THE FREE MARKET
By
Dr. Mahathir Mohamad
on July 28, 2010 2:39 PM
1. A long time ago when I was Prime Minister I met President Bush the father, at Boston University where he was conferring degrees for graduates. I met him in a side room and I told him of the unfair anti-palm oil campaign by America, blaming it for heart diseases.
2. We later submitted palm oil samples for three American chemical laboratories to examine the cholesterol contents. Their findings proved that although palm oil had more cholesterol than rival soya bean oil, the main edible oil in America, cooking reduced palm oil cholesterol but increased the cholesterol in soya bean oil.
3. The campaign against palm oil stopped but Americans still refused to use palm oil for cooking to this day. It was a case of non-tariff barrier. But that is the way America deals with competitions.
4. When the Vietnamese exported catfish to America, American catfish producers got their Government to declare that Vietnamese catfish is not catfish. The catfish farmers in Vietnam lost their business.
5. Malaysia-made rubber gloves were banned in the United States because out of the hundreds of millions used, one person had allergic reaction.
6. Foreign aircraft manufacturers wishing to export to the United States have to use American components and do part of the finishing in America. It is the same with the automobile. The Japanese and the Koreans have to put up plants in the United States and employ American workers in order to remain in the United States market.
7. Despite all these conditions Toyota's share of the world auto market grew. Then news came that Toyota was on the verge of becoming the No 1 automotive manufacturer in the world, displacing General Motors of the United States.
8. American's pride was hurt. Soon something was found to fail in the hybrid Toyota "Prius". Apparently one American user from tens of thousands was hurt because the brakes failed.
9. The news about the Prius failure hit the headlines in the American controlled world media. Toyota was forced to recall tens of thousands of the Prius model. The losses were enormous.
10. In order to put Toyota in its proper place the head of Toyota Corporation was summoned to Washington to face a congressional enquiry.
11. Toyota's position as a possible biggest automobile manufacturer in the world has been eroded. But while American auto manufacturers have to be put under Chapter II, i.e. as bankrupts, Toyota is still showing profits. In time Toyota will become the biggest automobile company in the world, the faults with the Prius notwithstanding.
12. There really is no free market. If tariff and other barriers fail to stop imports, the application of sanctions against countries, whatever may be the reason is also another form of non-tariff barrier. Free trade simply does not exist.
13. Truly hypocrisy prevails in the markets and in international trade. The greatest hypocrites are the very people who conceive and promote the idea of tariff free world trade.
THE FREE MARKET - Che Det
THE FREE MARKET 2
1. When I wrote about the free market, I was not thinking of wanting to make money from the United States. It is good if we can but without the US market Malaysian palm oil is doing extremely well.
2. I just wanted to show the hypocrisy of America. We do not go around the world preaching free market, so if we are not so free as alleged, we are not being hypocritical. I had always been sceptical of ideas coming from the rich. They are all self-serving.
3. They preach and fiercely demand that all Governments stop regulating their trade. Yet they are the ones most guilty of protecting their trade.
4. In fact the US has gone beyond that. Trade is to them a political instrument for the promotion of their agenda for the world. By applying sanctions in trade they will try to force countries to submit to their policies. If a country does not support their sanction they have means of squeezing companies or banks from that country.
5. Sanctions is denial of free trade in totality and in Iraq before the 2003 invasion it caused the deaths of 500,000 children. That is how far the abuse of free trade is indulged in by the US. But they talk all the time that trade must be free. If this is not hypocrisy, then what is hypocrisy?
6. Incidentally they talk much about democracy i.e. the freedom to choose one's own Government. But they have no hesitation about warring and killing hundreds of thousands of Iraqis in order to force them to accept democracy. Is this the free choice as advocated by democracy?
7. Is there democracy in the United Nations where one country can negate the will of 190 other member countries? Yet this same country talks so much about democracy and the good that democracy will bring. Practise first, then talk.
8. In my time I had often enough said that Malaysia was not and did not aspire to be a liberal democracy. And when we did things which did not seem to be in keeping with liberal democracy it is because we did not promise to be a liberal democracy.
EDUCATION
9. Some have asked me to comment on our education policy. While we have concentrated on making education available to almost everyone, the quality of education is obviously in need of improving.
10. It is not having examination which is wrong. It is the kind of examination we conduct which is wrong. We need to study the kind of examination and improve it rather than simply abolishing examinations.
THE FREE MARKET 2 - Che Det
By
Dr. Mahathir Mohamad
on July 28, 2010 2:39 PM
1. A long time ago when I was Prime Minister I met President Bush the father, at Boston University where he was conferring degrees for graduates. I met him in a side room and I told him of the unfair anti-palm oil campaign by America, blaming it for heart diseases.
2. We later submitted palm oil samples for three American chemical laboratories to examine the cholesterol contents. Their findings proved that although palm oil had more cholesterol than rival soya bean oil, the main edible oil in America, cooking reduced palm oil cholesterol but increased the cholesterol in soya bean oil.
3. The campaign against palm oil stopped but Americans still refused to use palm oil for cooking to this day. It was a case of non-tariff barrier. But that is the way America deals with competitions.
4. When the Vietnamese exported catfish to America, American catfish producers got their Government to declare that Vietnamese catfish is not catfish. The catfish farmers in Vietnam lost their business.
5. Malaysia-made rubber gloves were banned in the United States because out of the hundreds of millions used, one person had allergic reaction.
6. Foreign aircraft manufacturers wishing to export to the United States have to use American components and do part of the finishing in America. It is the same with the automobile. The Japanese and the Koreans have to put up plants in the United States and employ American workers in order to remain in the United States market.
7. Despite all these conditions Toyota's share of the world auto market grew. Then news came that Toyota was on the verge of becoming the No 1 automotive manufacturer in the world, displacing General Motors of the United States.
8. American's pride was hurt. Soon something was found to fail in the hybrid Toyota "Prius". Apparently one American user from tens of thousands was hurt because the brakes failed.
9. The news about the Prius failure hit the headlines in the American controlled world media. Toyota was forced to recall tens of thousands of the Prius model. The losses were enormous.
10. In order to put Toyota in its proper place the head of Toyota Corporation was summoned to Washington to face a congressional enquiry.
11. Toyota's position as a possible biggest automobile manufacturer in the world has been eroded. But while American auto manufacturers have to be put under Chapter II, i.e. as bankrupts, Toyota is still showing profits. In time Toyota will become the biggest automobile company in the world, the faults with the Prius notwithstanding.
12. There really is no free market. If tariff and other barriers fail to stop imports, the application of sanctions against countries, whatever may be the reason is also another form of non-tariff barrier. Free trade simply does not exist.
13. Truly hypocrisy prevails in the markets and in international trade. The greatest hypocrites are the very people who conceive and promote the idea of tariff free world trade.
THE FREE MARKET - Che Det
THE FREE MARKET 2
1. When I wrote about the free market, I was not thinking of wanting to make money from the United States. It is good if we can but without the US market Malaysian palm oil is doing extremely well.
2. I just wanted to show the hypocrisy of America. We do not go around the world preaching free market, so if we are not so free as alleged, we are not being hypocritical. I had always been sceptical of ideas coming from the rich. They are all self-serving.
3. They preach and fiercely demand that all Governments stop regulating their trade. Yet they are the ones most guilty of protecting their trade.
4. In fact the US has gone beyond that. Trade is to them a political instrument for the promotion of their agenda for the world. By applying sanctions in trade they will try to force countries to submit to their policies. If a country does not support their sanction they have means of squeezing companies or banks from that country.
5. Sanctions is denial of free trade in totality and in Iraq before the 2003 invasion it caused the deaths of 500,000 children. That is how far the abuse of free trade is indulged in by the US. But they talk all the time that trade must be free. If this is not hypocrisy, then what is hypocrisy?
6. Incidentally they talk much about democracy i.e. the freedom to choose one's own Government. But they have no hesitation about warring and killing hundreds of thousands of Iraqis in order to force them to accept democracy. Is this the free choice as advocated by democracy?
7. Is there democracy in the United Nations where one country can negate the will of 190 other member countries? Yet this same country talks so much about democracy and the good that democracy will bring. Practise first, then talk.
8. In my time I had often enough said that Malaysia was not and did not aspire to be a liberal democracy. And when we did things which did not seem to be in keeping with liberal democracy it is because we did not promise to be a liberal democracy.
EDUCATION
9. Some have asked me to comment on our education policy. While we have concentrated on making education available to almost everyone, the quality of education is obviously in need of improving.
10. It is not having examination which is wrong. It is the kind of examination we conduct which is wrong. We need to study the kind of examination and improve it rather than simply abolishing examinations.
THE FREE MARKET 2 - Che Det
