
Think Again: Asia's Rise - gasull
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2009/06/22/think_again_asias_rise?page=full
======
sho
_"The region produces roughly 30 percent of global economic output, but
because of its huge population, its per capita gdp is only $5,800, compared
with $48,000 in the United States."_

That's nice, but it's states that buy armies, not individuals chipping in one
by one.

 _"Asian countries are furiously upgrading their militaries, but their
combined military spending in 2008 was still only a third that of the United
States."_

But what if they're getting 5 times the value for money? Military expenditure
in the USA is so notoriously, farcically expensive and inefficient it is often
quite literally a joke. China sure manages to build a lot of ships and
submarines for the little money they supposedly spend.

 _"Even at current torrid rates of growth, it will take the average Asian 77
years to reach the income of the average American. The Chinese need 47 years.
"_

I don't know what numbers this guy is looking at, but in the last two decades
China has grown 7+% above whatever the US has managed to achieve. PPP is what
counts in this case, so that's a 6-fold gap to catch up with the average
American. A seven percent advantage will cover that in under 30 years, not 47,
which is comparable to experience in Japan, Korea, and elsewhere.

I could go on and on, but why bother when the article seems to be founded upon
such basic flaws?

