Outsourcing and Barack Obama

Saying No to Outsourcing - Is Barack Obama Being Short-sighted?

Obama plans to provide universal healthcare and also severely penalize companies that outsource. He has already stated that he would stop the import of all toys from China."

His anti-outsourcing sentiments are not new to Americans. Either blatantly or subtly, anti-outsourcing supporters have been fueling the flames of nationalism.

However, given the global scenario of businesses and markets today, one must realize that an anti-outsourcing stance will ultimately leave Americans far behind.

If, as Obama claims, Americans are to stop importing cheaper goods from places like India and China, and totally rely on the manufacturing facilities in the USA, it does not make the economy any stronger because effectively, Obama is asking Americans to pay much higher prices for the same goods.

An average American can now pick a pair of jeans for $12.00 because it‘s made in China or India. If it was made in the USA, it would cost not less than $500.00.

Outsourcing is not all bad for the US economy. It bridges a lot of gaps in itself. There has always been a shortage of talent in one stream or the other of the US. For instance, there is a shortage of accountants and looking at the number of students taking up accounting as an area of specialization, it‘s quite obvious that the shortage is only going to get worse.

It‘s time to accept the obvious - the business world has moved beyond protectionist policies and sentimentalism. It‘s time to accept that no nation can exist in isolation. Rather, the national and global economy stands to gain from optimizing strengths.

Outsourcing fills in the gap of not only providing talent but also increases the efficiency of the American organization.

Stopping outsourcing will only increase inflation to the extreme level. America is already battling inflation. Housing, food, and medical care jumped a 6 percent annual rate during the three-month period from December through February 07. Retail gasoline prices rose 7 percent in just two weeks, according to a March 12 report by the US Energy Information Administration.

Clearly, Obama is overlooking the after-effects of his plan. Or does he simply want to ride on the popularity of anti-outsourcing idealists for elections?

One thing is clear, stopping or curbing outsourcing will only increase the prices of goods and services even further in the USA.

Is outsourcing a conspiracy theory to steal jobs from Americans? Or does it follow a logical chain of events that can only benefit the global economy in the long run?