Russell Roberts at Cafe Hayek has an excellent debunking of the myth that employing people in manufacturing is important for prosperity.
He shows that while manufacturing employment has fallen, manufacturing output has increased.
But we aren’t being hollowed out. We still make lots of stuff. Not that that’s the key to our prosperity. But even if you think it is, the basic premise is false. We’re making more stuff. We’re just doing it with fewer people than before, which is good. It means we can have more of other stuff. Productivity along with trade is the road to wealth.
