Growing trade deficit is selling the nation out from under us (2003) [pdf]

I'd have expected better from Warren Buffett. It's not a zero-sum game, the developed countries running chronic trade surpluses like Germany and Sweden (my home country) are fooling themselves, because the only way they can do that is by putting a brake on domestic consumption by keeping wages low.

Everybody in the EU would be better off if those countries actually let their consumers spend the money that they're hoarding. All of that spending wouldn't go on foreign goods, so it would even benefit their own producers as well. Yet German politicians indoctrinated in stupid frugality (that once had a point, but is completely outdated) continue to scold countries that run trade deficits in order to buy German goods instead of suffocating their economy and making it even worse for everybody, especially Germany.

This. The problem with looking at trade deficits is that they are comparative trade phallus envy that somehow "demand" regulatory "action" when others don't buy enough of our stuff. How dare them! These deeply-unpopular actions alienating allies certainly won't motivate them to purchase more but than can and will convince them to purchase a lot less. Losing customers abroad who don't want American stuff and losing customers at home who can't buy stuff from elsewhere or stuff from home since prices shot up and they were laid off. Nothing good will come of any of this because the leader is, no doubt, using breaking things for personal gain and to weasel their way into staying in power indefinitely by creating protests and/or war to justify it.