Via DailyKos, I came across this ad, in the current Arkansas Senatorial Primary race. Bill Halter is a Democratic challenger to the sitting Democratic Senator, Blanche Lincoln. The ad is technically sponsored by the Arkansas Chamber of Congress, not Blanche Lincoln’s campaign.
You thought it was dead, didn’t you? Nope, the “our jobs are going to India” bogie is also still alive and well in American politics.
According to Kos, the backstory is that Halter was once on the Board of Directors of a firm called WebMethods Inc., which had opened an office in Bangalore some years ago, though there’s no evidence that the opening of that office actually cost any American jobs. This type of ad is a bad precedent, since it basically puts anyone who has run a high-tech company or a financial services company at risk of attack.
The ad is also clearly a form of “race-baiting” — a cousin of the nasty kind of racial attack ad that would prominently feature some sort of threatening black person (sometimes a criminal) to scare white voters. But apparently it’s not Willie Horton with which these folks are trying to scare people in Arkansas, it’s smiling middle-class people in Bangalore!
Here’s Bill Halter’s website.
Yes, thank you Bill Halter. You are the reason we Indians have food to eat.
Nods head excitedly
None of those brownies looked authentic Indian. Who took our acting jobs?!
“This type of ad is a bad precedent, since it basically puts anyone who has run a high-tech company or a financial services company at risk of attack.”
Way beyond that: several law firms have outsourced their document management to India; the lawyers work 9am-9pm U.S. time, then the documents can be fixed as the lawyers directed while the lawyers sleep. Now anyone who has been a partner in such a firm and then runs for office — and “lawyer” is still the most common prior occupation on Capitol Hill — is a potential target of such ads. “As a partner at Dewey Cheetam & Howe, my opponent made his profits on the backs of Arkansas families that needed the jobs he sent to India.” (Any law firm partner is making his real profits on the backs of well-paid associates — costs get billed to clients and outsourcing is just a way to demonstrate to clients that you’re SUPER committed to minimizing costs for them — but anyway.)
I suppose at the point that practically everyone who’s done any work in the private sector is “guilty” of globalization, it will cease to be a useful fact to bring up in campaigns.
I think the issue would be near death if it weren’t for the recession and the resulting unemployment issues. Compared to 10 years ago, I think people here in America have largely come to realize that outsourcing is part of doing business. While they are still a little disturbed by what they see as the exportation of jobs, they are more uncomfortable with having to pay more for goods and services in order to keep those jobs here. When unemployment doubles in a year, however, these dormant issues are awakened, and our idiot politicians are always looking for a nerve to pinch.
Ads like this make me feel ashamed to be from this area (southern Missouri). People here say a lot of things they wouldn’t say if they knew what it was like to live/work somewhere else.
to quote south park: “they took our jobbbbbs”
As someone from Bangalore, I have just one thing to say – ‘Who the h*** is Bill Halter??’. Lame -ass cheap politics.
Working class, blue-collar Democrats are among the most racist people I have ever met. Unlike the rednecks, I have run into more of these people since they live in the cities.
I think this is called race baiting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ry9LnAazwMg
These bullies have no sense of irony. When there is so much the US imports from China – haven’t these guys looked at the Made in China mark? The US Chamber of Commerce has never raised any fuss as its members hollowed out US manufacturing over the last 15 years. HArd to understand why no one talks about jobs being shipped off to Beijing!
This is unrelated, but I feel like there should be a post on this website about Arizona’s new immigration law. It will clearly affect people of South Asian descent who live in or visit the state.
Are these American actors or were these actors outsourced from India?
I dont know how these Indian Americans could be proud of being the poster people for hate towards Indians. The other thing could be that this ad was filmed in India and these actors had no idea what they were talking about, which I personally would love the irony of it all.
Oh no they didn’t! Not that surprising considering what happened in Arizona.
None of the Bangaloreans were shown in a professional job setting – more like crowded third world streets, or simple home setting with laundry in the background and women in house gowns & large family, with dogs barking in the background. Not only are the “AMERICAN” jobs are going to India, but those Indians are unprofessional grubby third worlders with large families. Quality questionable. Alien to Americans in more than geographic distance. American jobs are not shown going to professional peers in India, but the Indians who are only the undeserving poor who got it because they work for cheap.
HArd to understand why no one talks about jobs being shipped off to Beijing!
one explanation is that media and policy elites are much more likely to have people in their social circle adversely impacted by export of service sector jobs to india. less the call centers than outsourcing accountancy, basic legal document checking, software engineering, etc. by contrast, blue-collar workers who have been impacted by chinese manufacturing have no such social contacts, and anyway the story is not particularly salient anymore, as that sector has been battered by productivity gains and international trade which has marginalized labor for nearly two generations now. the outsourcing to india affects far fewer (even taking into account lower level call center jobs), but they’re much more likely to have connections to america’s upper middle class than those further decimated by chinese labor competition, and the storyline is novel and alarming.
(though do remember that because of gains to manufacturing productivity, america actually is producing more, not less, than it did in the past)
Hi,
It seems merely silly to deny that jobs whch would have been done in the US in 1970 or even 1985 are now being done in India. This will probably continue and even intensify in the near future.
Let’s face it, it is still easier and cheaper to hire a highly educated Indian to do many of the jobs in US corporate IT than it is to find and pay a similarly qualified American.
Now the long term answer to this would be to upgrade the US educational system, develop advanced materials science, new electricity generation techniques, robotics, biotech, pharmaceuticals, etc here in the US. This is hard, not easy. So the people who run the US, and gave us the 2008 meltdown, don’t think that way. They think not of fechnical development and social development, but instead merely of making money. After all, the economists in the colleges teach that if you make money, that money will be converted into development pretty much without conscious thought.
The leaders of the US aren’t interested in consciously adapting the US economy to future treands, or making sure that US workforce has high end skills to justify high wages, etc. It is, how do I say it, not shocking that many 40 year old software engineers don’t like the Indians who are their immediate competition.
Ray,
Because Chinese are not the “other”? Chinese are very integrated into the America what with every other male in this country wanting to marry a China girl.
At least there are many people who see this ad for what it is:
http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/2010/04/who_is.aspx http://tolbertreport.com/2010/04/30/video-worst-anti-billhalter-ad-yet-arsen/ http://www.blakesthinktank.com/2010/04/30/arsenate-words-cannot-describe/ http://talkbusiness.net/article/ANTI-HALTER-AD-PLAYS-ON-STEREOTYPES-FOREIGN-FEARS/252/
Wasn’t the West always talking about free trade and trying to get China and India to open up their economies, as well as other countries? Did they think the flow would be only one way in free trade world? What is also egregious about this ad is that there is no evidence that “American” jobs were lost to India. Do industries and companies flow from country to country – yes. Even if in this case “American” jobs did go to Bangalore as I mentioned – the ad itself was pretty racists and derogatory. You can talk about jobs going out of a country without being a prejudiced jerk.
Corporations are multinational. What are “American” jobs? or “American” companies? A foreign brand could have plants in the US. A US brand could have plants in other countries.
The Dailyshow did a funny segment with a company that shifted its manufacturing from China BACK to the US: http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-april-22-2010/wham-o-moves-to-america
Plus It is not like American companies in turn have not benefited greatly with trade with India: http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/statistics/product/enduse/exports/c5330.html
http://www.wheelsunplugged.com/ViewNews.aspx?newsid=6404
How about this one…?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMvZQsSRgG4
I can accept that. Dems are traditionally the most labor-protectionist of the 2, and hateful rhetoric goes hand in hand with protectionism. Repubs only care about more bang for their buck. They’re hateful on the non-secular front.
That Borat effect happens all too often. These folks were probably told they were being filmed for a documentary, if that.
Re: China. We can’t step to China, at least not openly. India is the “safe” place for xenophobia. (That many Indians in the US are muslim only adds to the xenophobic appeal.) And since the average American doesn’t really know much about geography, “India” means all of SE Asia. Thus, SK’s comment is very on-point.
Democrats being racist….. no, it couldn’t be!
I’ve got news for you folks. Democrats are, and always have been, a party with a collectivist mindset. Racism is simply the next level up, which explains why virtually every race-related movement in this country has been tied to the Democrats. Once, it was Democrat whites against Republicans and blacks, now Democrats have sneakily taken the mantle of anti-racists, while sponsoring blatantly racist legislation like affirmative action. There can be no post-racial society if racism is encouraged (no matter in which direction) by the largest political party in the United States.
Flippant rhetoric. Ignoring race creates even bigger problems, particularly in a country where such things as African slavery, Anti-Coolie act, Chinese Exclusion Act, Jim Crow laws, Racial Integrity Act of 1924, etc are a matter of manifest social engineering. Let’s just sweep it all under the rug and pretend it never happened, yes!
Why is anyone still humping that “post-racial” pipe dream? Until there is one race, there is never going to be post-racial anything.
Congress should create a special visa which would allow any english professor from any country in the world to apply for jobs with American universities.
Define “many.” I’d say “a few.”
No, for Americans, SE Asia means Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos. We don’t even look like them, so nobody confuses “India” with SE Asia!
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blockquote>Why is anyone still humping that “post-racial” pipe dream? Until there is one race, there is never going to be post-racial anything.
well, considering the only non-genocidal way to achieve one race status is via global interracial intercourse, why are you scolding those “still humping”?
well, considering the only non-genocidal way to achieve one race status is via global interracial intercourse, why are you scolding those “still humping”?
Was it just me, or did anyone else, at first, read “While Americans” to say “White Americans”? When it comes to race-baiting political ads, it’s hard to be too cynical.
You give Americans (of all ethnicities) far too much credit; I’ve seen South Asians refer to themselves as SE Asian on this blog, which is far more egregious to me than non-Asians misusing the designation. The term “South East Asian” is better known than “South Asian”.
Ray@15,
What you are saying is that Americans need to become more nerdy, more geeky, because those are the jobs that will still be in the US. But everybody is not good at math or at academics in general. What of those people?
Too funny, but I believe you!! 🙂
Hey! The Scythian Euro Asian Identity among South Asians is legit, and has nothing to do with racism if that’s what you’re implying…just like the Confederacy.
My serious bad- the “E” and “W” are too close for my fat fingers. South West Asia is all one vague “brown” area to most Americans. Hell, anything east of Turkey and West of Burma is one big country. Kinda like how Africa is the “country” where African Americans originated.
Re: Shilpa’s tuttiness to my Muslim remark- I’m probably way too immersed in the Texas Ismaili Gujju population, but you’re correct regarding the national scene. However, back to the average American’s misconceptions: Pak and Bangla folk are lumped together with Indian…most of them are indeed muslim…therefore if you’re that kinda brown (as opposed to the other kind- latino), you’re perceived as Muslim (esp if visibly Sikh).
the commercial wasn’t so bad – it is a legitimate issue to raise, and no it does not make the Indians look buffoonish, cartoonishly nasty, threatening, or anything else – three pretty attractive and well spoken Indians without overdone accents. I think, in fact, they went out of their way to make sure they were NOT looked at as racist, which, to me, is good to see. To call it race baiting is to purposely be overly sensitive and to trivialize such ads as the Willie Horton ad.
Darth Paul, I’m not trying to be difficult, but–really? You really think Americans confuse Iraq/Iran and India? Not my experience, even one time, and I’ve been here for nearly two years. India is Gandhi/yoga/grad students. Iraq/Iran is crazies, rugs and oil. In the minds of the Americans I interact with, at least.
yes, everyone knows Archie Bunker in real life is a democrat, and if they didn’t know, this woman certainly reminded them.
LOL! The snake charming music adds a nice touch……..
The upside of this advt. is that Americans of Indian origin are engaged in the electoral process (note that the Bangaloreans in the ad all speak with an American accent), although the cynical side of me says these are paid professionals. Negative advertising has been shown to be effective in competitive elections so there is nothing out of the ordinary in this type of campaign, except as desis we may have an emotional reaction. The facts are that most voters do not even understand the difference between offshoring and outsourcing and that very few of the lost jobs in the US are attributable to offshoring. The ultimate irony (and a news item the other party may choose to use) is this news item on the creation of jobs in Arkansas by an Indian company; the link is here: http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9FFJ1EO1.htm . The reality is that in the next 25 years much of the economic growth is going to be in countries like India and China and the more integrated Americans are in the world labor market, the better off they will be. Americans should actually try and learn Kannada and Mandarin and look for jobs in places like Bangalore and Beijing if they want to get ahead.
Svaha, All fine and dandy. But no one in India who moves to Bangalore learns Kannada, so Americans are least likely to learn it if they were to move there in any sizable number. So there you have one more impact of the ‘world labor market’ that you proclaim.
While the Dalits in India are building a temple to the English Goddess, the elites in India already have her ensconsced in their hearts and minds!
Some fact check from the site.
Is there any company with a fat IT budget that hasn’t outsourced its operations? Exceptions – sure but it would be as stupid as working on your car when you can get the oil change for cheap outside.
I’ve never seen that happen, but I have to agree with Anna’s comment at #30. I was in a restaurant with a friend once and she pointed to a map on the cover of the menu and said, “That’s India, I presume.”
It was one of the first times in my life my jaw literally dropped open. It was a map of Bangladesh. My friend (who has two degrees and is in her 20s) has apparently never looked at a map of Asia.
Also, did anyone else notice that Jayanagar 4th block makes a cameo in the attack ad at 00:20?
What about the people milling without purpose in the background with the dog barking sound effect?
….I feel like I am there now.. so realistic 😉
Ask yourself why US companies outsource to India and eliminate American jobs. We Indians love to crib and complain. I love it when every other Desi crib about how they are discriminated when looking for jobs and stuff. And Indians crib about migrant Bangladesis stealing their jobs here. Ha ha. I am sorry to say that Indians including the American desis are perrenial bitches.
US should emulate Gulf nations and ban permanent citizenship and property ownership to third worlders. That will teach them what pain is. India is fucked all because of the fault of the fucking Indians who live here. Even highly educated and “cultured†people can be seen throwing plastic waste in public space. Have an empty plot of land in a neighboorhood? Rest assured that the plot would be a garbage dump for the people of the area. People and descendents of people who don’t blink once before fucking their own country, should not bitch about what other nations do. These people should be and are rewarded with poverty and diseases.
India I love, let all Indians suffer for their hypocrisy and double talk
Ek Hindustani? Oh, the irony.
Why not? This entire comments section is a lesson in irony.
As much as I love to stay and chat, I have to go home where I don’t enjoy the benefits of internet. So,don’t construe my lack of posts or replies as trolling.
I tend to find that racist trolls tend to have inclusive monickers. Not that I am specifically referring to you, ekhindustani. I do find your comments amusing. Regardless, there has been a foiled terrorist attack in New York by a guy with a Pakistani connection. I hope there is an informative blog post and untroll like comments about that in sepia mutiny soon.
[[While the Dalits in India are building a temple to the English Goddess, the elites in India already have her ensconsced in their hearts and minds!]]
About 75 years too late. C. Rajagopalachari aka Rajaji, distinguished elder statesman, once declared English to be a gift bestowed upon every Indian by Devi Saraswati!