I have long enjoyed reading Thomas Friedman's column in the New York Times. His Dec. 19 column was typical of his ability to stir imaginations. Its subject was the semi-incredible fact that due to very nasty attacks by the Taliban in Afghanistan on fuel convoys supplying U.S. military outposts, the Marines, Army and Navy all have made dramatic strides in “going green.”
More and more of our military posts in that country are using solar power, and more and more of our combat aircraft are flying on aviation fuel that is a next-generation ethanol. This creative thinking in our military is a real inspiration, and it caused me to think more about things our nation needs to do.
There is a statement that appears very often in writings about our national debt. This is the assertion that we are borrowing a tremendous amount from China in order to meet our budgetary needs. Technically that is accurate, but there is more to the story.
I have often noted that since the 1990s, a tremendous part of our basic production of goods, such as clothing, toys, tools and office equipment, has been moved from the U.S. to China. There have been major effects from this.
One is a massive loss of the kind of jobs that played a significant role in this country's history. My grandfather, Louis Roth, came to the U.S. in 1888 from what is now Lithuania. He found work in New York cutting cloth according to patterns in order to make men's suits. Grandpa Lou was an early member of the Clothing Workers Union and counted among his friends Samuel Gompers, founder of the American Federation of Labor. (Now part of the AFL/CIO). He worked in this profession into the 1950s and put all four of his sons through college. One of them became the warden of Rikers Island Penitentiary; one became a professor at New York University; one was regarded as the outstanding salesman for W.R. Grace; and the fourth, my dad, was a CPA. And Lou lived to see his grandson enter the U.S. Air Force Academy. This is a great picture, but it has changed radically. Almost all of the jobs such as Grandpa Lou's had have moved to China.
That not only affects our employment picture, but also means that so very much of the money we spend — on clothing, for example — goes to Chinese companies. And here is something not many newspaper columnists seem to grasp.
We pay for our clothing, and all the other things China produces, with our currency, dollars. That means a Chinese clothing company receives thousands of dollars. That company puts those dollars in its bank, which effects a conversion into the Chinese currency so that the clothier can meet its payroll and take care of business. So now, the bank has the dollars.
Unfortunately, the U.S. is producing very few goods or services that Chinese folks or companies want so there is practically no demand for these dollars. This means those Chinese banks must hold them, and that presents those banks with a real “no-brainer.” They can hold the dollars and earn nothing, or they can invest the dollars and earn something. The simplest way to do the latter is to buy U.S. Treasury securities.
So, the real situation is not really that we are deeply indebted to and dependent upon China to finance our debt. The real situation is that currency (e.g. dollars) does not go away, and a holder would rather earn something than earn nothing.
And this explanation points to our great challenge. The kind of jobs that our poorest citizens could latch onto, keep for decades and propel them and their families upward are mostly gone. But, does that mean we are finished? I believe not!
We can take a lesson from our Armed Forces. They are the last folks I would have expected to “go green.” And in that is the inspiration to think outside the box. Let's see ...
1. Enough of our dependence on Middle Eastern and other foreign oil.
Vehicles can run on natural gas.
They can run on mixtures of petroleum and agricultural products.
They can run on electricity.
All of these possibilities will take thought, will take capital and will create jobs.
2. There are massive parts of our nation's physical infrastructure, such as interstate highways, bridges, dams and electrical systems, that need upgrading.
Investing in those upgrades also will take capital and will create jobs.
3. The world is changing rapidly because of electronics and computers.
Adapting to that change will take capital and will create jobs.
I do believe it is extremely important that we improve our education system because much of this is a far cry from cutting cloth. But, there sure are opportunities!
Mickey Roth is president of Intercontinental Asset Management. His column appears monthly.
Read more:
http://www.mysanantonio.com/default/article/It-s-time-for-America-to-think-outside-the-box-944034.php#ixzz1AfjPpp2P[left]
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