Sunday, January 10, 2010

Winter Quarter Book Report

Lindsay Leaver
Winter Book Report
January 1, 2010

The Elephant and the Dragon
By Robyn Meredith

Introduction

The Elephant and the Dragon is an in depth look at the newly globalized India and China, and what their participation in the world economy means for America. It is a well-written, lucid, easy to follow book on a very complex topic. Meredith did an excellent job painting the pictures of both India and China before their leap on to the world stage, and describing the changes that have come to both countries.

The Rise of India and China is not necessarily something to be feared, but it is something to pay attention to and adapt to. The world economy is no longer dominated by America, as many Americans have become accustomed to.

China

Meredith gives a detailed and hard to stomach description of China’s past. Under the rule of Chairman Mao, the Chinese people suffered extreme poverty and civil rights abuses. There were massive food shortages throughout China that turned people in to skeletons. Some people began a practice called “yi zi er shi.” They traded one their own children to a neighbor for the neighbor’s child, and then killed and ate the youngster, knowing all the time the same thing was happening to their child next door. This practice shocked and sickened me. To imagine that people could be so desperate as to eat their own family, was horrifying.

Not only did Mao starve his people, he killed many of them as well. In 1966 he began the “Cultural Revolution” and murdered the intellectuals and pro capitalist thinkers. During this time he also burned books, destroyed art and temples, closed universities, and cut off contact with the rest of the world. These moves still haunt China today, especially the closing of Universities. Mao tried to create a nation of non-thinkers in order for a more absolute power.

Luckily for the Chinese people, Mao died in 1976 and Deng Xiaoping, an economic reformer, came into power. He began to shift China towards a market economy. He distributed land and let the families sell the extra crops for a profit. Though Xiaoping controlled the prices, the rural Chinese saw their incomes rise by 15% a year between 1978 and 1984. In 1984 China began to interact with the global economy by selling its factory goods abroad. Now, China is a world leader in factory production, has a large pool of college graduates, and is willing to do the work of Americans at a third of the price. Look out westerners, China has emerged.

India

While China was busy industrializing and increasing their infrastructure, India was still stuck in post-colonial poverty. India had been closed off to outside investment since 1947 when they gained political freedom and was flat broke in 1991. In July of 1991, restrictions on imports were lifted, the currency devalued, and the anti-monopoly limits eliminated, thus spurring the fastest economic growth in the decades of independence.

With the opening up of India in 1991, major globalization began. India has a huge advantage over China – education. The work force in India is highly educated and also willing to work for a third of an American worker. Also, India had many elite business families that have been operating since the 1800s. The 1991 reformations empowered the already existing moguls to expand further and become leaders in the world and the fortune 500.

Though India has an educational advantage over China, China has an edge on infrastructure. India vowed to spend $150 billion between 2005 and 2010 on roads, power plants, and telecommunications, which is a staggering amount. However, it is no match for China, who put $200 billion in 2005 alone.

America

What does this rise of China and India mean for America? It means job loss to outsourcing and sharing the superpower title that has been bestowed on America for the last 60 years. However, it also means a chance for reinvention.

In many ways, Meredith’s ideas are similar to Thomas Freidman’s in “The World is Flat.” Both authors agree that just because American companies are outsourcing jobs, doesn’t mean that Americans will lose out. Yes, the job losses will affect the individuals who were previously in the positions, but as a whole, this is a chance for America to get creative and emerge in a new industry and as a new work force.

The key to this emergence is Education. Both Freidman and Meredith agree that America needs to go back to the basics of education and focus on what made us world leaders in the first place, the most educated and skilled workforce in the world. Many test scores show that Americans are falling behind where we used to be, but we are not too far gone yet. With a little shift in focus, we can regain the loses we have suffered in the last thirty years.

Conclusion

Personally, I think a shift from America being the only superpower would be a positive thing, as long as it is peaceful for all countries involved. Being the world’s superpower has its advantages, but it comes with great responsibility. Maybe it would be nice to peacefully share these responsibilities with China and India. We should welcome the help and change, and embrace the opportunity to work together.

It is also important to remember that while changes in India and China are happening quickly, there is still a long way to go. In both India and China, the sanitary conditions need billions of dollars of work. The militaries, though both becoming powerful, are nowhere close to Americas arsenal. And the education at the University level is still below what is offered in America. Rapid changes are around the corner, but if we have the foresight to change with the world, the changes will not be detrimental.

“The Elephant and the Dragon,” brings up some scary issues for Americans in this ever-emerging globalized world, however similar to “The World is Flat” it brings up hope as well. Rather than blame people, point fingers, or just assume we are screwed, let’s rise up with India and China. Let’s uses this as an opportunity to help ourselves get back into the competition. Let’s reinvent ourselves once again and emerge as innovative and proud.

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