The Checks and Balances of Warring Economies: Corona Virus.
There have been quite a few complaints about nations importing medical equipment
from China to fight Corona Virus. The complaints are mainly on suspicion that
China, where all this began, has all of a sudden recovered and while other
nations are completely paralyzed, she has gone fully operational, buying market
shares at very low prices and providing all sorts of export goods for most
paralyzed economies. In short, that China is the winner in this game. Some even ask
if she knew this or planned it beforehand.
I have no answers to such questions.
I only have my own questions; has China told us all the truth about what happened and is happening there? Can we trust her statistics? Can her recovery be so complete and total as to have all her industries functioning as they are doing? Is there a possibility that there are some sick people working in her factories? And if that possibility exist, will her goods not be contaminated? Are we sure the goods coming from China are safe? China has enough people that she can sacrifice a few for economic gain and the world won't even notice it. Are we being accomplices and covering up some human rights abuses here? Who dares to go to China now to investigate human rights abuses (hahaha)!
The whole world claims to be following China's example of complete lockdown in the fight against Corona virus. We know that there's no such thing as a 100% lockdown. Supposed that only 10% of China's 1.4 billion are working, that will be about 140m people working. How many countries can compete with such figures? Only 10% of China is the workforce of whole nations put together and functioning at a 100%. To think that we can lock down 100% and survive, is to lie to ourselves. We need serious and hard discipline and control to fight the virus but we need to keep the economy afloat somehow. The example of China ( even if it were true) cannot be followed. Besides, if no one has ever believed China on her human rights records, why do we believe her now?
Furthermore, imagine we were at war with China, shall we turn round and buy war equipment from China? She will most certainly sell defective products to maintain her superiority.
We have a case in hand, the Spanish government has imported huge amounts of face masks from China and has had to return them because they didn't meet up with the quality standards. How many of such equipment has been exported to other countries?
The big question is, in times of war-like emergencies like this one, is it not much economical and safer to reconvert local factories to produce the needed material instead of importing? And Ridiculous Masks for that matter!!!
And if Spain can't do it on her own, where are her Union Members? At this point in time, can the European Union provide for the medical needs of her citizens without depending on China for breathing machines and ridiculous face masks?
If the answer is NO, then our security in Europe is zero. We can argue that it is an emergency situation and we haven’t had time to prepare. Yes, but we haven't known how to react and how to control the situation either. Europe is overwhelmed, short and simple. In war terms, Europe has surrendered!!!!
Let me turn my attention to Africa. I have just seen a video of a young Ghanaian presenting a locally made hand-washing machine that he proposes to be left at street corners. I think it is a great initiative and a good business idea.
I pray and I hope Ghanaians will promote national technology instead of importation.
We could say the same to all African countries and other countries of the developing world. Do you really need to buy masks from China? Instead of buying suspicious masks from China, with all the tailors we have around, bag and shoe producers, could we not reconvert their workshops for the emergency production of masks? It doesn't appear to be a very complex process after all. Why do we need to accumulate more depths? Why do we have to expose our population to external, suspicious and uncontrollable forces?
If one business person invests in the project to ensure the quality, quantity and hygiene conditions, we won't need to beg nor buy masks from anywhere.
However, and as usual, you need a government in place to promote, endorse or finance suchinitiatives. Do we have such governments in Africa?
I know this is a conspiracy theory I’m weaving. But do we have any other option? How can we not but be suspicious? The world is wrapped up in a pandemic in the face of which there are more questions than answers. How can we be at peace without clear answers? And if it were true that this thing is man-made, who made it, who is the game starter? And who knew about it before it happened? What did they do? What are their plans at the moment?
Having observed that to the great nations of the world, their multinationals and big corporate bodies, economic interest and military superiority have most often taken precedence over human life and any moral consideration, can we therefore trust anyone? If you ask my opinion, I will say that Corona virus has put to the test not only our economies but also the strength of our mutual trust. The ideal and the reality of globalization has been weighed on the scales and found wanting; mené, mené tekel ufarsin.
I have no answers to such questions.
I only have my own questions; has China told us all the truth about what happened and is happening there? Can we trust her statistics? Can her recovery be so complete and total as to have all her industries functioning as they are doing? Is there a possibility that there are some sick people working in her factories? And if that possibility exist, will her goods not be contaminated? Are we sure the goods coming from China are safe? China has enough people that she can sacrifice a few for economic gain and the world won't even notice it. Are we being accomplices and covering up some human rights abuses here? Who dares to go to China now to investigate human rights abuses (hahaha)!
The whole world claims to be following China's example of complete lockdown in the fight against Corona virus. We know that there's no such thing as a 100% lockdown. Supposed that only 10% of China's 1.4 billion are working, that will be about 140m people working. How many countries can compete with such figures? Only 10% of China is the workforce of whole nations put together and functioning at a 100%. To think that we can lock down 100% and survive, is to lie to ourselves. We need serious and hard discipline and control to fight the virus but we need to keep the economy afloat somehow. The example of China ( even if it were true) cannot be followed. Besides, if no one has ever believed China on her human rights records, why do we believe her now?
Furthermore, imagine we were at war with China, shall we turn round and buy war equipment from China? She will most certainly sell defective products to maintain her superiority.
We have a case in hand, the Spanish government has imported huge amounts of face masks from China and has had to return them because they didn't meet up with the quality standards. How many of such equipment has been exported to other countries?
The big question is, in times of war-like emergencies like this one, is it not much economical and safer to reconvert local factories to produce the needed material instead of importing? And Ridiculous Masks for that matter!!!
And if Spain can't do it on her own, where are her Union Members? At this point in time, can the European Union provide for the medical needs of her citizens without depending on China for breathing machines and ridiculous face masks?
If the answer is NO, then our security in Europe is zero. We can argue that it is an emergency situation and we haven’t had time to prepare. Yes, but we haven't known how to react and how to control the situation either. Europe is overwhelmed, short and simple. In war terms, Europe has surrendered!!!!
Let me turn my attention to Africa. I have just seen a video of a young Ghanaian presenting a locally made hand-washing machine that he proposes to be left at street corners. I think it is a great initiative and a good business idea.
I pray and I hope Ghanaians will promote national technology instead of importation.
We could say the same to all African countries and other countries of the developing world. Do you really need to buy masks from China? Instead of buying suspicious masks from China, with all the tailors we have around, bag and shoe producers, could we not reconvert their workshops for the emergency production of masks? It doesn't appear to be a very complex process after all. Why do we need to accumulate more depths? Why do we have to expose our population to external, suspicious and uncontrollable forces?
If one business person invests in the project to ensure the quality, quantity and hygiene conditions, we won't need to beg nor buy masks from anywhere.
However, and as usual, you need a government in place to promote, endorse or finance suchinitiatives. Do we have such governments in Africa?
I know this is a conspiracy theory I’m weaving. But do we have any other option? How can we not but be suspicious? The world is wrapped up in a pandemic in the face of which there are more questions than answers. How can we be at peace without clear answers? And if it were true that this thing is man-made, who made it, who is the game starter? And who knew about it before it happened? What did they do? What are their plans at the moment?
Having observed that to the great nations of the world, their multinationals and big corporate bodies, economic interest and military superiority have most often taken precedence over human life and any moral consideration, can we therefore trust anyone? If you ask my opinion, I will say that Corona virus has put to the test not only our economies but also the strength of our mutual trust. The ideal and the reality of globalization has been weighed on the scales and found wanting; mené, mené tekel ufarsin.
-T.V.King.
Cool big brother
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