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Path: utzoo!yetti!geac!daveb
From: daveb@geac.UUCP
Newsgroups: can.politics
Subject: Re: "free" trade
Message-ID: <1684@geac.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 26-Oct-87 08:29:21 EST
Article-I.D.: geac.1684
Posted: Mon Oct 26 08:29:21 1987
Date-Received: Tue, 27-Oct-87 06:56:04 EST
References: <171@bby-bc.UUCP> <1072@looking.UUCP>
Reply-To: daveb@geac.UUCP (Dave Collier-Brown)
Distribution: can
Organization: The little blue rock next to that twinkly star.
Lines: 23

In article <1072@looking.UUCP> brad@looking.UUCP (Brad Templeton) writes:
>Here I will agree.  This agreement is not an ideal agreement.
>And you're right -- so long as we aren't faced with predatory subsidizing
>policies in a foreign country, we should unilaterally drop all incoming
>trade barriers.

  Agreed.  
  I suspect the "free trade agreement" is really a classical piece
of politics: an agreement to unilaterally lower our trade barriers
in return for a written commitment by the US administration to try
to reduce trade barriers.  It is admitted that the administration
does not have the power to do so itself.
  This is much like an ambassador signing a treaty: his government
can still disavow it, but they risk approbation and ridicule if they
do.

  --dave (could we have free trade with everyone please? ...
	  phased in over 20 years or so) collier-brown
-- 
 David Collier-Brown.                 {mnetor|yetti|utgpu}!geac!daveb
 Geac Computers International Inc.,   |  Computer Science loses its
 350 Steelcase Road,Markham, Ontario, |  memory (if not its mind)
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