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01-29-2008, 03:21 PM
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Join Date: May 2007
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Did you know that we owe the Chinese some money?
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/20080...hinese-dollars
(snip)
Through the quarter-century in which China has been opening to world trade, Chinese leaders have deliberately held down living standards for their own people and propped them up in the United States. This is the real meaning of the vast trade surplus—$1.4 trillion and counting, going up by about $1 billion per day—that the Chinese government has mostly parked in U.S. Treasury notes. In effect, every person in the (rich) United States has over the past 10 years or so borrowed about $4,000 from someone in the (poor) People’s Republic of China. Like so many imbalances in economics, this one can’t go on indefinitely, and therefore won’t. But the way it ends—suddenly versus gradually, for predictable reasons versus during a panic—will make an enormous difference to the U.S. and Chinese economies over the next few years, to say nothing of bystanders in Europe and elsewhere.
Any economist will say that Americans have been living better than they should—which is by definition the case when a nation’s total consumption is greater than its total production, as America’s now is. Economists will also point out that, despite the glitter of China’s big cities and the rise of its billionaire class, China’s people have been living far worse than they could. That’s what it means when a nation consumes only half of what it produces, as China does.
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Law and Order: Gotham - “In the Criminal Justice System of Gotham City the people are represented by three separate, yet equally important groups. The police who investigate crime, the District Attorneys who prosecute the offenders, and the Batman. These are their stories.”
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01-29-2008, 03:34 PM
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Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Down the street
Posts: 9,791
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We are involved in the global capitalist economy which means that all the heavy hitters are indebted to one another both financially and socially.
What's up with the President Chavez urging Latin American allies to withdraw billions of dollars of reserves from American banks, warning of US economic crisis and the fear of "putting all eggs in one basket?" Why's their money here versus there? It's how this world works.  It's probably also why the drug trade and immigration are the way they are.  But lets keep incarcerating low level drug offenders and wearing down on social welfare systems instead of addressing the core problems.
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01-29-2008, 03:39 PM
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Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 16,100
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Who don't we owe? American and Chinese relations aren't that great anyway. China is becoming a super power like us, according to what I've read.
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Phi Sigma Biological Sciences Honor Society “Daisies that bring you joy are better than roses that bring you sorrow. If I had my life to live over, I'd pick more Daisies!”
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01-29-2008, 03:49 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: In a house.
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Each American owes approximately $4,000 to the Chinese government.
And a collection call would go somethign like this:
RRRiing
Hello...may I speak to Bob _____ ?
Yes...Hi....my name is Chun Li calling from the Chinese consulate....
Why are we calling at 3:15 am? Wow..well sir..it's actually 4:15pm here.
Where am I calling from? Beijing...no...no sir...you aren't paying for this call.
What do I want?
Well sir on behalf of the Chinese government we are calling in regards to the $3875 that you owe...when would you be able to pay sir....
Sir?
Sir?
Sir...there is no need to use that type of language...
Go fu...? Sir...that is really inappropiate to say over the phone!! I am a lady after all and married!
If you like you can provide a credit card number and we can....
Hello?
__________________
Law and Order: Gotham - “In the Criminal Justice System of Gotham City the people are represented by three separate, yet equally important groups. The police who investigate crime, the District Attorneys who prosecute the offenders, and the Batman. These are their stories.”
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01-29-2008, 03:50 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 16,100
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DaemonSeid
Each American owes approximately $4,000 to the Chinese government.
And a collection call would go somethign like this:
RRRiing
Hello...may I speak to Bob _____ ?
Yes...Hi....my name is Chun Li calling from the Chinese consulate....
Why are we calling at 3:15 am? Wow..well sir..it's actually 4:15pm here.
Where am I calling from? Beijing...no...no sir...you aren't paying for this call.
What do I want?
Well sir on behalf of the Chinese government we are calling in regards to the $3875 that you owe...when would you be able to pay sir....
Sir?
Sir?
Sir...there is no need to use that type of language...
Go fu...? Sir...that is really inappropiate to say over the phone!! I am a lady after all and married!
If you like you can provide a credit card number and we can....
Hello?
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lol
__________________
Phi Sigma Biological Sciences Honor Society “Daisies that bring you joy are better than roses that bring you sorrow. If I had my life to live over, I'd pick more Daisies!”
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01-29-2008, 03:51 PM
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: State of Imagination
Posts: 3,400
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It was my understanding that we are in debt to many countries. I don't know how much "many" actually means, but it's more than just a few.
I would think there would be some sort of "currency system" out there where bartering could exist. For example, military aid in exchange for $$ owed, or even on a multi-national level.... humanitarian aid would wipe out debts owed (among different countries, not just what the US owes to let's say, China).
I am not well versed in politics or economics, but at the level that these deficits and debts owed is often in sums beyond which would ever be fully recovered - billions and trillions - I would think there has to be a better system out there to make restitutions. At least, the idealist in me would like to think that something like this could be looked at.
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01-29-2008, 03:53 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: In a house.
Posts: 9,564
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ree-Xi
It was my understanding that we are in debt to many countries. I don't know how much "many" actually means, but it's more than just a few.
I would think there would be some sort of "currency system" out there where bartering could exist. For example, military aid in exchange for $$ owed, or even on a multi-national level.... humanitarian aid would wipe out debts owed (among different countries, not just what the US owes to let's say, China).
I am not well versed in politics or economics, but at the level that these deficits and debts owed is often in sums beyond which would ever be fully recovered - billions and trillions - I would think there has to be a better system out there to make restitutions. At least, the idealist in me would like to think that something like this could be looked at.
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Think about it tho...doesn't it explain how and why we wind up selling our old weapons systems to other nations that in some cases we are supposed to be enemies with?
Most recently we 'accidentally' sold some F 14 parts to Iran for instance....
but hey..just like dope dealers...no matter how much we can't stand the customer they won't say no to a dollar.
__________________
Law and Order: Gotham - “In the Criminal Justice System of Gotham City the people are represented by three separate, yet equally important groups. The police who investigate crime, the District Attorneys who prosecute the offenders, and the Batman. These are their stories.”
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01-29-2008, 03:56 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Down the street
Posts: 9,791
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Did people not think that our national debt included international debts?
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01-29-2008, 04:13 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: In a house.
Posts: 9,564
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DSTCHAOS
Did people not think that our national debt included international debts?
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we had to rob somebody to pay somebody and when we ran out..we started taking from the piggy bank that Mama Liberty had stashed away.
__________________
Law and Order: Gotham - “In the Criminal Justice System of Gotham City the people are represented by three separate, yet equally important groups. The police who investigate crime, the District Attorneys who prosecute the offenders, and the Batman. These are their stories.”
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01-29-2008, 04:39 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: The Emerald City
Posts: 3,413
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Of course we owe the Chinese. Jeez, people, we get everything from China. Do you think they import stuff from the U.S.? The trade deficit we have with China, and other countries, is astronomical. We don't export anything in this country, other than airplanes, some fruit, and MONEY.
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Gamma Phi Beta
Love. Labor. Learning. Loyalty.
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01-29-2008, 05:15 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Houston TX
Posts: 1,452
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PeppyGPhiB
We don't export anything in this country, other than airplanes, some fruit, and MONEY.
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Don't forget about jobs.
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01-29-2008, 05:29 PM
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Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Kansas City, Kansas USA
Posts: 23,584
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Welcome to the real world!
More out of America own the good old USA than the poor tax payers (Us) do.
Welcome to the US owned by everyone!
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LCA
LX Z # 1
Alumni
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01-29-2008, 05:36 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: location, location... isn't that what it's all about?
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01-29-2008, 09:00 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Potbelly's
Posts: 1,289
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DSTCHAOS
We are involved in the global capitalist economy which means that all the heavy hitters are indebted to one another both financially and socially.
What's up with the President Chavez urging Latin American allies to withdraw billions of dollars of reserves from American banks, warning of US economic crisis and the fear of "putting all eggs in one basket?" Why's their money here versus there? It's how this world works.  It's probably also why the drug trade and immigration are the way they are.  But lets keep incarcerating low level drug offenders and wearing down on social welfare systems instead of addressing the core problems.
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Incarcerating low level drug offenders really isn't that expensive in the grand scheme of things. We should cut war and welfare spending if we really want to save money.
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01-29-2008, 11:02 PM
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GreekChat Member
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Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Down the street
Posts: 9,791
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PhiGam
Incarcerating low level drug offenders really isn't that expensive in the grand scheme of things.
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It actually is.
But saving money wasn't my point.
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