China, Inc : Will China be Generation Y’s Global Superpower?
The very demographic group–the eighteen-to-thirty-four-year-old population–that ought to be most focused on the coming Chinese century is also the one most brilliantly diverted by entertainment and news-lite that details the trials of celebrities and reality-TV neurotics. What a shock it would be if a roommate on The Real World were wrestling with his or her future by studying Chinese or luring the roomie next door into some lucrative industrial piracy.
Ted C. Fishman, author of China, Inc.: How the Rise of the Next Superpower Challenges America and the World
Scattered throughout this exhaustive book are a plethora of performance statistics and economic tidbits that drive home again and again that China is a rapidly developing into a force to be reckoned with and, if the author makes his guess, will soon be second to none. The pieces of information include statements like:
- Three hundred million rural Chinese will move to cities in the next fifteen years. China must build urban infrastructure equivalent to Houston’s every month in order to absorb them.
- China has more speakers of English as a second language than America has native English speakers.
It’s not all rosy growth statistics though, the author doesn’t shy away from the dark side of China’s economic boom. The book closely examines the atrocities committed during Mao’s reign and the shady business practices that occur across China today, a problem that leads Fishman to dub it the “Pirate Nation”. (If you care to opine on Chinese piracy, please check out this recent post that has sparked an extensive debate).
The solid factual background that the book provides on business in China is not the only thing that makes it a must read though, Ted Fishman has a way of transitioning from facts to personal stories that really brings the point home to the reader and compels you to keep reading.
It is obvious that the author believes China will soon be the world’s most powerful nation and he builds a very convincing case for this assertion. Regardless of your personal beliefs on whether China will surpass the United States, it will continue to play a huge role in our lives. Our generation will cheat itself out of vast opportunities if we do not educate ourselves with regards to this powerful player in the global economy. China, Inc. is the most complete and up to date place to start.
This book recommended as one of the 15 Books for Rogue Professionals and How to Read them Fast at No Cost.
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January 29th, 2008 at 9:38 pm
[...] “China, Inc. How the Rise of the Next Superpower Challenges America and the World” by Ted C [...]
January 31st, 2008 at 11:33 am
[...] China, Inc : Will China be Generation Y’s Global Superpower? [...]
January 31st, 2008 at 1:29 pm
While China is important their future status as a economic superpower is questionable in the near future. The World Bank discovered their economy was 40% That means it will take longer for them to have the economy to support a superpower military, and they will have more difficulty dealing with the rural-to-urban migration.
If you can swing it I’d still recommend learning Chinese. A market of one billion-plus people will mean plenty of business opportunities. What this new information means is the U.S. doesn’t need to get too excited with China as an upcoming military adversary.