The role America played in the Asian "miracle"

BOOKS AND ARTS: "Asia's quest for wealth: Going for growth; The Miracle: "The Epic Story of Asia's Quest for Wealth, By Michael Schuman, Harper Business; 464 pages; $29.99 and £16.99," The Economist, 1 August 2009.

The "crucial role" played by America, as paraphrased by The Economist:

Willingly and unwillingly, [America] provided critical technology, from the transistors at the core of Japan's televisions and radios to the semi-conductor designs produced in Taiwan's forges. It accepted products from Japan, South Korea and Taiwan when none of the three showed any reciprocity (something still true in many areas of China's economy today). Moreover, many of America's most dynamic companies were prepared both to open manufacturing operations throughout the region and to place critical initial orders with Asian companies so as to help them launch industries such as India's data outsourcing centers.

Point: it wasn't just the Leviathan work that was crucial.

Comments

[Louis Heberlein]

NIST funded the development of new technologies and DOD became first buyer. NIST then developed, and Commerce/State Departments pushed, international tech standards that facilitated outsourcing of existing 'new' products and services. US government and corporations accepted Japanese import rules that required (and delayed) our manufacturers to detail the manufacturing process so Japan could 'protect the safety and health' of its citizens. About the time the new products were approved, Japanese versions were available if they were cost effective and popular. The stories got little media or academic attention in the 70s and 80s, and little political or labor concern because the net result of globalization was domestic growth.