Who Sold Us Out to China?

Not wanting to sound like xenophobe or jngoistic but reading Eugene Robinson's Summer's Wake-Up Calls brought up what is a sort point for me. Clinton gets dumped on about missile secrets going to China (even though I have seen no proof that they got them) what George W. Bush did to us and for China goes unremarked (generally):

"Whenever the television cameras pull back to show Beijing's stunning new architecture -- the Bird's Nest, the bubble-wrapped swimming center, the state television headquarters building that has a hole in the middle and no visible means of support for the upper floors -- it's impossible not to recall that our relationship to China is that of debtor to creditor. And the fact is that one tends to be polite to the bank that holds one's mortgage."

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Obama will probably talk more about engagement and the "international community," while McCain is likely to sound more confrontational. I'm pretty sure, though, that neither will come clean about a central truth: Our future is being decided not just in Washington but in Beijing and Moscow -- and in Riyadh, Islamabad, New Delhi, Dubai, Caracas, Abuja, Brasilia. . . .

We still have the wherewithal to lead. But we're deluding ourselves if we believe we won't have to adapt to the new reality.

China viewed from Australia

Actually, Chinese tech industry.

The Age has an article on the emerging Chinese computer industry. While not something I necessarily track, I have seen nothing about Chinese computing.

But now the Chinese are producing a PC that uses a Chinese-designed microprocessor and operating system. It's early days yet but the development is significant. It shows that China has developed the capability of designing and producing its own microprocessors. If I were AMD or Intel, I would see this as a significant long-term challenge.

The world grows more competitive, we must not accept complacency. We did with our manufacturing base. Read this post about a Muncie Star-Press article and see the effect our earlier complacency.

Foreign trade

I know there is criticism of our Mayor's oversea trips looking for investment in Anderson. I will tell you that I am not necessarily one of those persons. I am critical that no one seems to know what is coming out of these trips but that is not a problem with the trips themselves. The Mayor's latest newsletter had news about Smith continued efforts with Japan and Israel. My understanding is that Canan over in Muncie is doing the same thing with China. I do wonder why the city makes the choices for overseas marketing that it does. However, anyone who thinks that our economic development does not need to include businesses who will export internationally needs to read this editorial from the Washington Post.