First off, most leaders of the left wing imagine a future where scarcity is the norm, largely because they see the consumption of natural resources by the West as unethical in a larger world view. In their eyes, Americans already have "too much" and therefor should have to make due with less. This faux-conservatism, coupled with the right wing's stupid devotion to "free trade", is the underlying cause of this current economic crisis.
America's economy isn't screwed up due to "free trade" nor due to leftarded concerns over consumption. It is a recession. If you haven't noticed in the history of our country we have been in and out of dozens of these. The economy goes up sometimes and down others, it always has, it always will. Yes, manufacturing will die off more and more. This isn't a problem, we are just becoming more and more of a service based economy.
Globalization doesn't mean that one nation will win and the other will lose, assuming that it does means you are making the same economic mistake that people have made since the days of Adam Smith, namely believing trade to be a zero sum game. If I buy a $30 table from China, it doesn't mean the Chinese economy gains $30 while the US economy loses $30, it means I gain a table I value more than my $30 dollars while the Chinese table maker gains $30 which they value more than their table. Both of us have gained something more valuable to us. The $30 wasn't lost value. Money is just a token of value, it isn't the inherent source of it. Money is just an easy way to exchange value for goods and services. It also isn't like the Chinese table maker will eat the $30, they will likely use it to buy stuff (labor, supplies, investments, etc.) and at some point there will be something the US makes that will be exchanged, and even if there isn't something every country is best at, comparative advantage will eventually work it's way in over time.
