Sino-U.S. tensions are rising, and it’s not just that Treasury Secretary-designate Timothy Geithner declared yesterday that China “manipulates” its currency. It’s worse.
It involves souvenirs, or more precisely, little plastic trinkets with “Made in China” stickers.
It seems that the knick-knacks have gotten the knickers of a Democratic congressman into a knot. The trinkets were to go on sale at the Capitol Visitor Center gift shop in Washington D.C.
Recalling the glory days of “Freedom Fries” and other campaigns aimed at foreign countries, Rep. Robert A. Brady, D-Pa., has barred the gift shop from selling about $104,000 in merchandise from China.
An article at politico.com quoted Brady saying he feels "very strongly that souvenirs sold in House gift shops should be produced by U.S. companies."
That’ll teach ‘em to mess with our souvenirs.
Now that he’s triggered the “kitsch wars,” I wonder if Rep. Brady will be throwing out the Chinese-made items in his garage, and his children’s Chinese-made toys?
No wonder the US Congress is known as "the house of the clowns" here.
The difference between China and the US is: In China government officials/politicians/rendadaibiao are stupid because the Chinese people did not elect them; in the US the same people are stupid because the American people elected them into the office.
Posted by: Pffefer | January 23, 2009 at 12:56 PM
By the way, it anything like that happens in Germany, other European countries and China this guy would be labeled a neo-Nazi. Certain rules just don't to the apply. How lucky.
Speaking of Geithner, this guy is a joke. Tax manipulation is a lot worse than "currency manipulation". What are you gonna do to China, Geithner Obama? Nozzing.
Posted by: Pffefer | January 23, 2009 at 12:59 PM
Obama is going to do exactly what China is doing. Subsidize exports to China and put tarriffs on imports from China. This would counteract the implicit import tarriffs and export subsidies that China is deploying by keeping its currency undervalued.
Posted by: MT | January 23, 2009 at 01:49 PM
I guess its ok to buy slave wage products from a communist country! When you can buy it cheap slave wages and no USA manufacturing are moraly acceptable!
Posted by: fedup | January 23, 2009 at 06:43 PM
Tim, what do you think of the finger-lynching of the quartet in the Obama inauguration? As far as I can tell the reactions and coverage have been far milder than those to the Olympics event, both in China and in the US. A lot of defensive comments on the NYT website.
Posted by: It's four great musicians | January 24, 2009 at 02:02 PM
Please stop using "slave wage", it's a moronic oxymoron. Slaves don't get paid. The Chinese workers do, very little by western standards but nevertheless enough to bring them, on the whole, a nice bit of prosperity. Yes they work hard, quite often in miserable conditions - but if it wasn't better than the alternative - farming little plots of dusty land - then they wouldn't do it. Oh and Pffer's comment number one is spot on. If Winnie Churchill is right in that Democracy is the worst form of government excepting all the others, the U.S. is striving mightily to prove that the degree of improvement over the alternatives are quite small. I blame this on the American educational system. A capable democracy requires an informed electorate. The U.S. have educated two or three generations of masses that have an uncanny resemblence to the crowd in the old Forum and the Circus lining up for free bread handouts from the rich and powerful politicians. Oh yes, and having a kitsch war is a good distraction from everything else. So is marvelling at Michelle's dress, hairstyle, and the new Sasha and Malia dolls.
Posted by: Jaundiced Eye | January 24, 2009 at 02:05 PM
It looks like China will replace France as America's least liked foreign country. So much for the cozy Bush administration China policy, and fears of a copycat "Bushama"
administration. Along with Clinton's call for Taiwan's WHA observer status and Admiral Blair's support for the TRA, the Obama administration might be more pro-Taiwan than any administration ever.
Posted by: Baltimoron | January 28, 2009 at 12:33 AM