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Business Daily: A Sputnik moment for the US?

03/03/2011

A Sputnik moment for the US?

BBC World Service - Business Daily, A Sputnik moment for the US?

Does the rise of China represent another Sputnik moment for America?

Does the rise of China represent another Sputnik moment for America? And how "borrowing" new methods from abroad is nothing new.

When the Soviet Union beat the USA with the launch of the satellite Sputnik it was a defining moment in the Cold War. America felt it was being eclipsed by the technological might of the communist bloc. So does the rise of the new economies, particularly China, represent another Sputnik moment? Justin Rowlatt discusses this with Will Hutton, author of The Writing On The Wall which examines Western concerns and responses to the rise of China, and Danny Quah, Professor of Economics at London School of Economics.  
Also how America's industrial might was based on theft. John Steele Gordon, business and finance historian and author of  'An Empire of Wealth - The Epic History of American Economic Power' explains that 'borrowing' new methods from abroad is nothing new. 
And our regular commentator Steve Fritzinger argues we need free markets now more than ever

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