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China: Listening to the media, you'd think Chinese President Hu Jintao's U.S. trip is nothing less than a symbolic transfer of world leadership from an America in decline to a China in ascendancy. Not by a long shot.
With all our problems, it's almost fashionable these days to speak of the U.S. as a world power on the wane. One thoughtful piece after another bemoans the nation's problems and its inevitable slippage into irrelevance. This, in fact, is the subtext of President Obama's talks with President Hu.
Obama gave this credence by giving Hu — whom Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid correctly called a "dictator" — a state dinner, something that President Bush refused to do.
Why the obsequiousness? China is the country of the future, we're told. What Walter Lippman dubbed the American Century died in 2001; this century belongs to China.
The arrogant rhetoric of China's leaders encourages such thinking. That includes remarks by Hu, who on Wednesday asserted the U.S. dollar must yield to China's yuan as the world's leading currency, and who seems to believe China is ready to elbow us aside.
All this, however, is little more than bluster.
We hear constantly how China's economy has "leapfrogged" other nations and now ranks third in the world — still behind the U.S. — with a total GDP of $3.3 trillion. The truth is more complex.
China has 1.3 billion people. So you're spreading that economy among one-sixth of the world's humanity. As the chart shows, China's economy on a per-person basis — the real measure of success — doesn't even come close to ours. The average American produces over $42,000 a year in goods and services; the average Chinese produces $2,800. That's an enormous gap in productivity.
Moreover, in its recent rankings of economic freedom, the Heritage Foundation put China 135th out of 179 countries. The U.S., even with all its current problems, ranks ninth. Who's the leader?
Citizens in big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai live a privileged existence, well-documented by the Western media. Deep inside rural China, however, hundreds of millions live in near-absolute poverty. This isn't a country ready for global economic leadership.
China's economic success has been driven by mercantilist policy of beggaring its own people in the interest of building up massive trade surpluses. Its foreign currency holdings now total $2.9 trillion, and most of that is in U.S. Treasuries and other dollar-denominated assets. That's China's hole-card in talks with the U.S.
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Posted By: Ellman(620) on 1/20/2011 | 12:16 AM ET
China may not be ready for world leadership because of its large and aging population, but the US is certainly not the 'leader' of the world either, not as long as Barack Obama is President! He is eroding the prestige and power of this country almost daily. We don't need to worry about China, for now, but we most certainly need to worry about Obama and we must resolve to rid ourselves of the man in 2012.
Posted By: sly311(35) on 1/19/2011 | 10:56 PM ET
In China, they don't need to sacrifice; it's a way of life--they don't know any better or different. What else can work for China but a dictatorship when there are 1.4 billion (with a B) people to "manage". We, as very blessed Americans, need to stop the insane spending (both for our government and ourselves) thereby preserving our liberty and freedom.
Posted By: ArizonaKen(510) on 1/19/2011 | 10:41 PM ET
It's up to us and the people that we put in office. If we kill the spirit of capitalism, they could win. If we can't control our spending, we can't win. They still are the "Chi-coms", that probably won't change in the next 40 years. It really is up to US.
Posted By: Independent-from-Austin(5) on 1/19/2011 | 9:26 PM ET
China should not be underestimated. They are a unified nation with patience. They are willing to sacrifice in the short-run for long term benefits. Additionally, there are many short-sighted American companies that are willing to sacrifice intellectual property and loyal workforces for short term gains. China's strength, however, is as a low cost labor provider. This is not sustainable. As the Chinese people get a taste of a better life, they will be unwilling to work for today's low
Posted By: ARealChineseAmerican(5) on 1/19/2011 | 8:59 PM ET
Simple answer: Think of the U.S. as GM and China as Apple (or Facebook)! Complex answer: visit http://www.west-east-international.com/news/general.html
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