The economic plight currently being experienced by the United States really impacts when one arrives in a foreign country like Canada and exchanges US dollars for Canadian. American travelers once enjoyed having a strong dollar, in which exchange usually resulted in a gain of foreign currency. But, things have changed and the stark realization of the weakness of the once almighty US dollar is further impacted when the clerk at the currency exchange, seeing the concern on the American’s face, exclaims, “Don’t be so surprised. Don’t you know your dollar is a very weak currency?” So much for the economic might of America – that’s now a myth.

When Americans travel and realize how weak the US dollar is against other currencies like the Euro, the Japanese Yen and the Canadian dollar, it makes us realize that it is the state of the nation’s economy that should, after all, be the most important issue in the next several months leading up to November’s general elections.

Taking a real close look at the current state of our economy several weaknesses are disclosed.

There is a housing market that is falling apart, and despite attempts at quick-fix solutions, no one seems to be able to find a strong, long-term solution for this situation, which affects both national and international money markets.

Unemployment is slowly on the rise, and more businesses, small and large, are either laying off workers, or are planning to do so.

Because the US economy is dependent on oil, it is at the mercy of international oil producers and the erratic movement in the price they charge per barrel. This has resulted in gasoline and heating oil prices (during one of the worst U.S. winters) climbing to record levels.

In the meantime, a significant percentage of America’s manufacturing sector is being lost to competition from low-wage Asian countries like China and India. Regardless of what is being touted by political candidates in their respective campaigns, it appears that, there will be more job loss among Americans as long as businesses can find competent, low-cost labor overseas.

Turning to the once vibrant, lucrative American auto industry, there is evidence of serious problems. Gradually, Japan’s Toyota Company has grown to be such a gigantic manufacturer and distributor of motor vehicles internationally, that America’s General Motors is being threatened as the world’s top auto company.

The above and other factors are making the majority of Americans (low and middle income families) very vulnerable financially – their standard of living at serious risk. To these families, it matters very little if the current economic hardships are labeled as a recession or not. Simply, they just know that times are hard and all they want are solutions.

Recently, a major argument arose during the presidential campaign, placing some of the blame for the weakening U.S. economy on the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) signed between the U.S., Canada and Mexico in 1994. This agreement, although it has cost America a source of jobs in some states like Ohio, is not the root cause of the nation’s economic problems. In fact, NAFTA does provide lucrative markets, especially in Mexico, for American farmers, and significantly, the agreement provides a dedicated source of oil for America from both Canada and Mexico.

Despite the shortfalls of NAFTA in causing job loss to America, it was, in fact, a means of providing the U.S. with the cheapest labor where possible. Therefore, if, and when, it comes time to renegotiate NAFTA, whoever is president is going to face a strong challenge from American businesses that depend on cheap labor and who are only concerned with the bottom line – the profit margin.

Having said all that, for the sake of the strengthening the economy, a way must be found to get more Americans more jobs, especially the jobs that are being lost overseas. More jobs for Americans means more money being earned and circulated; more money flowing into banks and more money being earned by businesses in general, and retail businesses, in particular.

The importance of creating jobs in America makes it imperative that an entire revision be made of America’s foreign trade policies, including free trade agreements. It should not be expected that America will seek to develop an aggressive protectionist policy to protect itself against foreign imports, as that would lead to serious destabilization of the economies of regions like Latin America and the Caribbean, but still it has to be cognizant of not losing more jobs overseas. It is apparent that an answer must be found to making American businesses less attracted to cheap overseas labor. It may be that the policy of making financial assistance to foreign, especially Third World, economies, should be reviewed, so that such countries can receive the type of assistance that will build their own economies and increase the price of their labor, making this less attractive to American businesses.

The state of our economy is a reason to examine our role in economic globalization. This is a major challenge, if not a dilemma, for the country. America must restore its own economy, providing jobs for its people, and it must ensure that it is able to stimulate economic growth internationally.