Must listen Peter Schiff's GOLDEN WORDS : Crash Proof

[christo930]

What I can't figure out is why Schiff thinks that for Americans, thrift and underconsumption is a virtue, but for the Chinese consumption is a virtue. You can't have it both ways. Furthermore, China isn't the utopia he thinks it is.

Generally I am with Peter on many things, but this one is a head scratcher.

[Entropy137]

I think what he supports is freedom of choice. The chinese consumer is held down by their own government policies through the currency peg. Some thrift and underconsumption is a virtue because it leds to an increase in future wealth (investing). I think at one point america had a negative savings rate. That can't be good for the long term.

[roseagain2]

Chinese consumption is a virtue because they have been saving and producing and they deserve it. America has been counterfieting, borrowing, taxing and spending. So it would be virtuous if America corrected the mistake by saving and producing until they pay their debts! Instead of printing, borrowing and spending MORE. In other words we are BROKE! And they are NOT!

[christo930]

Most of America's debt isn't going to be paid, unless it's paid of with cheaper dollars, much cheaper dollars.

[Thegrcornholio]

@christo930 Thats true and thats how it should be. No more junkfood every day, no more swimming pools, no more fancy cars.

[fox20012]

You cant have it both ways?

Americans are spending other peoples money!

Sure china is like the NWO on steroids but still what your saying is like whaaaa

[christo930]

What I mean is that I think everyone should save and underconsume. When you save money today, you finance future excess consumption, when you finance consumption today, you forfeit future consumption. 100% (or even higher in today's world) consumption is as bad for Chinese as it is for Americans.

Peter doesn't seem to understand the level of poverty in China. There are something like 700m or more Chinese that make less than $10 a month. Much of China lacks electricity or plumbing.

[PontiffMystic]

Of course Chinese have poverty, because as Peter says, the Chinese don't enjoy their own production that would improve their own standard of living. He already addressed that, and there is 1 billion Chinese. Chinese are capable of consumption of their own goods. He makes an analogy of military in full war gear, where goods are rationed for the military, when they can be consumed by civilians. Car factories were making tanks, instead of cars for everyday people to use. Get it?

[christo930]

The Chinese market, at this point, is only about as big as the us market because so many Chinese live old fashioned, without even farm animals and no electricity.

There between 1.3 and 1.6 billion Chinese. but less than 300m of them are modern. China doesn't have the credit system we have to support such massive consumption with so little of it's population.

I'm not saying they need our consumption, we need their products, but I don't really like China at this point.

[PontiffMystic]

He isn't saying that Chinese should be a consumption economy, he is saying the Chinese exporting goods for Americans to consume, when the Chinese can consume the goods they produce themselves. They are economically much more sound, because they have capital goods, where Americans essentially don't and depend on consumption. It's not easy for a to be eating pizza to start making pizza all of sudden. However a pizza maker can eat his own pizza quite easily. Trade imbalance that is dangerous

[christo930]

This trade imbalance is being caused by the Chinese government.

[petiemac12]

Does it really take a college degree to figure this stuff out? No!!!! If people just open their eyes and look at the facts they will see the truth.

[SteveBKNY]

cool

[userofnames]

and all the fat people couldnt come to grips with reality and starved to death...the end ahhhh