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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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 OPINION 
18

China's Rise Threatens to Turn US Into Britain

America will end up as an also-ran if it can't reinvigorate its economy

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(Newser) – America used its financial clout to knock the British Empire into second place last century and it's in danger of receiving the same treatment from China in the not-too-distant future, writes Zachary Karabell. China is the American government's biggest creditor, much as the US was to Britain in 1946, Karabell notes, and while the arrangement works fine for both parties now, it gives the Chinese the power to deliver a knockout blow to the US economy and the American dollar should the two nations' interests diverge.

China won't always settle for being the junior partner in the relationship, Karabell warns in the Wall Street Journal, and America needs to step up to the challenge and start matching China's dynamism if it doesn't want to end up in second place. "The US is in danger of assuming that because it has been a dominant nation on the world stage, it must continue to be so," Karabell concludes. "That is a recipe for becoming Britain."

Dollars and yuan notes are seen at a bank in Beijing, China.
Dollars and yuan notes are seen at a bank in Beijing, China.   (Getty Images)
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The Americans have not had to deal with a true economic rival since the British more than half a century ago. America today is as unaccustomed to global economic competition as the British were at their apex. - Zachary Karabell

China thrives because it is hungry, dynamic, scared of failure and convinced that it should be a leading force in the world. That is why America thrived a century ago.
- Zachary Karabell

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18 comments
VIEWING:
 
Doctor_Zaius
Oct 13, 09 7:26 AM CDT
I've been saying this for years. Can we go back to calling them Red China again? We need heavy manufacturing in this country again. Reply
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+12
IN RESPONSE:
dontlikeyou
Oct 13, 09 7:28 AM CDT
On this, we agree. Without manufacturing, a country is subserviant to other nations. It has always been that way throughout history. The question is, why do our leaders make it difficult for American businesses to manufacture here in the USA? Don't they want us to succeed?
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+2
IN RESPONSE:
dontlikeyou
Oct 13, 09 7:37 AM CDT
Who in hell would thumb me down for my comment above? Identify yourself coward.
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-3
IN RESPONSE:
Yourself
Oct 13, 09 10:25 AM CDT
yes, buying stuff made in the US of ASIA won't help us one bit. here's another thing, (i've been saying the same thing as Zaius for years as well) but if economists are only noticing this now, then we've missed the boat folks! it would take MASSIVE changes in our lifestyle to stop this train, and people are just way too against that sort of thing, even people like dontlikeyou that complain about China's ways won't change their own ways to stop it. End of story.
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0
IN RESPONSE:
foodchain11
Oct 13, 09 1:38 PM CDT
dissapointed in this. 5000 years does not Red China make. Ask the CEO's and Wall Street et al, how we sacrificed re-investment for a quick buck. That's why China is ahead. And it's going to be a lot harder than just saying we want mfg back.
Vote up! Vote down!
+1

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