Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels May view this as a victory for workers in his state, but Caterpillar’s decision to relocate to the Hoosier state is evidence not of economic strength but of America’s descent to third world economic status.
That’s because Caterpillar is closing a union plant in favor of a new low-wage haven, something Americans are all too familiar with. It wasn’t all that long ago that American plants were closing and moving to Mexico, South America and other developing nations, as corporations sought the cheapest labor.
It was a race to the bottom that damaged the standard of living here without any measurable improvement in these factories’ new homes. Fast forward to 2012, and it is the United States that finds itself as a low-wage haven — and none of us should be happy about that.
Hank Kalet 