Wednesday, June 23, 2010

The Jones Act and Its Visible Victims

"The bottom line lesson is nothing good can come from trade restrictions except windfall gains by a small group of beneficiaries, shipping companies and their unions that come at the expense of a much larger number of people -- customers who ship and passengers who travel. The only good news is that the Gulf disaster is making the victims of such restrictions (like the Jones Act) visible."

~Walter E. Williams

7 Comments:

At 6/23/2010 8:11 AM, Blogger juandos said...

The Jones act is also hurting consumers in Hawaii but apparently its not a problem for Sen. Inouye and some of his fellow Democrats...

 
At 6/23/2010 11:32 AM, Anonymous Chris K. said...

People love to talk about how trade restrictions (especially with China) will benefit the US. You prevent a very good argument to the contrary.

 
At 6/23/2010 5:49 PM, Blogger sethstorm said...

Except for the fact that the Jones Act does not prevent a compliant entity from performing the deed. Sell the gear and instruct the US firm on how to best operate it. You could even generate some work that way to help those directly and visibly affected.

It just shows that they are unwilling to comply with the act.

A far larger group benefits from the Jones Act:
All US Citizens

 
At 6/23/2010 5:51 PM, Anonymous Titus Pullo said...

One of these things I am going to have to read Tom Paine.

 
At 6/23/2010 6:02 PM, Anonymous American Delight said...

Right, the customers who ship, the passengers who travel, the men who fish, the restaurants, the hotels, the oil workers, et al are all victims of a slow clean-up that could've been faster if the Jones Act didn't prevent foreign help.

 
At 6/24/2010 7:57 AM, Blogger juandos said...

Oh yeah! socialistseth knows what's happening...

More fallout due to Presidential incompetence:

Oil Spill Unravels The Future Of Net Making In Gulf

 
At 6/24/2010 8:22 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Sell the gear and instruct the US firm on how to best operate it. "

As I understand it, it's not a matter of ownership. It's a matter of where the gear was manufactured. A vessel manufactured in China, no matter who owns it now, is not eligible for work that is subject to the Jones Act.

 

Post a Comment

<< Home