Monitor | If Mitt Romney is worrying, Paul Ryan is literally scary
If some of the US presidential candidate’s political ideas are wrong, they pale in comparison with his running mate’s devotion to Ayn Rand
Even with a hurricane blowing in from the Gulf of Mexico, the Republican convention in Tampa, Florida looks a lot more fun than any party congress the Chinese communists are ever likely to hold.
Some of the political ideas being expounded from the stage, however, are just as wrong-headed.
First there's presidential candidate Mitt Romney's pledge to "designate China a currency manipulator and impose countervailing duties" on US imports from China.
Romney says China deliberately undervalues its currency to steal an unfair advantage in its trade with America.
At first it looks like he has a point. Over the 12 months to June, the US imported US$414 billion worth of stuff from China, while China only bought US$107 billion of US goods and services.
That imbalance left the US sitting on a record trade deficit with China of US$307 billion.