If the Chinese develop a middle class then that "cheap labor" goes away, then products become more expensive and foreign companies stop pouring money into the Chinese economy. That money would then move to Vietnam or other underdeveloped nation where a manufacturer can produce products cheaply. The Chinese government knows this, it knows foreign countries buying their products from China is how it keeps its economy growing, if that goes away then their economy starts to take hits, then their population becomes less easy to control. This is why the Chinese currency is not legally to exchange outside China. The exchange rate is set by the Chinese government to keep internal products cheap and keep their population poor (relatively).

Of course economics being what they are, a middle class will eventually develop. This middle class will demand more freedoms then previously given, they already are. This middle class will also require / demand higher paid jobs that support a lifestyle filled with more materialistic *stuff*, similar to every other modern society in the world. This has already happened in places like Japan, South Korea and ironically enough Taiwan. Its just a matter of time until we move our manufacturing base to another country.

It is no longer that easy.

Now, a couple billion Chinese and Indians are able to buy cheap Chinese and Indian products… American purchases are becoming less and less required.

China's middle class is likely bigger than the entire population of the United States… and they want to buy, buy, buy.

The deteriorating purchasing power of North America is having less and less influence on these countries… who will increasingly resist foreign influence.

The only real outcome will be war, of course.

China and India will pollute, emit carbon and block Western economic and resource interests as they do anything necessary to build their countries and their economies.

A blockade of foreign resources, even ones they have legally secured, in the guise of "climate protection" or some-such will be the only thing that controls them (they see this coming, of course, hence stuff like the String of Pearls).

The same thing was done to Japan in the years leading up to Pearl Harbor.

…or, off the top of my head, this theory makes sense. Anybody agree or not?

Good question! Why DOES Obama hate America?

Too bad he isn't more like JFK.

How many jobs will be lost because of the Constellation program's death?

But he is NOW all about jobs. My asss! He is all about increasing the government and government bailouts, programs and give a ways like the so called "health care".

I only hope the "american idol" generation of voters will learn something.

…but…

"the White House will direct NASA to concentrate on Earth-science projects — principally, researching and monitoring climate change "

India and China, however, are going to emit all the carbon they have to as they get their economies and their space programs going.

Why does Obama hate America?

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/30/world/middleeas…

What was especially heartening was the comments online ripping them for doing so. I mean, the readership of this mag is not the typical "anti-science" skeptic, and they are outraged and offended at what is being done in the name of Science.

Here's an example:

Shame on SA for publishing such a blatantly biased apology for what appear to have been long lasting and willful manipulations on an issue of the greatest importance to us all. Casual dismissal of Climategate as "a record of how Science is actually done" is deeply offensive to me. No this is not the way Science is actually done! Climategate has brought to public light all kinds of behaviors anathema to Science: Groupthink, restricted and/or proprietary access to data, significant use of poorly documented yet "highly complex" data processing techniques, primary reliance on extrapolations or "proxies", and most damningly, offhand dismissal of skeptics as crackpots, quickly come to my mind. As a scientifically trained person, I am genuinely embarrassed that the Wall Street Journal, as opposed to SA, has understood the great concerns raised by Climategate.

Dr Thierry Copie

Ph.D Physics 1988, Cornell U.