Response to Dodson - Chapter Eight

When we think of something that we want, the thought that usually comes to mind is an object or item which can be purchased.  However, we rarely question the true value of something we are buying.  In Chapter eight, Dodson discussed the value of the yuan, and its significance to the American dollar.  It is not uncommon for most products in the average American citizen’s home to be labeled “made in China” on the back.  This is exactly the issue Dodson discusses: China is so concerned with outsourcing, that the value of the yuan is so much less than the US dollar, therefore (in a blatant way) ripping themselves off.  In fact, the “yuan [is] nearly 50 percent undervalued compared with the dollar.” (pg. 161).  This means that China is selling items to the US for half of what we, the consumers, will pay for it.  For example, Dodson uses the example of a big mac, stating that in America, it costs $3.58, while you will only have to pay $1.83 for this same burger in China (pg. 161).  Although I get very confused by currency exchange, I think I understand the gist of what Dodson is trying to explain.  It seems to me that China is losing value in their own products, and instead of circulating within their own buyer’s market, they are behind in their economic thinking, and are instead making deals with every other country.  In order to balance this out, and not cut themselves short economically, Dodson discusses that China needed to “develop a more consumer-based economy to supplant a large portion of its manufacturing sector” (pg. 167).