Well we have insurmountable debts, and the west is largely dying BECAUSE WE MAKE EVERYTHING IN CHINA.
Duh.
So what do people think are the answers? I am struggling with this. I am strongly on the side of market-driven free economies, with minimal government intervention. However, I don't think this works at the international level when you have multiple nations playing under different rules. This is especially true when some of those nations have as a long-term goal supplanting you as a world power, or contributing to your eventual death as a nation.
The Chinese government can decide that they're going after industry x, and they then funnel government money into that industry to buy whatever talent and resources they need. For the ‘average’ workers they set wages by edict at a level that makes the Chinese company ultra-competitive internationally. They look for stealth ways to levy tariffs on imports that compete with industry x, and throw money around Washington to buy silence on unfair trade practices. This is just a small summary of what they can do.
We, on the other hand, have the left on one side - pushing for more and more taxes and regulations on industry x, and from some on the right we have almost suicidal commitment to the ‘concept’ of free trade, even in those instances in which we are being taken advantage of as a nation.
Balance is the operative term, and the West's approach is anything but balanced at this point.