"Ed Huntress" wrote:

John Carroll has some thoughts on countertrade. My own thought is that it's
another example of the trap you get yourself into when you try to be the
leader on promoting "free" trade, when world trade is anything but.

I agree with you, I believe that the 'free trade' agenda needs to be turned into a fair
trade agenda. If another countries environmental and worker safety rules do not line up
with ours then a tariff should be imposed.

Now placing a cost for our regulations in calculating the tariffs, that could contentious,
I'm not sure if policy makers would want to actually cost out our regulations.

I believe we have been getting rolled for years. Consider South Korea and how they change
their regulations to keep American cars out of their country for an example.

Wes