Should We Still Make Things? A Symposium

SINCE THE 1970s, economists and sociologists have forecasted the inevitable decline of large-scale U.S. manufacturing and the birth of a post-industrial society dominated by service and high-tech economies. In his 1973 The Coming of a Post-Industrial Society, Daniel Bell observed that we are experiencing “a shift from manufacturing to services...a changeover from a goods-producing society to an information or knowledge society.” Now in the midst of a severe economic recession, two of our nation’s largest manufacturers are on the precipice of bankruptcy and many believe we should let ... More

Should We Still Make Things?

THE MARKET share of what used to be called the “Big Three” U.S. automakers has been shrinking for years. GM alone had over 50 percent of the U.S. market in the 1960s, but Ford, GM, and Chrysler together can now barely muster 40 percent. Since autumn, sales have been in free fall. GM lost $9.6 billion last quarter, and Chrysler has all but announced it is not viable without a foreign partner. Does the United States need an auto industry?

In the short term, the government should act to prevent a sudden collapse of the Detroit Three. Such a collapse could, due to interlinked supply cha... More