Pat Buchanan : America's Hollow Prosperity

WorldNetDaily.com ^ | 02/15/2006 | Patrick Buchanan

[Aquinasfan]

They are spending the money. On factories, machines, infrastructure, oil, other commodities and new buildings. Most of which are NOT in the USA.

And what do those people do with the money? They spend it. Eventually, someone's going to buy some American stuff with the money. Otherwise, they'll be left holding a bunch of worthless green paper.

[BlackjackPershing]

Paul Craig Roberts has been and still is a conservative economist.

[Jack Black]

The point is Buchanan opposed Clinton trade policies (Free Trade, NAFTA), Gore trade policies and Bush 2 trade policies (CAFTA) which are all the same.

On the issue of trade it would be fair to say maybe the Republicans should nominate Gore, or maybe the Dems should invite Jeb to run on their ticket- BECAUSE THEY AGREE ON TRADE.

[Jack Black]

What percent of all that is inflation?

[Jack Black]

It's an agreement. Which is a law. It could be challenged as unconstitional, but otherwise it's just like any other law. Treaties have more weight than ordinary laws, NAFTA is not afforded those, as it is not a treaty.

[ex-snook]

Pat agrees with Bush.

Bush SOTU "I will ask Congress for $350 million to support Palestinian political, economic, and security reforms. The goal of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace, is within reach -- and America will help them achieve that goal. (Applause.)"

P.S. The topic of the column is trade, not Pat, not military action.

[pissant]

Funny. If you write articles that are a combination of Cindy Sheehan, Paul Krugman and Algore, I think you lose that "conservative" label.

[CWOJackson]

The issue is pat and the agenda he pushes in his articles...such as defending Hamas, his INSISTING that we not print cartoons that irritate Muslims...his agenda that underlies everything he writes IS the issue.

[Alberta's Child]

Buchanan has a serious credibility problem on this issue. If this country weren't so damned affluent, nobody would have time to read anything written by some inside-the-Beltway snot who has never had a real job in his life. In fact, the term "talking head" is a job description that one only finds in societies that are affluent beyond belief.

[ex-snook]

Pat agrees with Bush. Bush SOTU "I will ask Congress for $350 million to support Palestinian political, economic, and security reforms. The goal of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace, is within reach -- and America will help them achieve that goal. (Applause.)"

P.S. No column hijacking, if you please.

[Paul Ross]

They need to go crack a macro-economics book written in this century.

Written by apologists for the deficit since 2000?

[Paul Ross]

And what do those people do with the money? They spend it.

Not necessarily, as China has successfully shown with their 15 years pattern of hoarding.

Eventually, someone's going to buy some American stuff with the money. Otherwise, they'll be left holding a bunch of worthless green paper.

Apparently the Chinese are cool with that...so long as they get all our industry and technology.

[markedman]

Amen!

I saw an earlier reference to Milton Friedman whose books I generally find interesting until I get about halfway through, which is where he begins to depart from reality like most of the Adam-Smith-tie-wearers posting today.

Say hello to San Angelo, Monahans and Borger for me.

[CWOJackson]

You may think it's hijacking but the integrity of the author is important.

On Jan 18th he insisted that Iran does not provide a nuclear threat and bemoans the attack in Pakistan that killed innocent women and children...and never once mentions the bad guys who were the target.

On Jan 25th he defends Iran again and insists we cannot take military action against them and attacks President Bush.

On Jan 30th he defends the Hamas election and attacks Isreal and President Bush.

On Feb 1st he writes an article demanding we fund Hamas...and takes his normal cheap shots at Isreal and President Bush.

He goes off the scale on Feb 3rd, including these brilliant remarks: "Having plunged us into an unnecessary war, Bush now confronts the real possibility of strategic defeat and a failed presidency. His victory in Iraq, like the wars of Wilson and FDR, has turned to ashes in our mouths. And like Truman's war in Korea and Kennedy's war in Vietnam, Bush's war has left America divided and her people regretting he ever led us in. But unlike the world wars, Korea and Vietnam, Bush cannot claim the enemy attacked us and we had no choice. Iraq is Bush's war."

Feb 8th, he writes an article insisting the we should not publish cartoons offensive to Muslims and is on the Sean Hannity radio show defending his position...he further insists that there is nothing wrong with publishing cartoons demeaning Christianity or the Hebrew faith.

Feb 11th...he's again deriding anyone who publishes cartoons offensive to Muslims...and attacking President Bush.

It's important that anyone not familiar with him and his agenda know a little more about what motivates pat and what he writes...hate.

[ghitma]

Pat is dead on with this. The jobs that the admin crows about are jobs I used to have in high school. A trained out of work engineer getting a job in Walmart should not be counted in these job numbers. The admins employment numbers are misleading. My fellow freepers will sing a different song when the out sourcing/unemployment gun points at them.

[Mase]

Now that the U.S. trade deficit for 2005 has come in at $726 billion, the fourth straight all-time record, a question arises.

The question should be: Does anyone understand that a capital account surplus is good?

[MikefromOhio]

ahhh crap LOL

well that was a time when I wasn't really paying attention, but at least I remembered the quote and the party :)

[hedgetrimmer]

You cite a litany of government failures on the economic front as a justification for your plans to put the government in charge of the purchasing decisions of individual Americans.

I NEVER said this.

[JABBERBONK]

My economy can, I purchased a house in Trinity Florida last year, I had a one year wait till completion, about 6 weeks before closing I got an offer of $36,000 over my purchase price, so I took the money and ran..it's all about creating wealth. You can sit around moan like clowns such as Buchanan, or you can move your ass and make money.

[Final Authority]

They do not necessarily hoard the USA dollars, they trade them for DM, euros, CHF, Yen, etc. and use that currency to buy the means of production they require. The nations institutions who end up with US dollars buy our national debt, buy golf courses, invest in sports teams, buy commercial property, buy super market chains, etc..

If we had products they actually wanted at the price we offered them for ostensibly there would be no trade deficit. Because of this, they buy our debt or fund our national consumption by lending us money, or, they buy our property, which ostensibly we sell to finance more consumption.

A trade deficit is an indication that we are borrowing to finance consumption, whether it be government consumption or consumption in the private sector, nevertheless, we are borrowing and when the interest comes due we will have to pay the bill. Would you rather be a lender of money and receive income from that investment or would you rather forever be in debt to some foreign entity?