It's positively patriotic -- and economic!

Never did I expect to write about something so far afield as China on the 3rd of July. George Washington at Trenton would have been a suitable topic, I thought, or perhaps Thomas Jefferson and his Declaration of Independence, in other words, something patriotic. However, after reading David Brooks' New York Times article published yesterday, I have come to realize that the relationship the United States has with China is vital to the future of our country and that considering the working out of that affiliation is indeed patriotic. In his article, David Brooks states that he recently attended the Aspen Ideas Festival where two views about the U.S./China association were propounded. Harvard's Niall Ferguson cautions China could become a potential adversary, whereas James Fallows, writer from The Atlantic, suggests an "integrated" connection between the two countries might develop.

Based on James Fallows' talk, Mr. Brooks points out some enlightening economics. "China did the making, and the United States did the buying. China did the saving, while the U.S. did the spending. Between 1995 and 2005, the U.S. savings rate declined from about 5 percent to zero, while the Chinese savings rate rose from 30 percent to nearly 45 percent." Now that flow has changed and Chinese officials are aware. So how will the U.S. and China work out this erstwhile lopsided arrangement?

What is most interesting is that both Fallows and Ferguson recommend the same course of action, that is, get money owed in control. David Brooks wraps up. "This conversation, like many conversations these days, gets back to America’s debt. Until the U.S. gets its fiscal house in order, relations with countries like China will be fundamentally insecure."


New York Times, July 2, 2009, "Chinese Fireworks Display" by David Brooks
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/03/opinion/03brooks.html?_r=1&ref=opinion