If you look at sagging commodity prices, and that physical goods constitute a smaller proportion of an american's budget, we may be getting there. All this service economy stuff where you clean my house and I do your taxes and it all adds to the GDP and we are all supposed to be richer is already happening. Unfortunately this is over and above huge doses of physical consumption of goods that are conveniently produced by the labor classes in the third world. Consumption is a hard drug to give up .
As for Japan going to war to boost its economy, why not charity? The world seems awash in stuff- copper, oil, chips diskdrives, cash. If only the rich countries and the rich can get over their hangup with making the poor get only what they 'deserve' and the hangup with acoounting for every second of time and cent of money the world could be better off. Like with debt, nobody wants to write it off, just maintain the illusion, roll it over into new debt.
At some point the world will wake up and figure out that this 'growth' manufactured by valuing incremental advantages at astronomical rates is just an illusion. eg. the internet companies have been attributed some 'value' but nothing has been subtracted from TV companies value which has been eroding (you got only 9 hrs a day for tv internet and print ) . Every new drug discovered is considered the greatest thing since penicillin, ignoring the fact that the marginal impact is smaller,- obscure disease, works in for a small group.
don't even get me started with banks. First we make arbitrary tax laws which force people to have sixteen different accounts, spread over ten providers, then they consolidate . And this has created new value? gimme a break.
Ramesh. |
