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MA Governor Wants More New Tech
turnitover writes "Cryptically stating that Asia wants the U.S. to become 'the France of the 21st century,' Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney made a public call for more innovation in technology, reports eWEEK.com. He urged more investment and development and, yes, a move to OpenDocument, as reported previously on Slashdot." From the article: "Underlining the challenge, Romney said leaders of one technology firm in Massachusetts anticipated that 90 percent of its skilled labor would be in Asia in 10 years. He also pointed to statistics that show the United States graduating only 4,400 mathematics and science PhDs each year compared with 24,900 math and science PhDs for greater Asia."
Greater Asia has over 3.5 Billion people! The US is just scratching 300 Million. So we are still doing better than them in Math/Science PhDs, percentage-wise.
He also pointed to statistics that show the United States graduating only 4,400 mathematics and science PhDs each year compared with 24,900 math and science PhDs for greater Asia." 4400 to 24900 is a ratio of 1 to 5.7. The US has about 300m people so, apply the ratio and you figure we have the same % graudated, that is 1.71 Billion. Given that the population of Asia was 3.44 Billion in '95 and is estimated at over 3.68 in 2000 (http://www.unhabitat.org/habrdd/asia.html) I would say that we are actually graduating mathematics and science PhDs at twice the rate of asia. Note: There may be a distinction between Asia and Greater Asia I do not understand and my population numbers are for Asia as a whole.
While I'm no fan of the decline of America's standing on the educational chart (word to you, Kansas), this guy is using an arbitrary number to jump on the bandwagon of "China's going to 0wn the US in a few years."
China makes, and for some time, has made its fortune making things...from cheap plastic toys to electronic components, circuitry, you name it.
The US (and several other advanced economies) have made their fortunes, for the most part in the last 30+ years, not from manufacturing (which has been in decline in the US since the 70s) but from the conceptualization, specification, packaging, marketing, and just moving the objects. The US will no more become a manufacturing powerhouse than China will start cranking out Google (granted, a lot of PhDs there), Madden NFL, G-Unit, and Spiderman 3. That's where the US is making its $billions these days.
Will China move up the food chain economically? Of course. Will they turn the US into a satellite economy? No. The US spends a lot because it makes a lot. There are a host of economic factors that can't be adequately explored here, but our money isn't going to up and fly away to China.
Perhaps, if this bandwagon jumper is so concerned about America's economic future, he should convince his fellow politicians that it's bad long term policy to create massive national debt that is bought up by the Chinese with all their new manufacturing profits. That's more of a financial danger than getting out-PhD'ed.
Oh, I forgot to shoot down a few of your other points in my last post. Allow me:
with the best weapons in the world when they turned on France
Actually, it's generally accepted that the French had better tanks. They just weren't forward enough thinkers to use them properly.
but they still fought against a vicious adversary until FORCED to surrender
Forced? The bulk of France was never invaded or occupied by the Germans. The Germans never touched their overseas empire. They didn't fight it out until the bitter end. They surrendered with Paris and most of the coast occupied. The interior of France was largely untouched. If Americans fought like that we would have surrendered when the British burned Washington.
To make matters worse after the French rolled over and surrendered a good number of them become active collaborators! The Vichy French Naval Forces stationed overseas (thus untouchable by the Germans) even refused to join their Allies in the fight against the Nazis. The British eventually had no choice but to destroy them to keep them from falling into the hands of the Germans. If that isn't French cowardice then I don't know what is.
Why don't you jizzbags ever call Japan sushi-eating surrender monkeys,
Because the Japanese fought until the bitter end and it took the combined blow of two atomic bombs and the intervention of the Russians to force them to surrender.
or the Germans spaetzle-eating suicide monkeys?
Actually the suicide monkeys part would be more appliable to the Japanese.... *duck* And see previous comment... the Germans fought until the bitter end. Germany was completely devastated. Tell me, was every major French city carpet bombed into oblivion when they surrendered?
Should the Vietnamese call us burger-chomping shrapnel-monkeys
I wouldn't blame them if they did ;)
It's even like this is unique to France. I've heard my fair share of jokes made at the expense of Italy because of their horrible performance during WW2. In fact, I recall reading somewhere that when the German ambassador told Churchill that the Axis had the Italians on their side, Churchill said "Good for you. We had them during the last war."
I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
I have been to the French Riveria-- and I have to ask- what do you feed those women? They are all AWESOME. Of course- they didn't want anything to do with us (and some of my compatriates were studs back home)-- I think they have spent years getting the gene pool just right. We would only throw it off kilter.