the rest of the world at a much lower price - it wins.Protectionism always hurts the protected.

I still don't think you've answered why anybody would buy US products outside the US when all your global competitors will have a lower cost structure. I believe you rely somewhat on exports?

I think you've lost the plot :-)The rest of the world would tell you to go take a hike so you'd lose your cheap imports, domestic inflation caused by higher input costs would destroy the value of the $ and your products wouldn't sell outside the US so your export market would crash and your foreign competitors would steal your global markets.Welcome to stagflation, decline and splendid isolation.

Of course, do you think the world is going to change its manufacturing base just to suit the US? No chance. Europe is as big a market as the US and the economies of China, India and South America are much more important to the rest of the world than the jolly old US. I love Americans, they seem to think that the rest of the world needs to do what they want while most of them don't own a passport:-)All you can do is lead by example and get your own act in order - trade barriers don't work. I admire the ideal, but international trade isn't high on moral messages, sadly.

Surely Americans of all people understand the need for free trade and free markets? Protectionism isn't supposed to be in your genes. (Except when it's expedient of course). On the other hand maybe you're discovering conscience, liberalism and the plural society?What next, free health care? (If so, I'll come visit.)All that aside, have you read 'No Logo'?

Ah, that's what you say before you get it. After that, it's not communism, socialised or even free - it's just available.

Don't be downhearted, you guys invented endless coffee refills in restaurants - that's much, much harder. (Well at least we think so.)You'll definately get round to it - so long as you keep electing sane presidents.