February 24, 2005, Time wounds all heals?
Our buddies in Beijing at The People's Daily are somewhat sanguine about Georgie W. Bush's European "charm offensive" (pass the Freedom French fries, Jacques), concluding that few rifts between U.S. and European positions will be closed by it.
Focusing on Middle Eastern issues (notably American attempts to undermine European negotiations with Iran, which seem quite creative, including offers to bribe Iran into giving up its nucular ambitions with WTO membership, and of course, Iraq) the piece conveniently overlooks China's leading interest in the discussion: Bush's adamance that the EU arms embargo against China remain in place.
At this point, one really does start to get the feeling that Bush is becoming a sort of cartoonish villain in the eyes of the world, and in the eyes of the Chinese, a cartoonish villain who has just been zapped by a shrink gun. The Chinese cost themselves billions of dollars each month by refusing to allow their currency to adjust to market conditions against the dollar (in which case, like the euro, the pound sterling, the Japanese yen, and just about every other currency), the yuan would shoot to the moon, Alice... to the moon (whose own currency, the luna, is also kicking ass against the dollar). Now, in one sense, this enables the Chinese to continue to exploiting its slave labor to spit out exports to drive ever more American businesses under as we all rush to Walmart to buy our $6 television sets... but in another, China would still make lots of money on us even if their goodies were properly priced. On net, even though our trade deficits bring in the money, our budget deficits let the Chinese buy our bonds... on net, though, they'd be better off letting the yuan float... unless they have something else in mind...
My surmise: unlike us, our buddies in Beijing watch the scoreboard: they are infinitely smarter than Bush and Americans who voted for Bush, and know that power does not just mean the ability to blow things up 6,000 miles from here. It includes economic power-- and economic staying power-- and it includes judicious use of power.
Hence, why spend billions of dollars invading Taiwan (a battle, like our Iraq adventure, that will not necessarily result in anything easily defined as "winning") when the pieces can simply be moved around the board rhetorically, and through use of economic power, may eventually achieve their goals (in this case, most of the world is talking China's "one-China" game, and the United States' dependence on $7 Chinese television sets will-- not may but will-- force us to ease up on our support of "the renegade province"-- the fools who thought they could count on us!) Say-- when's the last time you heard an American politician talk about Tibet, or Chinese dissidents? See my point?
So you see, while Old NickDick Cheney can tell an addled cartoon villain President that "deficits don't matter", and the two laugh uproariously about it over chocolate cigars and non-alcoholic brandy, our buddies in Beijing know that deficits matter more than just about anything else. They're counting on them to achieve their goals. And they're patient. And they're working. If anyone gives Mandarin lessons here in the Brooklyn area, please let me know...
Comments
Sell them something back... quick .. before there's nothing left.
Posted by Adrian at February 24, 2005 1:39 PM