China's sudden growth has undoubtedly startled countries worldwide, including our own United States of America. Many feel threatened by the recent development, some go so far as to say that the U.S. is doomed. But this kind of fear mongering is baseless, since China will not be overtaking us any time soon. The United States is still the dominant nation and the only enduring superpower and we have little to fear from China's recent, yet unsustainable rise.
Putting pessimism aside, the U.S. is actually far more robust than China. The numbers say it all: you may not have known that American economy is three times the size of China's. We're much more stable, with our per capita income in 2006 summing up to $37,698 and China's at a measely $1,740. Though it has been argued that China is beating us at educating our youth, but these people fail to note that China's goal for 2020, is to have 31% of their people recieve a high school diploma. As of 2008, ours was 77% ,and today, 85%. The U.S. is the world's most formidable military and number one manufacturer. All of this, compared with China's population of 1.3 billion, has been accomplished by 300 million people.
Some might still argue that if China continues to grow like this, then they will overtake us. That is true, but they won't continue to advance like this for long. They're going through their Industrial Revoilution. When was ours? Approximately 200 years ago. Obviously, we aren't expanding like we used to at that time. Growth like that cannot be sustained for long periods, and China will face that dilemma very soon. Saying that China will overtake us is like an adult saying that if a teenager continues to grow like he did during puberty, then he will be seven feet tall by 2015. The fact is, nothing grows continually, but in spurts. This is China's growth spurt.
So to those who think we should all start learning Mandarin, you are painfully mistaken. China will not be overtaking us, ecspecially when you consider that the United States is the strongest nation in the world. But of all my measurements, only one really matters: U.S.A. is number one!