The Solar Industry Takes a Hit, But It’s Not Alone
As I mentioned in a post the other day, a presidential administration whose mantra is “jobs!” should not take actions whose main consequence is putting people out of work, At the time, I was referring to the tariff on solar modules and cells that, according to industry data, will mean the end of 23,000 jobs installing and integrating solar energy. Even if one sees no imperative to protect the environment, and views jobs in solar and coal as equally valid, the fact remains that solar is already a far bigger industry than coal, and that protecting coal workers while killing jobs in solar is a net negative for American workers, regardless of the lens through which it’s viewed.
Obviously, however, the discussion of job creation/destruction certainly doesn’t end with solar. Take tourism, for example, and ask yourself why this industry was down $4.6 billion in 2017 and 40,000 jobs were lost in that period of time. Could it be connected with our new attitude on foreigners? When we put a ban on Muslims from entering the country, when we propose to deport 800,000 “dreamers,” i.e., young taxpayers who grew up in America with spotless criminal records who were brought here by the undocumented parents, is it any wonder that people simply don’t want to come here?
Maybe what happened to tourism can be summarized in a hypothetical conversation that could take place in some form thousands of times a day, in places all over the world. We can all imagine a conversation between people in planning a vacation, or perhaps a business’s selecting a venue for a bonus trip for excellent job performance or an international conference. We can almost hear someone suggesting the U.S. as a destination, only to be met by something like this:
“I recommend against it. Why would you want to be in a country that’s going through some horrible identity crisis defined by bigotry, hate, and ignorance, with a racist president who’s desperately trying to stave off the Justice Department? Yes, America used to be revered for its fair-mindedness and compassion, but those days are gone–at least for now. They want foreigners to stay out; why go someplace we’re not wanted?
“Have you considered Portugal? I hear Belize is nice…..”
Craig,
What on earth have you been smoking ? I mean, I know you live in an area of California with a long history of being divorced from reality but even for you this is a little far out here.
I really hope you don’t take offense, but let’s try and get objectivity and understanding of what you’re on about by disecting your claims to see if any validity exists.
1) You claim because of Trump administration policies unemployment has risen.
Not so, in fact unemployment is at a historic low and falling, with millions of new jobs being created.
2) 23000 jobs have been lost in the Solar industry because of the introduction of a tariff against cheap imports.
Again, totally untrue ! No jobs have been lost. The figure of 23,000 is a speculation provided by importers of panels. The job losses will supposedly occur because American consumers will only buy Chinese panels and not American made, and American sales and installation people will refuse to install or sell US made products !
3) The tariff will slow sales. The tariff will raise the price of imports by about 3-6%, not really enough to stop consumer spending.
4)The President is adamant to deport 800,000 “dreamers” .
Again untrue, the President has on many occasions expressed a desire to retain the people and encourage them to become US citizens. President Trump is simply obeying the law. President Obama’s “temporary” executive order is illegal and will be overturned by the Supreme Court.
Only Congress, not the President can create legislation. Congress can end the problem today by passing legislation legalizing the dreamers the status. The President has indicated he would support and sign such legislation.
5) America used to be revered for its fair-mindedness and compassion.
Only at Disneyland or in the pages of the Readers Digest was the USA ever “revered for its fair-mindedness and compassion’ !”
Craig, I was surprised at the level of knowledgeable and objective comments in the previous thread for the President’s tariffs on cheap imports. It’s a pity you were not persuaded by the factual information contained within many of those comments.
US solar industry employment will inevitably decline as sale level off. This is true of every new industry with experiences a sales boom. As government and consumer subsidies reduces and incentives diminish the market stabilizes and employment rationalizes.
Tariff protection will provide more Solar jobs in the manufacturing sector but installation employment will inevitably restrict.
I smell ad hominem, hyperbole, and a Straw Man argument – a most foul admixture.