Coast to Coast - 2023-02-28 - John Perkins - US & China Economy

US & China Economy

Hosted by
George Noory

Guests:
John Perkins

February 28, 2023

John Perkins is an author and activist whose ten books on global intrigue, shamanism, and transformation have been published in at least 35 languages. In the first half, he offered commentary on what he calls China and America's 'economic hit man' strategy, and much-needed solutions for curing the degenerative 'death economy.' He defined the 'death economy' as a system that is "consuming and polluting itself into extinction," wherein corporations' short-term profits are maximized regardless of the social and environmental cost. His term 'economic hit men' refers to how corporations pick out developing countries with resources they covet, and then generate a huge loan to that country. The money doesn't actually go to the country but to the corporation to build infrastructure there.

The latest wave of 'economic hit men' has been conducted by China with their investments in African countries. China has a growing older population and is turning to Africa and Latin America for younger people, he added. "There's no question that China wants to be the dominant economic power in the world," he noted, yet it doesn't want to see the US suffer too badly as their businesses and manufacturing are so intertwined. Together, the two countries create almost 50% of the world's economy, along with around 40% of the pollution. If America and China don't make an effort to change their approach, "we're in deep trouble," he remarked. Perkins suggested that we should look at ways to retool the economy to rejuvenate destroyed environments, such as mining the plastic in the ocean and restoring coral reefs.