Tag Archives: free trade

All the Cunning of a Bag of Rocks…

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I originally posted the following information and commentary onto my Facebook wall…

‘If We Didn’t Trade,’ Trump Argues, ‘We’d Save a Hell of a Lot of Money’:
https://reason.com/blog/2018/07/27/if-we-didnt-trade-trump-argues-wed-save?fbclid=IwAR2lGouSXBUNEN_tdI7FZqFU23GfcnAq5s9gN71pdu_uY9GofrrlH_9K60A

() “Our trade deficit ballooned to $817 billion,” Donald Trump said during a speech to steelworkers in Granite City, Illinois, yesterday. “Think of that. We lost $817 billion a year over the last number of years in trade. In other words, if we didn’t trade, we’d save a hell of a lot of money.”

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the president exaggerated the size of the 2017 trade deficit by 48 percent. But that’s a mere quibble compared to his fundamental misunderstanding of what that number means, which in turn reflects a zero-sum view of economic exchange that does not bode well for the outcome of a tariff war supposedly aimed at promoting free trade.

(Read entire article here…)

My Commentary: He has the cunning of a bag of rocks.

The North American Economy is Not Free Market, by Any Means!

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I originally posted the following information and commentary onto my Facebook wall…

2016-08-31-the-north-american-economy-is-not-free-market-by-any-means

Syrup Smugglers Take on the Maple Mafia:
https://fee.org/articles/syrup-smugglers-take-on-the-maple-mafia/

() O Canada – the land of moose and snow, where the drugs are cheap, the people are notoriously nice, and the maple syrup farmers are clapped in irons.

Apparently it is unacceptable for a person to take something from a tree – A. Tree. – put it in a bucket, turn it into magic-tasting sugar, and give it to someone else in exchange for monies, without a government-mandated middle man swooping in on a snowmobile to take most of the sugar, some of the monies, and all of the credit.

(Read entire article here…)

My Commentary: The North American economy can be called a lot of things… “Free market” is NOT one of them!

NAFTA Does Not Promote “Free Trade”

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The following correspondence originally took place upon the Facebook wall of my friend, Brooke N., after she shared artwork from here…

Brooke N.: There’s a lot that is wrong in the world just now. This may not look like it competes in terms of horror with the slaughter of innocents or the invasion of Crimea and confusion and plane downing in The Ukraine. But High Fructose Corn Syrup kills too. It causes diabetes and heart disease. While there’s not the kind of violence involved that we see on the news, quietly ceding national sovereignty to corporations that in no way have the best interests of ordinary citizens at heart will cause as many unnecessary deaths as violent uprising does.

"When Mexico put restrictions on high fructose corn syrup, three different U.S. Corporations sued the Mexican government under NAFTA's investor-state system. Mexico lost and had to pay $169.18 million."

“When Mexico put restrictions on high fructose corn syrup, three different U.S. Corporations sued the Mexican government under NAFTA’s investor-state system. Mexico lost and had to pay $169.18 million.”

Rayn: The idea that NAFTA was created to promote “free trade” is an Orwellian-languaged joke! Corporate cartels are formed for the exact opposite reason!