Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

America's Superpower Status Coming to an End
Newsmax.com ^ | 3/1/05 | Paul Craig Roberts

Posted on 02/28/2005 11:54:16 PM PST by beyond the sea

The U.S. economy is headed toward crisis, and the political leadership of the country – if it can be called leadership – is preoccupied with nonexistent weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East.

The U.S. economy is failing. The afflictions are serious. They could be fatal even if diagnosed and treated. America is losing the purchasing power of its currency and its ability to create middle-class jobs. Story Continues Below

The dollar's sharp decline and projections of continuing trade and budgetary red ink are undermining the dollar's role as reserve currency. A number of central banks have announced that they will be diversifying their currency holdings and will not be buying dollars at the same rate as in the past. This will put more pressure on the dollar. At some point, the flight will begin. Instead of buying fewer dollars, central banks will sell dollars, hoping to get out before the dollar hits bottom.

Suddenly, the advantage of being the reserve currency becomes a nightmare, as the world's accumulations of dollars are brought to market. An enormous supply and weak demand mean a very low exchange rate for the once almighty U.S. dollar.

Overnight, those cheap goods in Wal-Mart, which are the no-think economist's facile justification for Wal-Mart's decimation of communities, small businesses and employment, shoot up in price.

(Excerpt) Read more at newsmax.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: america; antibushgarbage; asshat; bitterpaleos; blackhelicopters; braindeadantibushies; braindeadbushbots; bushhate; bushhater; business; dollar; doomandgloom; doomweredoomed; dumby; economy; frostrichesareblind; government; idiot; money; moonbat; moron; neoconundermybed; nutjob; paleos; paranoia; paulcraigroberts; theskyisfalling; tinfoil
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 521-540541-560561-580581-589 next last
To: 1rudeboy
That's why the proper reaction is ridicule.

My momma said it wasn't nice to make fun of other kids just because they took the short bus to school.

541 posted on 03/03/2005 12:25:32 PM PST by Toddsterpatriot (Protectionism is economic ignorance!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 540 | View Replies]

To: Toddsterpatriot
Yup, just redefine the facts whenever it suits your purpose and the facts become impossible to discern. But one fact is that the USA has only one jet liner manufacturer left that that is Boeing and Boeing is being replace by Airbus as the worlds leading jet liner manufacturer. Embracers is also eating away at the smaller jet liner market. Also the Ariena rocket has replaced American rockets as leading (heavy) launch vehicles (Russia's proton is quite successful too). I wonder when was the last time the USA build a ship (not a USN warship? A nuclear power plant? A chemical refinery? Or a even just a frieght train?
542 posted on 03/03/2005 12:28:07 PM PST by jpsb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 532 | View Replies]

To: Toddsterpatriot

Make no mistake. These are not short-bus kids. They are whack-a-moles. You might think ridicule works, but they'll appear on another thread with the same BS.


543 posted on 03/03/2005 12:28:42 PM PST by 1rudeboy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 541 | View Replies]

To: jpsb
. . . Boeing is being replace[d] by Airbus as the worlds leading jet liner manufacturer.

No way, Airbus is up to 51% of the market? /sarc

544 posted on 03/03/2005 12:30:59 PM PST by 1rudeboy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 542 | View Replies]

To: 1rudeboy
$500,000,000,000.00 trade deficit.
545 posted on 03/03/2005 12:33:01 PM PST by jpsb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 543 | View Replies]

To: 1rudeboy

" This year could prove a watershed in the provision of large jetliners, with long-time lead supplier Boeing involuntarily ceding that position to Europe’s Airbus in 2003 and for the next few years. The European airframer will deliver the majority of new large aircraft (100+ seats) in the coming 10 years, according to Aviation International News' analysis of recently published statistics. "


546 posted on 03/03/2005 12:35:34 PM PST by jpsb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 544 | View Replies]

To: jpsb
Yup, just redefine the facts whenever it suits your purpose and the facts become impossible to discern.

You have yet to produce a fact other than "I used to see made in the USA often in stores, jeans, shoes, TVs, cars, just about everything was made in the USA. Now when I go to a store I have to look and look hard to find ANYTHING with a made in the USA label."

Who am I to argue with a fact like that?

547 posted on 03/03/2005 12:35:42 PM PST by Toddsterpatriot (Protectionism is economic ignorance!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 542 | View Replies]

To: jpsb
Solar Terrestrial Activity Report

548 posted on 03/03/2005 12:36:07 PM PST by 1rudeboy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 545 | View Replies]

To: jpsb

No way, Airbus is up to 51% of the market? /sarc


549 posted on 03/03/2005 12:37:35 PM PST by 1rudeboy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 546 | View Replies]

To: 1rudeboy

Airbus is already beating Boeing in sales and that was before introducing the world largest jetliner, airbus 380.


550 posted on 03/03/2005 12:43:27 PM PST by jpsb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 549 | View Replies]

To: jpsb

No way, Airbus is up to 51% of the market? /sarc


551 posted on 03/03/2005 12:44:07 PM PST by 1rudeboy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 550 | View Replies]

To: 1rudeboy

OK, have it your way, and airbus didn't just introduce the worlds largest jetliner the 380 and Embarcer doesn't compete with Boeing either.


552 posted on 03/03/2005 12:47:03 PM PST by jpsb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 551 | View Replies]

To: Petronski

You mean I've been obliterated since the 70's...I'm a ghost?
FreeRepublic is just a dream in the mind of some conservative universal Vishnu?

I don't recall being nuclear radiated in the 70's...(lol!)?


553 posted on 03/03/2005 12:53:30 PM PST by mdmathis6 (By playing the Devil's advocate, one can often separate self from the Devil!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 67 | View Replies]

To: mdmathis6
Yes. We should never joke about the Great Atomic Wars of the 70s. Deterence failed. Once the Soviets had the ability to destroy us, we were destroyed. Just like now that China is getting that ability, we will be destroyed again




</BadLogicofOtherPoster>

554 posted on 03/03/2005 12:56:37 PM PST by Petronski (I'm not always cranky. Sometimes I'm downright grouchy. Grrr.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 553 | View Replies]

To: Petronski

tee hee!


555 posted on 03/03/2005 2:30:17 PM PST by mdmathis6 (By playing the Devil's advocate, one can often separate self from the Devil!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 554 | View Replies]

To: 1rudeboy
"Expanding manufacturing sector". Ok, what specifically do we manufacture in America, that is American, and made from American manufactured components? Then you will show me some evidence that American made components are used.

556 posted on 03/03/2005 3:51:58 PM PST by William Terrell (Individuals can exist without government but government can't exist without individuals.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 515 | View Replies]

To: Toddsterpatriot
As far as foreign made components making final assembly here meaningless, what's the salary paid to American workers by GM, Chrysler, Ford, IBM, Dell? They all use foreign parts and still manage to pay American workers billions in salary and benefits. Meaningless? Hardly.

The drain off of American capital to the countries that make these foreign made parts is enormous. Every component on an "American made" car that is foreign made must be paid for from the amount a person pays for the car.

What percentage of the part used to make an "American made" car is foreign made? Near 100%, most like. Every one of those parts represent money that leaves the country, which means that when we buy a car nowadays a large percentage of the bucks we lay out for it is gone.

Gone? Well, not really, it comes back to purchase American land, companies, stock, debt and politicians. How do you factor those effects into your global free trade?

And all those billions paid to American auto workers likewise are drained off to places like China when they buy foreign made goods or "American made" goods with foreign made components.

Agreed, 100% American made components would be preferred. But you agree they are more expensive? You agree that the higher expense would cause jobs and production to be lost on the margin?

100% American made components are required. You miss the point of what I said. Within the our earlier pro-sumer economy, where we make all the things we use and make the components too, the higher expense was was not a higher expense. People that worked in other jobs made enough to easily afford them.

Yes, it worked very well for America. Now, all you have to do is show that its not working very well for America now. You can't, yet. If in the future you can show that our economy is failing and that the fault is with all this trade, then I'll agree you're correct. But we ain't there yet. You said in 5 years we will be. You gonna shut up if we're not?

It did indeed work very well for America. That system proved itself in a robust economy. This type of Global trade is experimental. The issue is not whether I can "prove" this global dog and pony show is failing the US.

The question is why would you advocate putting all out eggs in an experimental basket when we already had one that worked fine?

Why? For what purpose. Be clear and specific.

557 posted on 03/03/2005 4:30:55 PM PST by William Terrell (Individuals can exist without government but government can't exist without individuals.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 517 | View Replies]

To: Toddsterpatriot
Incidently, that cute little chart you have been posting everywhere? This is the one:

Another a poster on another thread check it out had this to say:

"The description on the NCPA site for your bar chart includes the following hint:

It is critical to adjust the figures for inflation in order to make a valid comparison. The price of many goods such as computers has fallen sharply. Since GDP data are calculated in money rather than volume terms, failure to account for price changes gives a distorted picture. For example, suppose the output of a product rose by 10 percent in terms of units while falling 10 percent in price due to higher productivity. Using nominal dollar figures makes it appear there was no increase in output. Using real data captures the increase.

What they have done, or proport to have done, is to do a GDP comparison based functionality and productivity. So if your home computer has the computing power of 1000 1940/50 era computers they have adjusted the numbers to make it equivalent to that much economic activity. The point is to say that if a 20 lbs electronic calculator sold for $100 (adjusted dollars - 2000) in 1940, then your HP scientific calculator which weighs only Ozs and does so much more may be worth $1500. We all know that in the real world the HP actually sells for ~$20 bucks (in 2000); but, that has never stopped some in our government from trying to adjust inflation for technology.

You've been busted.

558 posted on 03/03/2005 4:37:52 PM PST by William Terrell (Individuals can exist without government but government can't exist without individuals.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 517 | View Replies]

To: William Terrell

Sorry, sweetheart. If you wish to argue that we Americans only assemble parts manufactured overseas, be my guest.


559 posted on 03/03/2005 4:38:02 PM PST by 1rudeboy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 556 | View Replies]

To: Toddsterpatriot
Oh, please. The numbers I used were to give you the general idea. You said you didn't understand. So I tried to help you.

Truth is, you don't want to understand. You are somehow heavily invested in this global "free" trade mess. And you are unable to justify pursuing an expermental trade system when we have proved a domestic production worked just fine in this country.

I don't understand that.

560 posted on 03/03/2005 4:45:24 PM PST by William Terrell (Individuals can exist without government but government can't exist without individuals.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 519 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 521-540541-560561-580581-589 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson