*NOT
MY BELIEFS—JUST WRITING FOR ASSIGNMENT*
The
Chinese economy has been growing at a pretty rapid rate, in fact so rapidly
that individuals including myself are beginning to fear that China may possibly
become the most powerful world power within the next few years. With their
increased military spending, high exportation rates, and increase in foreign
investments, China is on their way to success and the US must buckle up and
enhance the country’s economic stability.
According to BBC News, “China now has the world's fastest-growing
economy and is undergoing what has been described as a second industrial
revolution.” Thinking back to how the industrial revolution enhanced
America and Europe’s socioeconomic conditions with the creations of new jobs
and ideas of creating more and more efficiency, comparing the Chinese economy
to this means a lot. The industrial revolution occurred in over a span of about
one hundred years because it occurred from the 18th to 19th
century, however according to BBC, China’s economy was stagnated for the past
two decades but are still expected to launch ambitious programs by the year
2020. China is essentially rapidly enhancing in a shorter period of time, than
the industrial revolution which is incredible, incredibly scary at how fast
their economy is moving. A major part of their fast paced expansion has a lot
to do with the fact that there has been a wide expansion with foreign trade and
investment.
A
prime example of this that I experienced first-hand was when I visited the
country Sierra Leone about a year ago compared to when I visited ten years ago.
There was a huge Chinese impact with businesses and the government in general.
While individuals may think that this may not be a great investment because it
is such an undeveloped country that has not prospered much in the past few
decades, this belief is not one hundred percent true because of the mass
amounts of natural resources that the country as. China’s investment strategies
in foreign countries will be one of their strongest actions that aid in the
prosperity of their country.
One
of our strongest features in our government in the US is the fact that we have
such a strong military. However China’s military power is on the rise, their
military has grown at a rate of about 12 percent over the past 10 years which is
extremely significant considering the fact that their GDP has not even grown
that rapidly in this time frame. If China’s military continues to advance,
there is a great chance that within the next few decades it could surpass ours.
Let’s
also consider the fact that the labor force is extremely different from the US
in the sense that we have stricter laws for human rights in order to not abuse
the rights of workers. Whereas, in China, cheap labor is very common, and as a
result they produce products cheaper than other countries aiding in their
economic prosperity. While this is unfair and is not in compliance with
international labor laws, it is still allowed in their country.
There
are many aspects of government that make can make one country more powerful
than the other, China is in the run of advancing in the majority of major
categories.
References
I agree with the economic concerns you have highlighted in your post. China's economic rise can be concerning at times. Yet, we have to remember that they are still a developing state. Many of the reasons for their growth are because they started as such a poor country with so much potential. As for their labor force, while it may be huge and able to be exploited now, this will soon change. China will have to face many of the same demographic challenges that Germany is facing now. Mainly, a rapidly aging workforce. As far as their military is concerned. States such as the U.S. and perhaps Russia have not much to worry about, yet smaller states may feel some pressure to build up their own militaries due to China's growth. Overall this post was very insightful, but some of the specific underlying problems China will face in the future, slower growth included, need to be addressed.
ReplyDeleteI agree with a lot of the points that you made about China and how it is on the rise economically and militarily. The points that you made about how their economy is on the rise because of the cheap labor and mass production of items is a really good example of how China's economy is powerful but it also shows how the primary focuses on the economy and not the people's rights.
ReplyDeleteI agree, China is definitely a great power on the rise. You make a good point when you talk about the country as it is the world's fastest-growing economy. It seems that China is going through its own industrial revolution at alarming speeds. I believe this is due to the era we currently live in. China is benefitting off of the capitalistic world as it helps them grow.
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