How the US stays No. 1

sailaway21 · #1 (**permalink**) 12-02-2007

Almost in spite of itself the US remains the economic engine of the world. She sneezes and the world catches a cold. Her economy grows and it drags the rest of the world along. Just in my lifetime, I've lived through the rebuilding and re-emergence of Europe, the world spread of communism, the economic defeat of communism, the rise of the Asian Tigers and the unstoppable Japanese, the unification of European economic interests, and the modern explosive growth of the Indian and Chinese economies.

How does one country manage to weather every storm and yet emerge from each crisis better positioned within the world's economy? Long after it's preeminence in natural resources was eclipsed by modern trade and ceased to matter in any event. Why is the planned economies of Europe no more threat than the planned and insular economy of Japan was in the eighties? How can we expect to deal with the seemingly mega-economy of China? How has the US been able to run a trade deficit my entire adult life? There's no rule that says the US has to be number one economically. How is it she stays there?

Fortunately for me, David Brooks writes for the NY Times and is able to explain this baffling conundrum in terms I can understand even though I don't fully understand how things got this way or continue to remain the way they've been. A better short synopsis of the US economic hegemony I cannot imagine. Herewith the explanation of why Adam Smith's invisible hand has managed to find it's glove in America.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/27/op...hp&oref=slogin

xort · #2 (**permalink**) 12-02-2007

"In the World Economic Forum survey, the U.S. comes in just ahead of Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden and Germany (China is 34th)."

Some real manufacturing dynamos there in the Swiss & Danes. How can they possibly survive, let alone lead, without manufacturing jobs? It can't be.

sailaway21 · #3 (**permalink**) 12-02-2007

xort,
You do bring up a point that would probably get the attention of Sailormann. Sulzer diesel is a Swiss company and I've sailed in a number of ships equipped with main engines made by them. None of those engines was made is Switzerland though. Even the prototypes used to be made in Korea. Funny how the new models and designs keep coming out of Switzerland though.