While the credit flow in economies like that of the US and the major European countries got mugged up, looks like the same in China went the other way and heated up, and will drive up domestic demand just when China needs it.
News is China is now officially the third largest economy, set to take the number two spot from Japan in a few years.
The Chinese success story is remarkable. China as a nation has a long collective memory. 800 years ago China was the number one nation on earth, it was not America. To the Chinese it is not about claiming the prize, it is about reclaiming the prize, reclaiming what was once theirs.
But America has democracy, America has diversity. Take the Bush Brain out of the equation, and this economy will sizzle again.
But if there is competition, it is not a race to the bottom. It is to be a win win situation. I just wish China did lend more of its money to the poor countries, and less to a country wanting to wage war.
But then China has put a major focus on Africa recently.
Even on democracy I don't see China copying America. There is a middle ground somewhere where the two need to meet. The democracy in America is not one person one vote. Loot at all the White Males in the Senate. These are Greek Gods. These are not democrats.
But the Chinese did beat the Americans at the Olympics. They got the most gold for the first time. It is as if they were saying, we know how to get organized.
And as to democracy, it is near impossible to meet Chinese in America who think China needs a different political arrangement to what it has now. These are not people in fear of the Chinese Communist Party. They are in America. The CCP is their own NAACP, making them proud.
In The News
China overtakes Germany in terms of GDP China Daily The revised growth estimate for 2007 - from 11.9 percent to 13 percent, the fastest rate since 1994 - raised the country's GDP to 25.7 trillion yuan, ($3.5 trillion) at 2007 exchange rates ..... "I think it will take only three to four years for China to overtake Japan as the second-largest economy. The US is by far still the largest economy.
China overtakes Germany as third-largest economy
Film review: Slumdog Millionaire the 2005 novel Q&A by Vikas Swarup
Amitabh blasts 'Slumdog Millionaire' on blog
Obama warns of long recession without quick action International Herald Tribune
Saviour of the Republicans New Statesman the best prospect for revitalising a Republican Party .... His rush of words is likely linked to the rush of his ambition, and his ambition - at 37, just two years above the minimum to be president - appears beyond restraint. ..... To understand why Republicans are so excited about Jindal (the conservative talk-show host Rush Limbaugh calls him "the next Ronald Reagan") .... white people are expected to become a minority by 2042. .... When John LaBruzzo, a Republican legislator in Louisiana, once asked a Jindal aide what the governor's hobby was, he says he was told it was "to read information". ...... Jindal's wonkishness could be as much a novelty as his ethnicity. ...... he has that technocratic edge to him that makes him palatable to moderates and independents ....... Jindal has sought more to find common cause with white Americans ....... some relatives in the Punjab complain that he downplays his ties to his ancestral homeland. ...... at 5ft 8in and 135lb, offers little in the way of physical presence. ....... earnest air and obvious intelligence
Louisiana, Joseph Cao, Bobby Jindal and David Duke Bayou Buzz having a Indian American as our Governor and a Congressman formerly from Viet Nam as our Congressman does not mean that Louisiana would automatically vote for a black person as Governor.
Clinton Is Moving to Fill Senior Posts at State Dept. New York Times
Clinton Confirmation Tuesday: Caroline D-Day Next MSNBC
Paterson: Kennedy lacks some experience for Senate
New Voices in Congress Will Change the Tone of the Democratic Majority New York Times “You’re not going to see any wild, left-wing policymaking,” he added. “You’re not going to get the Berkeley wish-list out of this crowd.” ..... taxpayers have grown increasingly impatient with bailout after bailout. “There’s a level of frustration from people saying enough taking care of fat cats, the executives, the stockholders” ....... Steve Austria, a Republican from Ohio’s 7th Congressional District, is the first Filipino-American...... Anh (Joseph) Cao, the Republican who defeated William Jefferson in Louisiana, is the first Vietnamese-American ...... Jared Polis of Colorado is the first openly gay male candidate ...... Jews make up 13 percent of the Senate and 7 percent in the House, while Mormons are 5 percent in the Senate and 2 percent in the House. ........ The House now includes two Muslims
Obama says trillion-dollar deficits may last years
CNN: Gupta approached about surgeon general post
Panetta choice as CIA chief draws Democrats’ concerns