Why China > Soviet Union

[Martian2]

Why China > Soviet Union - The Daily Beast

"Why China > Soviet Union
by Ryan Prior Jun 26, 2012 12:30 PM EDT

Members of the Guards of Honour of the Three Services of the Chinese People's Liberation Army march during a training session at a barracks in Beijing on July 21, 2011 (LIU JIN / AFP / Getty Images)

This week Michael Cembalest, chairman of market and investment strategy at JP Morgan, published a research letter with a graph showing the history of the world by GDP. It inspired Derek Thompson at The Atlantic to write a great series of posts. The charts show that population was the primary determinant of prosperity in pre-industrial society, but after the 1800s, productivity became significantly more important:

Before the Industrial Revolution, there wasn't really any such thing as lasting income growth from productivity. In the thousands of years before the Industrial Revolution, civilization was stuck in the Malthusian Trap. If lots of people died, incomes tended to go up, as fewer workers benefited from a stable supply of crops. If lots of people were born, however, incomes would fall, which often led to more deaths. That explains the "trap," and it also explains why populations so closely approximated GDP around the world.
...
The first question I had when I first graphed the data is, How do India and China account for between 50% and 60% of the world economy for the first 1500 years AD? Until about 1800 when the Industrial Revolution sent productivity skyrocketing at an unprecedented pace, income growth was slow and and relatively even around the world. As a result, the regions with the biggest economies were basically just the regions with the biggest populations.

Even from just a cursory look at Cembalest's original chart, another interesting trend is visible:

Russia, which has a population approximately half of the U.S. (140 million), never rivaled U.S. GDP throughout the Cold War. China today boasts a greater share of world GDP than the Soviets ever did at their 1950s peak. And the Chinese share only shows signs of growing ever more.

Two important differences in the emerging U.S.-China rivalry as compared to the U.S.-Soviet one. 1.) The Chinese population is more than three times the U.S. population, while ours was double that of Russia. 2.) Chinese GDP is now booming as Soviet GDP never did."

 

[shree835]

Why China > Soviet Union...Coz China and Chinese Says So.

 

[Martian2]

Obviously, even a blind man can't miss China's massive economic growth.

What's the second-most interesting aspect of the world GDP chart?

The second-most interesting insight is that India's share of world GDP has remained almost unchanged for fifty years. This means the current Indian government is not mismanaging its economy. It's just average in performance.

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Why China > Soviet Union...Coz China and Chinese Says So.

It's an American publication. The author Ryan Prior and the study author Michael Cembalest at J P Morgan are Americans.

I know Indians like you have problems distinguishing American names from Chinese ones, but take my word for it. Mr. Prior and Mr. Cembalest are Americans.

 

[IND151]

economic prowess is the key strength for any nation

china has enormous economic power and that's the reason it is seen as counterweight to US

however china needs to concentrate on its enhancing its technological ability too

 

[Martian2]

economic prowess is the key strength for any nation

china has enormous economic power and that's the reason it is seen as counterweight to US

however china needs to concentrate on its enhancing its technological ability too

You mean like sending Shenzou-9 taikonauts into orbit to conduct a manual docking and sending the Jiaolong submersible 7,000 meters below the ocean?

Or are you referring to how China took the world's-fastest supercomputer crown with the Tianhe-1 supercomputer last year?

Perhaps you are thinking of China's world's-fastest 350km/hr high speed trains?

Or is it the next-generation AESA radars to be installed on China's Type 052C destroyers?

Perhaps it's the next-generation Type 095 nuclear attack submarines undergoing tests?

Or are you thinking of China's 3-MIRVed DF-31A ICBMs or the almost-unveiled at 2009 parade 10-MIRVed DF-41 ICBMs?

Do you catch my drift? I have no idea what technological gap that you are referring to. China has a quantity gap in military arms with the United States. The military technological gap is disappearing fast.

Let me put it to you this way. Do you see that graph? What's the difference between India and China? Both have the same populations. However, Chinese technological levels are way beyond Indian dreams. It is China's possession of high technology that enables such a massive economy.

You cannot build a massive modern economy without high technology. Do you want me to show you a chart of China's $1.9 trillion in exports? It is comprised mostly of high-tech goods.

 

[Redbull]

Let's not forget that Soviets had slaves not friends, wheras China has Iran, Pakistan and Russia as a friend. All countries within the region and millitary powers.

 

[Hello_10]

Why China > Soviet Union - The Daily Beast

"Why China > Soviet Union
by Ryan Prior Jun 26, 2012 12:30 PM EDT

Members of the Guards of Honour of the Three Services of the Chinese People's Liberation Army march during a training session at a barracks in Beijing on July 21, 2011 (LIU JIN / AFP / Getty Images)

This week Michael Cembalest, chairman of market and investment strategy at JP Morgan, published a research letter with a graph showing the history of the world by GDP. It inspired Derek Thompson at The Atlantic to write a great series of posts. The charts show that population was the primary determinant of prosperity in pre-industrial society, but after the 1800s, productivity became significantly more important:



Even from just a cursory look at Cembalest's original chart, another interesting trend is visible:

Russia, which has a population approximately half of the U.S. (140 million), never rivaled U.S. GDP throughout the Cold War. China today boasts a greater share of world GDP than the Soviets ever did at their 1950s peak. And the Chinese share only shows signs of growing ever more.

Two important differences in the emerging U.S.-China rivalry as compared to the U.S.-Soviet one. 1.) The Chinese population is more than three times the U.S. population, while ours was double that of Russia. 2.) Chinese GDP is now booming as Soviet GDP never did."

China is still not equal to SU. SU had put a Space Center, MIR, even in 80s, but China haven't yet and may not by this decade also. even an Indian had reached in space with 8 other Russians by 1984 as below, which China could do just few years before. until China equals itself to US, in terms of technology/economy, it can't be said to be equal to SU who had outperformed US in many areas, including defense where China still has to travel a good distance. but we hope till 2020/30, China will have leveled achievements of SU, they had till 1990

 

[Oldman1]

What was the point of comparing China now to the Soviet Union? Thats like comparing U.S. in 21st to British Empire at its peak. How about comparing Russia now to China present.

 

[Wright]

China has a billion people. Soviet Union at it's peak had ~250 million.

 

[Martian2]

What was the point of comparing China now to the Soviet Union? Thats like comparing U.S. in 21st to British Empire at its peak. How about comparing Russia now to China present.

I think the author is saying that China is the first country in the world that may actually surpass the United States in its economy (and implicitly military).

 

[Sonyuke_Songpaisan]

why compare china with SU - the symbol of evil? as Churchill said Russians have only interests no morals.

 

[Backbencher]

Self thumping thread to say the least .
Sovient union was advanced in many departments compared to todays China

 

[Deno]

China has the potential to supress any other nation on earth by timeline and it will propably do it unless there is some nuclear apocalypse but this chest thumbing is annoying... Please do this after 2030/40 but not now when even the tiny European countries has 4-5 times the GDP per capita of China.

 

[Avisheik]

China has a bigger econmy than SU because china is becoming more and more capitalistic. Soviet did not really try to become capitalistic and no disrespect to the chinese but china is no where near the military badassness of the Soviets.

 

[Deno]

military badassness of the Soviets.

It was blunt but yea thats true