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My wife and I recently returned from a brief holiday visit to Prince Edward Island. We found the holiday extremely pleasant. We enjoyed the beautiful scenery and found many opportunities to learn about the interesting history of Prince Edward Island as well as current trends.
We visited two family-owned small businesses that are manufacturing and exporting. Very encouraging to see this type of development.
Inevitably, visitors find themselves in gift shops. It is not encouraging to see Chinese-made items in gift shops. The visitor to Prince Edward Island wants a souvenir of Prince Edward Island, not a souvenir of China. But it is the usual dilemma. The gift shop can make so much more money from a Chinese item, than from the same item made in Prince Edward Island.
I am not criticizing Prince Edward Island. Anywhere you travel in the western world, you see Chinese items in gift shops. I bet if you visit Japan you will find Chinese items in gift shops!
Manufacturing in Canada
In 2011, Canada exported manufactured goods to a total value of $280 billion. This statistic sounds good and it is good. The little niggling problem is that our imports of manufactured goods in 2011 totalled over $372 billion.
A very good measure of the health of an economy is the quantity
Exports minus imports
(All referring to manufactured goods, not crude oil, raw logs, coal, etc.)
For Canada in 2011, the calculation "exports minus imports" gives you the result:
Minus $92.4 billion
Conclusion: We have a large trade deficit, also referred to as negative balance of trade.
Prime Minister Harper has totally mismanaged our economy since he came to power in 2006. Evidence for this statement is that our trade deficit has more than tripled since 2006, to the 2011 figure $92.4 billion mentioned above.
Tripling of the trade deficit is a direct measure of how many manufacturing jobs have been lost under Harper and how the totally uncontrolled import of manufactured goods has increased.
What could we do with $92.4 billion?
This figure $92.4 billion is real wealth pouring out of our country, going to foreign countries. It is the net amount we pay to foreign countries to do manufacturing for us. It amounts to over $2500 for each Canadian man, woman, and child.
If we could keep that $92.4 billion in Canada, it could provide factory equipment and wages for one million Canadian manufacturing workers. One million Canadians going back to work in manufacturing would be a tremendous shot in the arm for the Canadian economy.
There is a multiplier effect of manufacturing that would create additional employment.
How to move in the right direction?
We have to eliminate the trade deficit of $92.4 billion. It is impoverishing our country and our economy. My proposal is simple. To each country we trade with, we say that we will allow imports from your country only up to the level of your purchases from us, to be phased in over three years. (Again referring to manufactured goods.) There would be a special arrangement with the United States.
How much of a reduction in imports are we talking about? We are talking about a reduction of 25% in total imports. We are not talking about building an isolationist firewall around Canada. We only want to bring imports under rational control, rather than the wild-west free-for-all we have now.
How would it be determined what goods would come in to Canada and what goods would not? It might be entirely determined by the foreign countries, or it might be determined by interaction between Canadian business and foreign countries.
Maybe gift shop souvenirs would not come in so readily from overseas, giving Canadian craftsmen and craftswomen more of a chance.
What is the kicker in all this?
If we look at the detailed numbers and do the arithmetic, we find that imports from China would have to be reduced by 80%, to bring imports from China into balance with Canadian exports to China. This dramatic figure underlines how China has taken over.
If my proposal were to come into serious discussion, the fury of China would have no bounds. I don't know what they would do.
China is a serious threat in ways other than imported manufactured goods. One example is a systematic program on the part of China to take over port operations in dozens of countries. Prime Minister Harper and other western "leaders" are totally asleep at the switch in relation to the multiple threats posed by China.
But in-depth discussion of the real situation and the real reason for the economic problems in all western countries does not occur, because there is censorship. Obediently, newspapers, magazines, TV, etc., do not allow mention of the need to cut imports from China. Even "alternative" radio, newspapers, etc., do not allow in-depth discussion of China.
Politicians and many other people in western countries are beholden to China in various ways. In addition, thousands of columnists, analysts, commentators, and authors continually pump out fantasy explanations of why there is so much unemployment and why our economies are failing. The objective is to take attention away from the real cause, namely uncontrolled imports from China and other foreign countries.
Honest discussion
Until we get past this censorship, we will never have an honest and real discussion, and we will never bring imports under control. A depressing situation, since reduction of imports, and corresponding increase in domestic manufacturing, is the only way to solve our jobs and economic problem.
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