Thursday, February 12, 2009

Protectionism Plays with fire:Shanghai Daily 2/12A6

"As the US stimulus bill that contains the "Buy American" provision winds its way through the Congress on Friday,Feb.13th,its reverberations can be felt all over the world.

The US,supposedly the bulwark of free trade and the leading force behind globalization,appears to have strayed wildly from the very ideals it pledges to defend.

We don't have to be disciples of Adam Smith or David Richardo to reject protectionism. Economists of all stripes subcribe to the aphorism that protectionism destroys more jobs than it creates,beggar thy neighbor only infuriates your neighbor and in the end you both become beggars after a vicious game of tit for tat."

My comment: Adam Smith was a professor of moral philosophy and David Ricardo was an advocate of free trade. Free and open trade with morality and ethics would be the guidelines for peace and economic development in the world.

Francis Shieh a.k.a. Xie Shihao on Friday,February 13, 2009 at 11.52 a.m.

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