Rebirth as an American Tycoon

[Chapter 806: False Prosperity]

The draw of the United States remained significant, regardless of whether people liked it or not. It was, after all, the most powerful nation in the world.

Now, those in power warned everyone that traditional industries should be handed off to developing countries. As for the developed nations, their focus should be on high-tech fields.

You couldn't exactly say that this idea was wrong. Lower energy consumption and higher added value -- combined with what could be described as terrifying financial power -- would definitely keep America ahead of the world for quite some time.

Some claimed that good financial analysts were also historians. It was hard to verify exactly who said that, but if you were unfamiliar with history, you certainly wouldn't become a successful economist.

History often has a shocking resemblance. Back in 1850, Britain's industrial output peaked. At that time, half of the world's industrial products were produced there.

The British soon realized that this wasn't very profitable. All the hard work they put in just turned London into a foggy city, with no other gains to show for it.

In that world, the two most lucrative businesses were shipping and finance. Consequently, Britain started to offload production to Europe and the Americas, as long as they could keep producing.

They didn't care about the air quality elsewhere or whether child labor was used in the colonies.

As history would later reveal, when real trouble brewed, Britain was left weak. Once their connections to the colonies were severed, they couldn't even guarantee tea and bread, let alone industrial products.

High tech sounded good, but it had to be done within reason. What astonished William White was the growing global trend toward virtual economies.

"Wow, everyone's learning from America! What's going to happen to these factories?"

A whole slew of so-called emerging economies had the same mindset, which could lead to serious problems.

"William, aren't you going to reconsider?"

"Ah, George, America's industrial base no longer exists. Everyone is moving out. China's doing alright, South Korea's doing fine, and even Russia can produce things at a lower cost. By the way, we don't seem to care who produced these things."

"Ahem, buddy, if this keeps up, the industry will hollow out. If a crisis were to hit, it would be a disaster."

Clearly, the situation in America left much to be desired. George W. Bush felt it wasn't right and tried to persuade William White. If the person who disliked domestic production the most could return, there might be a demonstration effect.

"Too late. It's been going on since the '70s, continuously. They've been doing this for over twenty years. No one can change it, I'm afraid."

George felt a bit frustrated. The current state of America left both him and his father confused.

The semiconductor industry was still somewhat viable. The Internet, on the other hand, was exaggerated. Ideas could suddenly become worth hundreds of millions.

If everyone kept doing this, who on earth would engage in real industry? Such behavior was utterly foolish.

William White wasn't against industry; he just wasn't doing it in America. George wanted to understand if there were any consequences to such an approach.

"George, don't you read history? Our cousins did this back in 1850. There were the "Fog Boys," and severe pollution issues. Eventually, it disappeared when Britain realized that, with strong control over finance and shipping, industry wasn't necessary anymore. They succeeded. I think if they hadn't done that back then, they would still be the unassailable empire they once were."

Bush's face darkened. He originally thought that maybe he was overreacting -- America's economy seemed healthy. However, William White's answer told him it wasn't about overreacting; it was about being too late.

"Ha ha ha, but you don't have to worry too much. In fact, except for a few countries, the whole world is doing the same. But it doesn't matter, we've printed too many dollars. To tell the truth, those old guys should just hang up and dry. Excessive currency printing is nothing short of outright plundering."

"I get it; that's why Paul Volcker left early. He shouldn't have been teaching at all."

William White smiled without speaking. What could he say? Alan Greenspan had been engaging in quantitative easing for years. When a dangerous bubble burst in '08, they only made an even larger one.

Unfortunately, in this round of virtual economy, there was no one willing to play along anymore. China no longer participated, Japan didn't care, and the Germans lacked interest as well.

Why was everyone suddenly eager to withdraw from agreements?

If the U.S. couldn't shear the sheep anymore, how could it sustain its current welfare system? That was an impossible task.

America shouldn't have been a welfare state; it never should have been since day one. How could a nation of immigrants discuss cohesion? When problems arose, most people's first thought was to run away.

No matter how poor the industry became, without that, how could you solve healthcare and social security issues?

Check the fiscal spending by Americans; since Bill Clinton pushed for healthcare and social security, government spending surged dramatically.

However, none of this concerned William White. When the time came for things to get unruly, he could simply pack up and leave.

Would America really lose its power? Not necessarily.

The path they were currently on mirrored Britain's choices back then. If we rewind time to 1850, who would have guessed that Britain would fall from grace?

Don't talk about controlling the oceans; they lost everything they could. If Scotland were to break away, they'd lose all semblance of dignity.

Was Britain not powerful enough back then?

Please! Anyone who dared to hurt them was dealt with swiftly; even the U.S. had been devoid of fury at that time. In their strongest era, even the combined forces of the others could not match their fleet.

Did you know why Britain sought continental balance?

They'd known something was amiss; their approach was to hamper competitors while stirring the pot. Without that pressure, they wouldn't be able to maintain an advantage.

The Germans didn't fear them; they were simply more industrially capable. In the end, even Britain and France together couldn't overpower them.

What baffled him was why Americans learned from their destitute cousin.

"Alright, George, don't get caught up in this. This is something Bill Clinton should address. Besides, Britain took nearly a century to fall apart; we're bound to do better."

"Ha ha, I hope so. I believe if we had a hundred years, we'd find a way to resolve this."

"Let's go, let's go; today is the finals day. Oh, too bad, our boys had to face Brazil."

"It's probably not looking too good. The Italians are defensive by nature. I really can't understand why people say Serie A is the best."

"Who said that? Nonsense -- it's not good at all. No one even cares for them; I think the English Premier League is the best."

"Ahem, what does the Premier League even have to do with you?"

"Hey, buddy, can you even carry on a conversation? Teach that handsy group of folks how it's done; it's not easy for me."

*****

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