I understand there is a US trade delegation in China right now trying to negotiate an end to Chinese theft of our intellectual property rights. I doubt if they’ll get very far. We are at a disadvantage, we are not exactly sure what it is we want, and they know exactly what they can get away with.

This isn’t really brain surgery, or particle physics, or even rocket science. If Chinese companies steal our patents, we should sue them in court until we get satisfaction. If they refuse to meet our law, we should seize their assets in the US and refuse them the right to do business here. Its what we would do with any other country’s companies engaged in trade here. Chinese companies have been shown to accept the judgments of our courts, especially when failure to do so will cost them sales and get their property seized.

It appears the real problem isn’t that the Chinese are stealing our industrial secrets. Its that they demand that US firms share their technology with Chinese companies as a prerequisite to us doing business there. China’s market is huge, most firms will do anything to sell to it. And it goes without saying that Chinese outfits that sell here have their products marketed by US middlemen who profit highly, and therefore lobby vigorously, to make it easy on the Chinese. It sounds to me like the problem isn’t so much Chinese theft as it is American greed.

If we really think their rules are unfair, then we shouldn’t play their game. We make Japanese and European auto makers assemble some of their cars here in the US, I’m sure we could work out a similar arrangement with the Chinese.