Blog
I believe the most important thing Americans must do is to secure their economic well-being in an increasingly challenging, complex world. What I have written about all these years is the process of creating wealth, not for any one individual, but for the United States as a whole. Ever since I was a young correspondent witnessing the emergence of China after the country opened in 1979, I’ve believed we have to get more serious about creating wealth. I retain faith in the resiliency of the U.S. economy and the enterprise of American people. If Americans have the right strategies, we can once again create widespread wealth. Come with me on this journey.
Earth to Apple: You Have a Problem in China
January 26, 2014
For several decades now, Apple and many other major manufacturers have assumed that a basic model of manufacturing in China would endure forever: the Chinese would allow virtually unlimited import of Japanese parts for assembly into products destined for both the Chinese market and the world. The Apple iPhone, according to one study, consists of […]
China-U.S. Relations, 35 Years Later
January 16, 2014
It was 35 years ago this month that the United States and China normalized relations. It was also 35 years ago this month that I arrived in Hong Kong as a correspondent for United Press International. I didn’t realize how impeccable my timing was. China has exploded economically, as many of us thought it would. […]
There Go The Idiot Economists Again
January 11, 2014
I think that when the history of this era is written, and future historians wonder why we Americans did not respond to our economic challenges, the conclusion will be that the entire economics profession failed. We are now five years into our economic crisis, which is half a decade. It’s not hard to imagine that […]
The Ignorance of the Economics Profession
January 6, 2014
The full ignorance of the economics profession was on full display this past weekend at the meetings of the American Economic Association in Philadelphia. According to the Wall Street Journal account, economists are so baffled about what is happening, or not happening, in the American economy that they gravitated to discussing the work of Alvin […]
Mary Barra at GM: What It Really Means
December 23, 2013
Much of the media coverage of the selection of Mary Barra as CEO of General Motors has focused on the fact that she is a woman. That’s very interesting, but it’s not all of the story. Here are the other elements that are being largely ignored: –She is part of a generation of GM people […]
The New York Times And Its Weird Take on Japan
December 15, 2013
Here they go again! The New York Times, for years, has persisted in putting trivialized pieces like this one on their front page. I recall one about farmers in a remote area who couldn’t find wives and I recall another about the high-pitched sing-songy voices of elevator women in Japan, who greet riders when they […]
