Reagan and Times Are Wrong About Free Trade

With regard to your editorial (Dec. 19), “It’s a Necessity,” what I cannot understand is why The Times agrees with President Reagan to continue bringing in finished products from around the world, such as textiles and shoes, and lay off the workers in America.

Why do you do this? It is certainly not smart. We have, in Los Angeles County alone, 10,000 unemployed shoe workers, which were laid off because of imports, which represent 85% of all the shoes sold in the United States.

Don’t you realize that if the United States went to war that we do not have enough shoe factories to make military footwear. Not only are we losing shoe factories, but we are losing tanners, suppliers, etc. Why do we always have to worry about Third World nations? Remember the old saying? “Charity begins at home.”

In the United States, we now have 300,000 unemployed shoe workers because, under this Administration, we have closed down over 400 factories. Your editorial about Reagan providing strong leadership on global negotiations is just words. You know that he will not do it! Everyone knows he won’t do it! Yet you agree with him!

The only thing everyone recognizes is that the reason you are strong to bring in imports is because the retailers love it and they can mark up the merchandise “four times” the cost and stick it to the consumers. And, the reason you agree with it is because the retailers are the ones who advertise in your newspaper.

SEYMOUR FABRICK

Los Angeles

Fabrick is president of Vogue Shoe Inc.