Arnold- Trade Deficit-
I'm middling certain that the trade deficit number refers to merchandise- you know, stuff a customs agent can put his hands on. This is a throwback to the days of yore when that's all that was really traded. As such, it does not even include what are broadly referred to as services (financial services are something the US offers the rest of the world in a big way). But it's hard to measure such things, or at least the mechanisms to do so have not been put in place. So next time your favorite politician starts bashing the Japs for their "huge trade imbalance" with the US, perhaps you should take him down a notch in your estimation.
Reflecting on life's deep mysteries and Vanessa Mae, it is positively unfair that the fickle fortune of Fate bestows both beauty and talent to such a remarkable degree on some, while others of us ...
Larry
P.S. To Paul Berliner: Thanks for posting that bit about Miss Choi's arrest. I was aware of the Korean ban on private lessons, but somehow I had imagined it did not apply to musicians. It beautifully illustrates how even relatively benign governments stand in the way of the most innocuous of human exchanges. I would encourage Americans on this thread to write to the Korean ambassador to the US voicing their disapproval about her arrest, and I will provide the address if anyone requests it. Remember, Miss Choi lost her job over this idiocy.
P.P.S. Tip of the hat to MikeM who beat me to this point. Because he did not respond to your original message, I missed it when I reviewed the responses to your post. |
