Japanese motorcycles hate

[Cormanus]

Cormanus, all good points. I wonder how one distinguishes the disappearance of the U.K. motorcycle industry in the mid-70's with the disappearance of the Australian auto industry in more contemporary times. In the first case, I reckon the Japanese beat the Brits at their own game. In the second case, was it simply the consequences of free trade economics?

Good questions, LongRanger. I suspect economics and product quality played a part in the decline of the British motorcycle industry. Cost would have wiped the Australian automobile manufacturing industry out years ago, were it not for some tariff protection.

So, in both cases, economic factors are probably to the fore.

I don't have a lot of answers, but I'd say it has more to do with technology than free trade. Honda does a great and efficient job of making motorcycles and cars. Doesn't matter if they do it in Hamamatsu or Marysville.

Here in the states, the assets of the bankrupt Hostess bakery company were bought and the company restarted under private management. (A lot of Americans were glad to have their Twinkies back!) Only this time, instead of 14 plants and 9,000 workers, they totally revamped the process and have 3 plants and 500 workers. They produce more product and sell it at more locations.

The thing to figure out is how to help low and middle skilled workers deal with the rise of highly efficient capital utilization without getting run over. That's a tough nut to crack and it's very tempting to blame "those guys over there."

/econtalk

I think you're right, DAC, but I also think public policy makers may also need to ponder national capability. If you end up isolated at the bottom of the world after some lunatic leader somewhere else in the world, over whom you have no control, unleashes a cataclysm, it might be as well to know how to do stuff like make a car or farm the land or any one of the things one may need to be able to do.

As for the low and middle skilled workers, another form of employment is the only answer. No employment equals alienation from the rest of society which leads to discontent and unrest and jealousy and heaven knows what else. As you say, it's a tough nut to crack when every one with capital wants to utilise it more efficiently which almost always means being shot of the wages bill.

Sadly, I have no solutions either.