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Gary, there are huge cultural differences between the Chinese and Japanese.
Agreed.
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The Japanese "raided" us with cheap radios that became Honda 750's in a few short years. From cheap and mediocre products to greats ones in roughly a decade.
That wasn't raiding. The basic deal has been to have some nation of lower development take on your antiquated technologies and give them a hard currency to buy your expensive and profitable technologies. Textiles moved to every 3rd world country simply because there's no ROI here in the USA. It was a highly competitive market with very little ROI. So all the pre-WWII designed needle boards and whatnot took a hike. We gave the Japanese the transistor in 196-something ..and in a few short years we couldn't afford to produce them ourselves. [censored](anese) Junk was a relatively short term thing.
When they "raided" us was during the Reagan Administration. The single highest transfer of wealth between two nations occurred at that time. They used every lobbying technique ...and outgunned every challenge to their unfair trade practices with shear budget. The companies that they were driving out of business just didn't have a big enough war chest. Our leaders helped them do this ...and gave us catchy slogans.
I'm in no way comparing the Japanese to the Chinese in any cultural sense.
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This agreement is part of what amounts to throwing them the car keys and telling them to drive whatever they want. We won't complain, we're just along for the ride. It's my opinion that if the trip seems rocky now, we're *really* not going to like the destination...
Same thing that we did when the Japanese raided us. "You CAN STICK IT RIGHT HERE IF YOUR WANT. WE WON'T STOP YOU!!" was all we got from Ronnie's cronies. ..and stick it they did. At least we got high quality goods for our slips of green paper.
The Japanese really helped us as a nation. They really showed how the world was really enslaved to us. Have a recession in the USA ..you're going to feel it across the entire globe. If we can't buy Guest jeans ...some 3rd world nation is going to be struggling to buy stuff without US$$. Work hard my good little mice ..momma loves you.
No, we're not going to like the destination. It can't be anywhere good, let alone better. Yet we just can't get anyone with any power to bother thinking about that. They've got some agenda that they're not letting on about.
One "in the beltway savvy" friend of mine (he's geopolitically very savvy too - "he who controls the spice controls the universe!!") suggested that we basically conceded certain sectors to the Japanese to keep them out of the arms business. Imagine what they could produce if they had that as a premier manufacturing goal!?!
Sorta like the opium/poppy farmers in Afghanistan. "If you're offering me as good a living ... I'll give it up. If not
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We provided them with a gainful purpose. A peaceful one that kept our teeth the sharpest.
I haven't quite nailed down what the end game is with China. Sure it's somewhat wise to attempt to pacify them in this manner, but it's also going to enable an even more sophisticated threat. I guess the interdependency aspect of it kinda trumps a few things ..but it will still focus more power there.
I don't think that the planet is read to bow to Beijing after being used to bowing to Wall St. for decades. I would expect them to be even more brutal masters.
