Let's first ensure that you, the reader, has a grasp on the concept of wealth-Wealth is a very broad term that encompass all things valuable (money, stocks, houses, shoes). If it has value, it is wealth. That being said, let's start the lesson...
There are only two ways to acquire wealth - earn it or make it. The service industries EARN wealth and the manufacturing industries MAKE wealth. There is no other way to acquire it. By the way, investments fall into the service industry category.
Let me give you an example: Let's say you have two islands. On island 'A' there are rocks and caves and nothing else except enough plants to keep the natives alive. On island 'B', there are trees and plenty of plants. Island 'A's people can manufacture nothing and therefore gain no wealth. Island 'B's people make boats, furniture, hair combs, candles and etcetera thus as island 'B' makes more products, they gain wealth (even though there is no money). A man on island 'B' with a boat is wealthier than a man on island 'A' with nothing.
The only way that island 'A's people can gain wealth is to provide services (labor) to island 'B's people (manufacturing).
How to kill a country-The very best way to kill a country is to kill the manufacturing of that country. The Republicrats and the Demlicans have been doing this very effectively since the 1960s. They have choked off American manufacturing by making laws that unfairly gives foreign manufacturing an edge.
China is a prime example, US manufacturers have been almost completely wiped out because of environmental laws, workers laws, and taxes where as Chinese manufacturers have almost none of these restraints AND the benefit of almost slave labor. The US government then further hurts the US manufacturers by giving China most favored trading status and removing virtually all tariffs! There's NO WAY American manufacturing can compete because the US government has made the playing field so lop-sided in China's favor!
Let's clarify that enviromental and worker laws are not bad things. What is bad is when country 'A' has to follow them and country 'B' does not (and the government of country 'A' gives country 'B' virtually tariff free trade)!
The Free-Trade agreements, which were sold to the American people as a guaranteed market for US goods, have horribly back-fired. They have cause more foreign made products to flood the US and have choked off US manufacturing even more by allowing jobs and industries to flee across the border.
The US people don't seem to mind killing themselves as long as they can buy a cheap-DVD players for $30...
What fools these mortals be