follow suit, especially in this period of economic uncertainty, is fairly high.  As a leader of the world economy, this is a dangerous precedent for the U.S. to set. Saturday, August 28, 2010 I have put up a few posts on the loss of US manufacturing, many of which claimed it was to the detriment of the US. However, I meant to explore ideas, not endorse a position, though there were those who objected to even raising the issue and asking these questions. My inclination is toward open borders coupled with more social support -- much more than we have presently -- for those who are on the losing end of international reallocations (yeah, I know, fire away in comments...). I also believe that the degree to which you create the proper foundation through education, infrastructure, etc. influences the nature of those reallocations. In any case, I want to let Jagdish Bhagwati push pack a bit in the other direction: The Manufacturing Fallacy, by Jagdish Bhagwati, Commentary, Project Syndicate : Economists long ago put to rest the error that Adam Smith made when he argued that manufacturing should be given primacy in a country's economy. Indeed, in Book II of The Wealth of Nations, Smith condemned as unproductive the labors of "churchmen, lawyers, physicians, men of letters of all kinds; players, buffoons, musicians, opera-singers, opera-dancers, etc." We may agree with Smith (and Shakespeare) about the uselessness of lawyers perhaps, but surely not about Olivier, Falstaff, and Pavarotti. But the manufacturing