@kyleichan “Impressive. Chips Act funding got basically every major chipmaker to build in the US. “That means the US will become the only country in the world with facilities run by all of the top manufacturers.”
@skillsgaptrainer “Exciting ideas from Kyle Chan! The U.S. Chips Act is attracting top global chipmakers to set up in the States, a major move for the industry . In Canada, there’s big news too, with Honda’s $15 billion commitment to establish 4 new EV plants in Ontario — marking a significant technology development in Canada for the first time in a decade.
While there are economic criticisms about the hefty public spending for relatively few jobs attained as demonstrated in Canada’s Honda EV deal, it’s crucial to recognize the consequences of previous national corporate policies that offshored and outsourced these jobs, betraying national commitments, defense interests, and the social contract with citizens. Up to 56 000 factories were moved out of North America since 1960s and 1970s, so the high costs we face today of “bringing the economy back” are the price of past economic decisions marked by poor national corporate leadership, and now there is a big price to pay to undo the disloyalty and damage.
Instead of solely critiquing the economic repercussions and the costs to citizens of bringing back technology and industry, manufacturing and commodities production industries, that were offshored; it might be more insightful to investigate who exactly made these decisions to move substantial segments of our manufacturing overseas and the technology systems globally. Not those who built out globally for the first time, but those who relocated against public interest.
Identifying the corporate and political leaders who orchestrated or supported the offshoring and outsourcing of jobs could illuminate the forces and motives driving these significant economic shifts as well as the permanent costs which society must now bear from those decisions, towards restarting our future. This approach not only helps in understanding the profound impact on our domestic industries but also in holding accountable those at the helm of these decisions.
When discussing reparations in the USA, it might not be those for racism that most concern, or are most applicable, or are most relevant, to the current and past struggle of all of the modern late 20th and early 21st century, generations of citizens living in North America. Instead, the issue pivotal to defining a better 21st century is economic injustice towards the new generations.
Reparations make sense primarily when considered in the context of the economic hardships endured by Americans in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. These include the significant costs society now bears to develop and sustain a 21st-century economy, and to bring back advanced global corporations, which were once predominantly within the domain of the USA and Canada, before the loyalty aspect and defense aspect of the national social contract was breached.
Such an investigation would contribute to devising strategies that could potentially reverse the negative economic, technology and civilization effects and promote a sustainable and growth based economic model future the future of USA, Canada and Europe. The ongoing issue extends beyond current expenditures; it’s about correcting the foundational errors that have brought us to this point.
Our governments, including leaders like Prime Minister Trudeau and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland of the Liberal Party of Canada, are comfortable with borrowing vast sums — hundreds of billions every few years. Despite these enormous sums that could have built out nations on the moon and a vast array of cities in space, for a decade they failed to yield any physical, material and real world tangible results in critical areas such as housing, industry, energy, healthcare, resources, climate change, public safety, educational modernization, defense and technological advancement pertaining AI and blockchain systems.
However, following advocacy by millennial influencers towards a renewed concentration on a growth based economy that uses real assets and real goods and services, such as advocacy from SGT, for a focus on manufacturing, the Honda EV deal emerged as a notable success, showcasing a rare, once in a decade, instance where substantial investment has begun to materialize into concrete outcomes.
Why not adopt a more proactive and real goods based investment strategy? If a few billion dollars can lead to significant manufacturing advancements in the U.S., then Canada should consider ramping up this approach by at least 100x.
Honda’s initiative, backed by top-notch Japanese analytics and engineering, sets a precedent. If they have decided to do it, any corporation can engage in such a fashion safely. After all, Honda only has one equal in reliable ICE vehicles (gas engines), Toyota! So why not invite more industry leaders like Toyota and BAE Systems to follow suit?
Instead of accumulating hundreds of billions in national debt, a cost Canadians will have to pay in perpetuity via ongoing future inflation tax, like a bad and exploitative deal that would only be found in ancient religious texts, with negligible returns on investments like financial schemes and double digit financialization of the economy of Canada and more no productivity bureaucratic expansions; Canada and the USA should instead forget the banks and the office administrators and go ahead full steam and attract leading tech firms from Japan, South Korea, UK, France, Italy and Germany.
This strategy would help build a 21st-century infrastructure in the West, one we can be proud of and one that will keep us safe in the age of AI and 30 other dangers not yet discussed, but available below as a link.
It’s time to intensify our efforts. We must urge political leaders across the spectrum to make Canada (& USA), a centre for advanced manufacturing, energy, resources, and AI technologies.” #InvestInCanada #TechForTheFuture
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Link: https://skillsgaptrainer.com/the-great-filter-ahead-engineering-a-pathway/
Related Books and Resources:
“The New Map: Energy, Climate, and the Clash of Nations” by Daniel Yergin – This book offers a comprehensive look at how energy revolutions, climate battles, and geopolitical shifts are shaping the future. Yergin explores the global implications of the U.S. becoming a world energy powerhouse again, akin to the article’s focus on reclaiming industrial and technological sovereignty.
“The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger” by Marc Levinson – Levinson’s book examines the revolution in international trade brought about by the container box, touching on themes of globalization similar to the discussion of offshoring in the article. It provides context on how economic decisions have global impacts.
“The Making of a Democratic Economy: How to Build Prosperity for the Many, Not the Few” by Marjorie Kelly and Ted Howard – This work proposes a shift towards a more inclusive and equitable economy, critiquing the current economic models that have led to inequality and exploring reparations, much like the economic justice themes in the article.
“Factory Man: How One Furniture Maker Battled Offshoring, Stayed Local – and Helped Save an American Town” by Beth Macy – Macy tells the true story of a furniture maker fighting against the offshoring of jobs. This resonates with the article’s emphasis on the impact of manufacturing jobs moving overseas and the efforts to bring them back.
“The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution” by Walter Isaacson – Isaacson’s book explores the history of the digital revolution, focusing on the personalities and inventions that transformed technology and business, aligning with the technological advancements discussed in the article.
“Sustainable Energy – Without the Hot Air” by David J.C. MacKay – This book breaks down the numbers behind sustainable energy in a clear, understandable way, discussing the practical steps needed to sustainably manage energy—an issue closely related to the discussions of economic and environmental sustainability in the article.
“Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty” by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson – Acemoglu and Robinson explore why some nations are rich and others poor, investigating the political and economic policies that shape this disparity. This ties into the article’s critique of national economic strategies and their long-term consequences.
“The Third Industrial Revolution: How Lateral Power is Transforming Energy, the Economy, and the World” by Jeremy Rifkin Rifkin argues that the third industrial revolution will involve new technologies and a move towards renewable energy, which reflects the article’s call for a renewed focus on real goods and advanced manufacturing.
“Race Against the Machine: How the Digital Revolution is Accelerating Innovation, Driving Productivity, and Irreversibly Transforming Employment and the Economy” by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee – This book discusses the impact of technological change on jobs, productivity, and the economy, paralleling the article’s discussion on the need for economic strategies that do not just focus on technological advancement but also address job creation.
“The Economics of Enough: How to Run the Economy as If the Future Matters” by Diane Coyle – Coyle explores how to balance economic performance with social justice, sustainability, and the management of resources. The themes closely match those in the article, particularly in the discussion of managing a country’s resources for the future and not just the present.
