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TrickyDick and the dollar 狡猾的迪克和美元 Does Richard Nixon have anything to teach BarackObama about economic diplomacy? 在经济外交上，尼克松真的有可以教奥巴马的吗? THE Nixon shock is not the name given toPresident Richard Nixon s resignation in 1974amid the Watergate scandal, his bombing ofCambodia during the Vietnam war or hisaudacious visit to communist China. It refersinstead to a bundle of economic policies unveiled to an unsuspecting world on August 15th1971. The president imposed a freeze on wages and prices for 90 days to break inflation,ended the convertibility of dollars into gold, and slapped a surcharge or tariff of 10% onimports. 尼克松冲击不是在说美国故总统尼克松在1974年为水门事件而下台，也不是在说他在越战期间对柬埔寨大肆轰炸，更不是在说他大胆的造访了共产中国。这词是在说他在1971年8月15日毫无预警的对世界宣布了一套经济政策。这位总统为了遏止通胀，将薪资成长和物价冻结了九十天，终结了美元和黄金可以用一定比例互换的制度，也对进口货物扣上了10%的附加税。 Nixon is not usually a source of inspiration for left-leaning pundits such as Paul Krugman ofthe New York Times. But like 130 congressmen, who this month signed a letter to TimothyGeithner, America s treasury secretary, he is calling on the White House to emulate Nixonand impose a surcharge on imports from China. The tariff is supposed to force China tostrengthen its currency, the yuan, against the dollar, just as Nixon s surcharge promptedAmerica s trading partners to renegotiate their exchange rates four months later. | 
