The uniqueness of the US economy

The American economy had to be built from the grounds. Those immigrants who were not willing to work hard seldom did well in the New World. Whatever was needed had to be made by the settlers themselves. Or had to be imported at great expense. By the post WWII era the US was producing 50% of the “gross world product”.

Today the American economy no longer dominates the world. But with only ~5% of the world’s population and about 6% of its land area, the US still produces ~25% of the world’s industrial products, agricultural goods and services, a share that has remained about the same for the past 15 years.

America has not dropped behind other nations, rather the rest of the world has caught up, or closed the distance. America remains the world leader in many areas: such as biochemical and genetic engineering, aerospace research and development, communications, computer and information services and similar high-technology fields.

Many countries have now their own “silicon valleys”, but the first and biggest computer research and production area is still Silicon Valley near San-Francisco, where 4,000 high-tech firms are located.

The US is also the world’s leading agricultural nation, and by far the greatest supplier of grains. America’s share of the world’s land that can be used for farming is less than 8% and because only a tiny proportion of its total population (less than 2%) is involved in agriculture it’s amazing that America not only feeds her own people. But a great many other people in the world as well.

Many reasons have been offered to explain why the US has been able to go from a small. Struggling economy to the leading industrial and agricultural nation in such a short time. One reason, obviously, is its size and natural resources, but these alone do not account for its progress. America’s vitality, its so called spirit of enterprise and initiative has certainly played an important role. The American system of government, too, has encouraged citizens to pursue their own economic interest. The rapid progress can be also traced to a typically American characteristic – that of willingness to experiment, combined with the desire to find solutions to old problems. Social and geographic mobility have also played a part. People moved – and were willing to move – to areas where they could find jobs.

American business and industry have also contributed from the major universities, their basic research and their willingness to support talent. It is often the challenge, the desire to create smth new or better, rather than the material results that motivates Americans.

Environmental protection and equal employment laws in the US are among the strictest in the world.

The tendency to make new products available and affordable for everyone is one obvious reason why American business has usually been supported by average Americans. Another reason for the widespread support of business has been the tendency of “the very rich” to give away much of their money before they die. American tycoon, such as Carnegies and Rockefellers and the Fords gave much of their wealth to charity, to hospitals, universities, libraries, museums, art galleries and educational foundations.

One of the central problems of viewing trends in the American economy – and trends in American society overall – is that the traditional label of America as an “optimistic” (or even “Naively optimistic”) nation is, at best, only half true. There have always been periodic and dramatic changes in mood, ups and downs. But the majority of Americans believe, in good times and bad, that the “rags-to-riches” road, however rocky, is not at all myth. And that when they are pessimistic, Americans tend to be optimistically so.

Date: 2015-12-18; view: 903