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Outsourcing? Tech to blame, says Obama

July 31, 2008 14:12 IST

The Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama has held the revolution in technology and communication in last few decades responsible for outsourcing of jobs to India and China.

"Over the last few decades, revolutions in technology and communication have made it so that corporations can send good jobs wherever there's an Internet connection. Children here in Missouri aren't just growing up competing for good jobs with children in California or Indiana, but with children in China and India as well," Senator Obama said at a campaign rally in Springfield, Missouri.

In a veiled attack on the previous government for its decision on economic reforms, he said, "It was irresponsible decisions that were made on Wall Street and in Washington. In the past few years, we have relearned the essential truth that in the long run, we cannot have a thriving Wall Street and a struggling Main Street."

When wages are flat, prices are rising and more and more Americans are mired in debt, the economy as a whole suffers.

When a reckless few game the system, as we've seen in this housing crisis, millions suffer and we're all impacted, he said, adding that when government fails to meet its obligation -- to provide sensible oversight and stand on the side of working people and invest in their future -- America pays a heavy price.

"So, we have a choice to make in this election. We can either choose a new direction for our economy, or we can keep doing what we've been doing," he said.

Emphasising on the need to develop job prospects at home instead of outsourcing to other nations, Obama said, "We can choose to do nothing about disappearing jobs and shuttered factories for another four years, or we can encourage job-creation in the United States of America."

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