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The importance of manufacturing to the U.S : Comments
By Chris Lewis, published 31/7/2012U.S. manufacturing needs the government to adopt aggressive foreign policy measures to counter unfair trade practices.
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I have commented several times that without a significant manufacturing industry our citizenry will be doomed when our minerals become depleted. I wrote the following to the SMH in 2000. The letter suggested a series based on "Yes! But.." confusion.
Howard’s Way is a Slippery Slope.
In a radio interview today (18/2/2000) P.M. John Howard ruled out any re- regulation of banks and financial institutions. Who could expect anything different as he was responsible for the Campbell Report which led to the deregulation of these institutions in the first place.
Who on the Campbell Committee represented and protected the common good? The committee chairman was very experienced in the financial industry and expecting a commerce specialist to formulate just and fair rules to protect the Australian citizens’ currency was worse than leaving rabbits to guard the lettuce.
We need at least sufficient regulation to divert financing activities towards developments which promote the scope and efficiency of our export and import competing industries.
The present activities of financial institutions cause many middle and upper crust Sydneysiders, for example, to feel wealthy through inflating property values and share prices. This is a recipe for generating a rise in the unnecessary import of Beemers and their like.
Banks currently lend up to 80% of the market value of shares in major companies including themselves and this is a perfect example of George Soros’s concept of reflexivity which is simply that, if you give something a high valuation and lend a high proportion of this value, then the price will increase.
Applied to real estate this same concepts lead to heavy drains on the lower levels of family incomes as people struggle with higher mortgage payment than would otherwise be necessary.
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