Thoughtful Procrastination.

I'm should currently be doing tons and tons of school work, but I need a little bit of creative time to get thoughts out.  So why not write about an issue that really pertains to what I'm working on at school?Then I won't feel so guilty.

The case study I should be writing right now pertains to the Free Trade Agreement between South Korea and the US, or, KORUS.  As I'm studying information in my text book and online, I have the same thought that I do every time I look at information comparing US exports to imports- "Dis be cray cray."  (Yeah, I do talk to myself in a SUPER professional vocabulary all the time.)

Source: http://www.census.gov/indicator/www/ustrade.html

As of November 2012, our trade balance was -$48.7 BILLION.  In 2009, the US exported $1.27 trillion in goods, and imported $2.1 trillion.  So I instantly start thinking, "Wow.  The government should really consider fixing this, it would help our national debt and we would all quit worrying about Beyonce lip synching."  But that's not true.  The government is essentially a business.  They use supply and demand, just like other major corporations do.  If we, as buyers at a certain store, want red bicycles, they will provide red bicycles.  But if we want blue scooters instead, they will provide the blue scooters, and probably quit providing red bicycles as much, if at all.

Transfer this thought process to something as basic as grocery shopping.  If you and your family decide to have taco night on Christmas Eve, you expect for everything you need to be at the store: fresh tomatoes. avocado.  the greenest, largest head of lettuce ever seen.  But there's a problem: these products don't grow naturally in the middle of December anywhere around here.  Granted, we can get avocados from California, and most likely tomatoes, too, but usually here in East Texas they come from Mexico.  Luckily, we have a FTA with them too. (Yes, that NAFTA thing is great for taco night.)

And sure, a $2 avocado isn't going to make that much difference, but what about the car industry?  It has been said that the automotive industry is linked to more sectors in of the economy than any other industry.  It is responsible for about 1 in 10 jobs in all industrialized countries.  What I'm saying is that the auto industry is HUGE.  So what about my imported car from Germany?  Or that Toyota across the street?  Yes, those are costing the United States a huge imbalance! But guess what? It's what we asked for.  We want the blue scooter from China rather than the red bike from Chicago.  It adds up quickly and we are the only ones who can do anything about it.

I'm not trying to start some radical grassroots campaign of only buying products "MADE IN THE USA," just shining a light on the issue.  Now, I'm going to go buy some avocados and pico.  I want some unnatural imported guacamole.

xo_vs