I posted a blog piece about corporate responsibility, or rather the lack thereof, in terms of gutting American industry in favor of cheap goods made in China by low wage or even slave labor. OregonLive posted an article just this morning with an excellent contemporary illustration of my point. American hospitals face a shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as masks, gowns, booties, surgical caps, etc. Today's article explains that this is because about 97% of PPE items were made at one factory at a city in China. As China's own coronavirus crisis became more severe, the Chinese government diverted production internally. Shocker! Totally unforeseeable I'm sure - not. This illustrates the huge difference between the "national interest" and a narrow "corporate interest."
The U.S. is 20+ years behind in doing a careful analysis of what manufacturing is of critical national interest to this country and then taking steps to insure that this manufacturing is not off-shored, especially to China. When we need something NOW, we cannot wait and we especially cannot allow ourselves to be held hostage by a potential enemy. For an excellent analysis of this whole situation, I recommend Stealth War by Brig. Gen. (ret.) Robert Spalding, who did in-depth research in this area for the National Security Council and China expert for the Joint Chiefs at the Pentagon.
https://www.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/2020/03/medical-supply-imports-to-us-plummet-as-demand-soars-amid-coronavirus-pandemic.html
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