Moving westward to China
During the 19th and 20th centuries, millions of people flocked from their homelands to seek out new opportunities in a budding new economy. The United States soon emerged as the world’s preeminent power for the rest of the century. This century will not be the same. Just look at the ever rising price of gasoline. Look at the people who immigrated here.
Many of the Chinese men and women who risked their lives to immigrate to the USA are now returning back to their homeland because they recognize that opportunity has moved westward into China. Turn over anything you have bought recently and you will find the words Made in China. China has become the manufacturing center for the entire world, and will become even more powerful as we progress towards the future. China has the worlds largest buildings, fastest trains, most modern cities, tallest basketball players, and just about every other superlative you can imagine.
China is huge and it will only get bigger. It houses the world’s largest population at somewhere between 1.5 and 1.7 billion people. In other words, China is unable to account for the existence of as many people as live in England, France and Germany combined. China has over 100 cities that exceed a million people. The US has 9. Western and Eastern Europe combined have only 34. No one can compete with a country that has hundreds of millions of skilled workers willing to work for $1 a day.
With so many people, it will be impossible for every person in China to live a western-quality life, but it will become the super power anyway. If 10% of China’s population lives a life equivalent to an American or Germany, those 150,000,000 people will represent an economy that dwarfs the economy of any European country. As soon as 20% of China is living an American lifestyle, it will surpass the United States and become the richest, predominant economic power in the world.
Say hello to the future. Ni hao.