Germany invests 20 times more, as a share of GDP, in industrially-relevant research and development than the U.S.
Article and research is here
I know, I hate to bring up the obvious and politically motivated question, but just how much is our government doing to make the US more competitive in this world economy.
Before everyone jumps up and comments about how our education system needs to change, let me save you some key strokes: I completely agree. The major change that is needed in the US is our education system no question. But education system changes will take a long time to take hold, whereas the immediate changes of our economy could be steered by our current administration.
To come to Obama's defense, everything the government invests in will not pay off, see the Solyndra. But what I wanted to bring attention to is the mere size of investments. When we compare ourselves to Germany, we are one 20th of their investment with respect to GDP. That means the immediate effect on the economy will not be felt nearly as much on the US economy and our workforce as it will in Germany.
I don't want to sound pro-German, since they do many things wrong as well, but the results are clear. When Germany has an economic downturn, there are far fewer unemployed workers in the market place then when the US goes through its wild swings like we did in 2008. Banking control? Please, that is why the good Germany banks have subs in the US, since they realize that fewer controls can make them all personally rich.
There is nothing wrong emulating what works in Germany. Let's study the way they fund innovation and find industries that need a boost to grow strong and keep jobs in the US. Not to hard to ask, is it?
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| Merkel and Obama G20 Summit |
To come to Obama's defense, everything the government invests in will not pay off, see the Solyndra. But what I wanted to bring attention to is the mere size of investments. When we compare ourselves to Germany, we are one 20th of their investment with respect to GDP. That means the immediate effect on the economy will not be felt nearly as much on the US economy and our workforce as it will in Germany.
I don't want to sound pro-German, since they do many things wrong as well, but the results are clear. When Germany has an economic downturn, there are far fewer unemployed workers in the market place then when the US goes through its wild swings like we did in 2008. Banking control? Please, that is why the good Germany banks have subs in the US, since they realize that fewer controls can make them all personally rich.
There is nothing wrong emulating what works in Germany. Let's study the way they fund innovation and find industries that need a boost to grow strong and keep jobs in the US. Not to hard to ask, is it?
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