Lots of folks are hyperventilating about the possibility of a trade war with China. I see this as a result of wide-spread misunderstandings about the economics of trade between countries. So let me start from the basics. There are three and only three ways to create wealth. What is wealth? It is the stuff that…
Simple question, but it has a two-part answer. IF it is free trade between roughly equal economies with similar labor costs, everyone benefits. That’s just more competition. Free trade in most goods with say England would in general be a net plus. However, IF the trade is between an industrialized and an unindustrialized economy, the only…
I’ve mentioned before what I see as the most important economic analysis for our times. This is “How Rich Countries Got Rich . . . and Why Poor Countries Stay Poor” by Eric Reinert. Several folks pointed out that it is an expensive book, so a few days ago I did an analysis of an…
I used to be a strong proponent of free trade, until I real “How Rich Countries Got Rich … And Why Poor Countries Stay Poor” by Erik Reinert. His exposition is a tour-de-force, covering the actual history of trade, tariffs, and how England, France, and Germany used them to become wealthy. It’s not a cheap…
I lived for eight years in the Solomon Islands, 1985 to 1991 and 2007 to 2009. The Solomons are a nation of about three hundred islands just south of the Equator. The only thing most Americans have heard of there is Guadalcanal, because it was an island that was the site of World War II battles.…
This has been a very curious election. I have never taken so much personal abuse from my friends and online acquaintances for my political views. I’ve been called racist, sexist, an embarrassment, a troll, and all kinds of bad names for expressing my views … and I’m still the same guy who was their best friend…
