The problem is not altogether the responsibility of the Chinese. In fact I lay most of the blame at the doorsteps of the Wal-Marts and other S & P 500 corporations who continue to make veritable fortunes closing down American facilities and looking to China as the replacement source of supply. Thousands of jobs have been lost in the plants around America to cheap imports over the past five years. When you look into who are the biggest importers of tires it makes your gut wrench. Amongst the biggest culprits are the tire manufacturers themselves. Led by Goodyear and Firestone they have all jumped on the bandwagon, closing plants and reducing production at home while making up the difference by bringing crap unfit for human “consumption”. It is all about morality and here is an example of big business that doesn’t really give “two hoots” about how America’s industrial giants behave. Their claim of selling what the people want is absolute balderdash. The simple fact is they make more money through import substitution, and the more money the corporation makes, the higher the remuneration for executive row.

This is an area where I have difficulty allowing the forces of capitalism dictating what is best for America. Common sense and what is right should over-ride the motive of greed. Quite frankly the only protector that can influence common sense and what is right for Americans is the government itself. I raise my hat to President Obama for his decision to slap an up to 55% duty on inferior tires currently being imported from China. China has already retaliated by halting the importation of poultry. The funny thing is the bulk of the poultry imported is in the form of chicken feet, a delicacy in China and a discard in America. In the “olden” days when I had a love affair with China, I used to dread being driven to a smart Chinese restaurant and parking in the rear. Inevitably outside the kitchen was a cage full of mangy chickens awaiting decapitation and prepared for the night’s dishes. It hardly placed you in the right mood for enjoying your meal! I would imagine “quality imported chicken feet from the USA” was regarded as an extra treat for the hapless Chinaman. Now his taste buds will have to revert back to the locally produced variety. Who is the biggest exporter of poultry to China? Tyson’s of course. This Arkansas-based company has been a polluter of the environment for years and for my money I couldn’t care less to see this mob now on the receiving end of China’s wrath.

I see no future in dialogue and placation. It is time for action. Either the world truly engages in fair two way trade or President Obama starts to create a balance by imposing tariffs against dumping. Private enterprise has proven to be an ineffective policeman for American consumers. Long gone are the days where businesses were proud to sell quality. Unless the company is Louis Vuitton, most western companies today will sell any old garbage so long as their pockets are lined. If General Motors had kept to their business model of their first fifty years in business of making a quality product, they would not be owned by Uncle Sam as they are now. The likes of the Goodyear’s, Wal-Marts et al have proven to be un-American in how they have treated their consumers and workforce. I am all for a little government intervention to put them back on the right track and I am certainly into government intervention in matters of trade that are not the best interests of all Americans. If that leads us onto to a path of isolationism to wake the world up and see reality then so be it. That being the case the first step is to immediately withdraw all fighting forces from Iraq and Afghanistan and redraw the way we do business, especially with countries who have never respected us. Amongst those I place China, Russia, India and Mexico at the top of the list.