Red Friday 2007

The Friday after Thanksgiving is referred to as Black Friday, as the retaillers usually see a profit that day. I refer to it as RED Friday, as most americans will only add to their debt on that day, and the money spent will find it's way into the coffers of the communist Chinese government. I started this last year in this other post, and I will continue to do an annual jeremiad about it until people listen, or our economy crashes. Yes, it's looking like the former possibility is more likely.

So, what's changed since last year? Well, the value of the American Dollar is down 30% versus the Euro, and also down against the British Pound and Japanese Yen. Ahh, but the dollar hasn't fallen in relation to the Chinese Yuan right? The Chinese currency is pegged to the US Dollar, so that as our dollar gets weaker, chinese imports to this country won't spike in value. Which means that americans can continue to buy chinese goods until the Dollar is 1:1 with the old Italian Lira, and the destruction of our economy is complete.

Oil, on the other hand, is not pegged to the Dollar, as any observer will note that the cost of a barrel of oil is up 60% from this time last year. Yes, it hurts, and will continue to hurt, until we both reduce consumer consumption and get our currency under control.

So, what does this have to do with shopping on RED Friday? Here are some suggestions:

1. Don't buy so much stuff!
2. If you just have to but stuff, don't buy stuff made in China.
3. Instead of buying a plasma TV, buy a copy of 'The Wealth of Nations' by Adam Smith.
4. Instead of buying a new Playstation, buy a copy of 'The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire' by Edward Gibbon.
5. Some of you are talented folks, so craft something instead. We used to make stuff in this country, so revive the tradition.

Red Friday Cometh

The Friday after Thanksgiving is now commonly known as Black Friday, as it’s insinuated how the pre-Christmas shopping done on that day puts merchants “in the black”. I propose a different moniker for it: Red Friday. Here’s why:

1) A large number of Americans will surrender their meager savings, and many go into debt, in an orgy of fiscal incontinence, also called “Holiday shopping”. The average American adult will accrue an extra $1,000 in debt for holiday shopping, Americans will be “in the Red” for next year’s landfill fodder and yardsale flotsam.

2) Many of the products purchased by said Americans will be produced overseas, adding to our overall trade deficit. Last year’s trade deficit was $655 Billion (excluding petroleum), which is a tremendous drag on our own economy, and has been devastating to our own manufacturing base. Buying cheap has never cost so much.

3) Much of the above trade deficits will be the products made in Communist China. In 2005, the trade imbalance with China, alone, was $202 BILLION. They also happen to hold a sizeable amount of U.S. debt, which end up giving them a significant amount of leverage over us, especially in the arena of currency values and trade.

4) Oh, sure, the products are inexpensive. That’s because they’re made by people in squalid conditions, making a pittance. I believe that we found those conditions intolerable in our own country, so why do we turn a blind eye to it elsewhere, precisely when we’re generating the demand for it? And if earning squat was bad enough, these people don’t get to practice their religion freely, nor speak freely, nor have unfiltered information sources (Thanks for your help with that, Google). Many are killed by their oppressive governments.

So, when you go out shopping for holiday merchandise this year, be it on Red Friday, or any other day, look at your labels, and decide if it’s really worth the cost to you, your country, and the people who suffer to bring you these items.