On the Subject of Outsourcing and Gifting

I'm not sure how I feel about outsourcing. It seems like Friedman is lamenting it, apparently to him, it's a big problem. However, I'm not incredibly sure as to how it benefits or detriments our society or economics. At work, my boss is constantly complains about outsourcing and how it's hurting his business. Apparently it's driving down a lot of the cost in labor for his particular business, which he's having trouble keeping up with. Personally, I don't know how I feel about it. There are pro's and con's to the system. For example, outsourcing boosts employment rates of foreign countries. It also puts extra money into their economy. However, the money boosting the foreign economy is American dollars that we'll never see again. That's a real issue. Also, American jobs are being sent overseas, so we have more unemployment. There are good things and bad things when it comes to outsourcing jobs. However, what is the solution to this issue? As for the idea that the Internet is a gifting system, it makes a lot of sense. In fact, I really enjoy this concept because it is such an uncorrupted subsistence mode. The example from Kollock of lawyers giving out legal advice on a forum for free where they would charge hundreds of dollars otherwise is intriguing. Why would they do this? Perhaps because instead of being charged to answer a question, they are offering this information on their own time that they offer this information for free. It makes work into your hobby instead of your job.

****Related Link****
http://www.altruists.org/projects/ge/ explores the concept of the Internet as a gifting society. They feel that the drive to create lasting relationships is stronger than the greed and selfishness of capitalism. This is a really cool concept.