Let's be clear: China is not playing fair with the USA on economic and IP issues. But the USA keeps crawling back to China to build and sell stuff. Like crack addicts, enjoying cheap product while destroying ourselves, we watch China sign joint ventures with US companies then promptly open a competing factory down the street with the stolen IP. Nevertheless, blaming our trade deficit wholly on China follows a path as cliché and misleading as blaming lobbyists for Congressional greed. The Economist offers this graphic in this week's business news email. My eyes may deceive me, but it looks like import growth from ex-China outpaces import growth from China. Which suggests, dear consumer, that we have met the enemy, and he is us. The world saves; the US has not only not saved, we have spent more even than we make for the last 2 months.

Word for the day: kleptocracy: rule by thieves. Used regularly by the Economist to describe several African governments. One wonders, in the light of events such as the $8 billion handover of drilling royalties to oil companies, what prevents the Economist from using this term to describe the USA. In a related note, after several minutes of searching via google & foxnews.com, I can find no sign that Fox News is covering this story. Wonder why the left and the right don't see eye to eye? They aren't even seeing the same news.

AP headline: Cheney Breaks Silence on Hunting Accident

BBC headline: Cheney accepts blame for shooting

Cheney: "It's not Harry's fault."

Four signs a company is ripe for takeover:

1. slower-than-average sales growth
2. low share ownership by the company and board
3. low price to book value ratio
4. recently published annual report

Full article here

In a post I made last year, I argued that the wealthy nations are increasingly little more than finance economies. There are import-export arguments one could make, but the $521,000 average pay of Goldman Sachs employees has much more oomph, doesn't it?

From a Motley Fool email: "According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute's 2005 Retirement Confidence Survey, fewer than half of all Americans age 55 and older have even $45,000 saved up for retirement. In fact, excluding home equity, the median net worth of retirement-age Americans is closer to $30,000 -- which explains why their savings suffice to fund only 11% of their living costs." "Wow" doesn't even cover it. Regularly I wonder how so many people seem to afford big, new vehicles while we drive a perfectly nice but used Camry. It's hard to keep reminding myself that the difference is probably that we're saving a good amount for retirement. Please, please, please put some savings away for retirement. Save half of each raise you get, save your tax refund, at least take advantage of any match your employer provides in a 401(k).