You know what they say about opinions...

Harold Meyerson, an opinion columnist at the Washington Post, is a frequent commenter on economic phenomena. I don't know much about his background, but I would guess that he has never picked up an Economics textbook in his life:

August 24, 2009

To: Washington Post Editor

In his August 12, 2009 column, “Just One Word: Factories,” Harold Meyerson laments the death of US manufacturing and the growing US trade imbalance (better labeled the Current Account imbalance). Mr. Meyerson uses an analogy to underline the gravity of the trade imbalance saying, “If there were a debtor’s prison for nations, we’d all be in the clink.” Leaving aside the question of manufacturing, I challenge Mr. Meyerson to support his analogy by explaining how he knows that debt was used to finance US trade abroad and why he believes the money was spent unwisely.

The US Current Account measures the value of imported and exported goods and services in US dollars. It says nothing about the means used to finance the trade: hence my confusion with Mr. Meyerson’s analogy of debtor’s prison.

Sincerely,

Michael