ROUND AND ROUND ON OUTSOURCING AND GLOBALIZATION. Econ Log points to two policy papers, by Brink Lindsey and Dan Drezner, both suggesting that the sky is noit falling; indeed, some people really ought to take a deep breath. Professor Drezner:

It is also worth remembering that many predictions come from management consultants who are eager to push the latest business fad. Many of these consulting firms are themselves reaping commissions from outsourcing contracts. Much of the perceived boom in outsourcing stems from companies' eagerness to latch onto the latest management trends; like Dell and Lehman, many will partially reverse course once the hidden costs of offshore outsourcing become apparent.

There is already a comment and rejoinder on Professor Drezner's site. Sean at The American Mind offers additional links, including one that suggests the principle of comparative advantage is not dead. (Of course not, marginal costs can be compared, and either they are all the same, or they are different. If they are different, the lowest among them is the comparative advantage provided some regularity conditions hold. Weierstrass I'm not, but this argument I can make.)

The intellectual arguments are not sufficient to convince everybody, however. The people of Reading, Pennsylvania, are discovering tradeoffs: "''We've enjoyed the fruits of cheap labor for so long that we want it both ways: We want good jobs and good wages, and we want everything cheap." This is doable, if the technology is right and the people can work with it. The people of Bangalore, India get it. (Read and understand the article. Those of you who complain about 500 applications for one temporary lectureship in a community college may have a point, but the article reinforces this lesson about failures to balance production and consumption of some kinds of degree.)

There remains, however, the expectation of another way. In my mail today was an announcement of a presentation by Professor John French, the director of the Duke Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Here's what's on offer.

In late 2002, Luis Inacio Lula da Sliva became President of Brazil ... Lula's rise was possible only after the Brazilian people fought to end the military dictatorship supported by the United States ... Lula was born in poverty, and his current government is searching for alternatives to U.S. strategies of "globalization" that have increased rather than decreased poverty. The rise of the Brazilian Workers Party, which was built with a base of militant workers, socialists, and adherents to "Liberation Theology" eventually captured the hopes and dreams of the citizenry of Brazil, who hope indeed for a new world with a new agenda that eliminates poverty and desperation.

In twenty years, would you rather live in Bangalore or in Rio? Developing ...