McLean's - American Shipper

Burying the dog’s bone elsewhereYour editorial in the March issue, “Give the dog a bone”(page 96) was outstanding and spot-on.While “globalization” may be the driving force in commercetoday, the government should be remindedthat its sponsorship of global free tradeshould be, first and foremost, to the benefitof the people of the United States.Government reliance on multinationalcorporations and a free market economyto repair the infrastructure issues of theUnited States is a poor strategy. Americanmultinational corporations recognize thatshareholder value means performance of returns in any market,not just the market of the United States. They are going to gowhere their costs are lowest and their returns are highest.The people of the United States need to consider that tocorporations “market adjustment” might mean moving themiddle class purchasing power to another region of the planetwhere the economic variance produces better overall returns.Corporations will do so by not only outsourcing jobs, but indeed,outsourcing the economy to another region with higher returnon investment. Next, the tax base erodes and everyone takes aride on the downward spiral express.The infrastructure is not strategically advantaged. Corporationsmight grouse a little about this but ultimately will be justas apathetic about the issue as our government is. However, theirambivalence will have a different raison d’être. Corporationscan simply pack up and move their economic basket somewhereelse. Somewhere easier to do business. Governments, and thecitizens they ostensibly serve, can not.If our government does not implement effective infrastructuresolutions here, we should only expect the free market to inventeffective solutions of its own — somewhere else.David FisherAkron, Ohio‘Storm in a glass of water’I appreciate your solid coverage on Dubai Ports World’sacquisition of Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co(pages 78-87 and at www.americanshipper.com/dpworld/).Regretfully this was “a storm in a glassof water” but the damage has yet to be fullymeasured.The Arab world has reason to be upsetwith the United States. Some 85 percentof terminal facilities in the United Statesare foreign owned/controlled.OOCL with significant financing fromthe People’s Republic of China, owns facilities;APL/NOL owns many of their own facilities; and MaerskVol. 48 No. 4 April 2006American Shipper is published monthly. Published on the15th of each preceding month by Howard Publications,Inc., 300 W. Adams St., Suite 600, P.O. Box 4728,Jacksonville, Florida 32201. Periodical postage paidat Jacksonville, Florida, and additional mailing offices.Subscriptions $36 per year for 12 issues; $180 for airmail. Telephone (904) 355-2601.American Shipper (ISSN) 1074-8350)POSTMASTER: Send Change of Address Form 3579to American Shipper, P.O. Box 4728, Jacksonville,Florida 32201.Printed in U.S.A.Copyright © 2006 Howard Publications, Inc.To subscribe call1 (800) 874-6422or on the Web atwww.americanshipper.comPublisherEditorialHayes H. HowardJacksonville hhoward@shippers.comChristopher Gillis, EditorWashington cgillis@shippers.comGary G. Burrows, Managing EditorJacksonville gburrows@shippers.comRobert Mottley, Feature writerNew York rmottley@shippers.comEric Kulisch, Associate EditorWashington ekulisch@shippers.comJim Dow, Associate EditorMiamijdow@shippers.comEric Johnson, Associate EditorLong Beach ejohnson@shippers.comSimon Heaney, ReporterLondon london@shippers.comFrancis Phillips, Shipping ResearchLondon fphillips@shippers.comStephen Wynn, Shipping ResearchJacksonville swynn@shippers.comJason Braddock, Graphic DesignerJacksonville jbraddock@shippers.comAdvertising Ryan Kneipper, Advertising ManagerNew York rkneipper@shippers.comDaryl Pinto, Sales & Mktg. AssociateJacksonville dpinto@shippers.comNancy B. Barry, Adv. Prod. ManagerJacksonville nbarry@shippers.comCirculation Karyl DeSousa, Kerry Cowart,Kathy HouserJacksonville circulation@shippers.comJacksonville (800) 874-6422(904) 355-2601Fax: (904) 791-8836300 W. Adams St., Suite 600P.O. Box 4728Jacksonville, FL 32201Washington (202) 347-1678Fax: (202) 783-3919National Press Bldg., Rm. 961Washington, DC 20045New York (212) 422-2420Fax: (212) 422-004761 Broadway, Suite 1603New York, N.Y. 10006London +44 (20) 8970-2623Fax: +44 (20) 8970-2625Empire HouseEmpire Way, WembleyNorth London HA9 0EW, EnglandLong Beach (949) 412-4304Fax: (626) 796-82462215 E. 2nd St., No. 1Long Beach, CA 90803Miami (954) 443-374610300 Iris CourtPembroke Pines, FL 330262 AMERICAN SHIPPER: APRIL 2006