Category Archives: US
Obama to Congress – Create New Jobs Right Now!
As I watched (a replay of) President Obama’s speech to Congress a couple of days ago, I found myself really missing and yearning for the great US of A.
For the past few months, I have been fairly immersed in and preoccupied with my new life in Mumbai. Politics in India, and the Anna Hazare movement have kept me enthralled. I have been a bit disassociated with the happenings in the US except via the various internet news sources that I scan and sometimes scrutinize. Location does matter after all. Similarly, I would not have been so engrossed in matters relating to India while in the US.
All this garbage about global this and global that, and the connected world is all well and good, and yes, today we are so much more connected than ever before, but let’s not mislead ourselves. Where we physically are present is where we pay the most attention. When that changes, you can assume that virtual reality has become…well, a reality.
Not that I am biased or anything (!), but it was great to hear President Obama sound like candidate Obama once again. His speech has been described as feisty and bold (by supporters, of course). Even Paul Krugman who has been quite critical of Obama’s compromises, had reluctant admiration and appeared to be pleasantly surprised about the solid content of the American Jobs Bill that he announced.
The Bill makes so much sense! The US desperately needs jobs. It also needs better schools and better infrastructure, not to mention needing businesses – small and big – to hire again. The tax cut incentives will help that program. Plus, parts of the proposed $447 billion jobs package have had bipartisan support in the past. Sure sounds like a win-win-win (to the naive at heart).
In fact, the Bill makes so much sense (it has been written in a way that pays for itself by taxing the wealthiest individuals and corporations – is that fair or not?), that I worry that it just won’t pass through the current ultra partisan politics – demonstrated so vividly during the debates about raising the debt ceiling.
After all, which Republican wants to see Obama succeed with this initiative, given that there are only 14 months left until the next election? These partisan politics instead of helping that country rebuild its core strengths are working to make them disintegrate bit by bit. What a sad state of affairs, where politics trumps people and the nation!
Funny/sad too how, today, so many nations are each going through their own independent and unique crises. One can only hope that they – whether it’s the US or India or any other country – will emerge better and stronger, without too much collateral damage, as they fight their way through their messes.
Come to think of it, which are those special countries not currently undergoing large scale crises? Canada and Switzerland maybe? Must be nice indeed.
Meanwhile, despite my misgivings, I will wait with bated breath to see if Congress does the right thing on the American Jobs Bill. I would welcome returning some day to live in a much stronger America than the one I left, in the midst of its severe economic calamity.
Intriguing Insights About and Between U.S, India and China
The Economist uses interactive maps so creatively! Here’s what I would like you to take a peek at. They have compared the states or provinces of U.S., India and China to various countries based on equivalent GDP, population or GDP per person. Can you say wow? Well, you will, once you see these innovative maps!
They reveals some fascinating insights and also work to shatter misconceptions about the economic well-being (or not) of certain regions. I’m really trying hard here – to put this in enough words that intrigue you to click on the links below and experience the interactivity. I hope I succeed! This is so very, very interesting and I would hate for you to miss it. Both the content, as well as the super creative presentation of it.
First, let’s look at the United States. To give you a taste of this, let’s take the largest state with respect to GDP – California. Guess which country of the world its GDP is closest to? I’m going to let you find out which. Now, take one of the laggard states. Let’s see….how about Alabama? Well, its closest country in terms of GDP is Nigeria.
Big Texas is always an intriguing state. Its GDP is equivalent of that of Russia, while it’s population resembles Saudi Arabia’s the closest. Interesting stuff, wouldn’t you say! And that’s just a taste of it.
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Next, let’s take a look at India. It’s largest state (GDP-wise) is the same one where I live, Maharashtra. After all, it does include the financial capital of the country, Mumbai. Guess which country is closest in terms of GDP? I’ll tell you. This state has equivalent population to Mexico but it’s GDP compares more closely with Singapore. But then, when you take it a step further, and look at GDP per person, it compares to….Sri Lanka!
Now, don’t you want to check out the same stats for another of the Indian states?
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And, then there’s China, the Asian Tiger, or is it dragon? Projected to overtake US as the world’s largest economy around 2020, how does it fare in all these dimensions?
The most populous province Guangdong, with almost 100 million people, most closely matches Indonesia’s population. Macau is the richest per capita with a GDP per person that matches, actually exceeds, that of Qatar. Why? Its population is tiny, similar to that of Solomon Islands, while it’s GDP is relatively high, matching that of Panama.
Here’s another interesting one from China – Shanghai (province=city), which is equivalent to Cameroon’s population, Finland’s GDP and Saudi Arabia’s GDP per person. I would say it’s doing relatively rather well.
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All in all, I just wish I had more time to delve into and play with these maps! Some day….
But, let’s draw some quick conclusions from this data. Of these countries, the US leads in every way, and India lags behind all three with China somewhere in the middle. While the potential of both emerging Asian countries is undisputed, there is still such a wide disparity between them (even between China & US) and the super power. Its really hard for me to fully comprehend how or when these gaps will close. As for the gap between China and India, it’s immense!
Regarding India, to quote a friend who commented on this revealing data: This also shows how great our potential is, if we invest in nurturing our human resources. Education, education, education! Now that we have the population that we do have, we should be turning this threat into our greatest opportunity.
Now, if we can continue to dream a bit longer, wouldn’t it be nice to have a reliable government who can make this happen?
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The Yin and Yang of Life Anywhere 