So much for free trade with South Korea.

South Korea recently banned United States beef with just concern over Mad Cow Disease, but doesn't that violate our free trade agreement? They should only ban beef for sale only if we ban beef for sale in the United States, isn't that how free trade works? I guess not.

Perhaps later the Korean government will deem America cars unsafe and ban them from being bought in Korea as well. I doubt that they will go that far, but if Korean automakers start to feel the pinch from American competition, I bet something like that will arise and Koreans will be "encouraged" to buy Korean automobiles instead of American ones.

I have to say that I totally do not blame the South Koreans for banning American beef. I stopped eating beef around 2003 when their were reports that Canadian beef had been discovered to contain Mad Cow Disease. And I know that unless the American farmer has his armed twisted, he is going to ignore safe feed practice laws if it impacts his bottom line. Therefore beef will never really be safe unless proper feeding guidelines are strictly enforced or that beef sales decline so much that they have to change their ways. Perhaps a ban on beef would be a good thing for everyone, not just South Koreans.

I really miss hamburgers, but I'm not taking any chances and I do not blame the South Koreans for playing it safe either. I just wanted to give you this example of how free trade doesn't really work very well when a government places a ban on imported products.