On Friday's "Hardball" CNBC's Erin Burnett spoke with Chris Matthews about the current instability in the U.S. economy and Burnett had these choice words to say about China:
"A lot of people like to say, uh, scaremonger about China, right? A lot of politicians, and I know you talk about that issue all the time. I think people should be careful what they wish for on China. Ya know, if China were to revalue it's currency or China is to start making say, toys that don't have lead in them or food that isn't poisonous, their costs of production are going to go up and that means prices at Wal-Mart here in the United States are going to go up too. So, I would say China is our greatest friend right now, they're keeping prices low and they're keeping the prices for mortgages low, too."
Burnett makes a valid point, if China were to revalue it's currency we'd be screwed -- so we should just keep our traps shut, let our children gnaw on lead coated toys and eat potentially lethal food so the Walton family doesn't lose money? I realize it's a much deeper issue than that, but she probably should have used different analogies to get her point across.
Speaking of Wal-Mart, if you haven't yet seen Robert Greenwald's documentary, Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price, you can pick up a copy here. It'll make you think twice about setting foot in a Wal-Mart again...