In Praise of Hard Industries Book + PRICE WATCH * Amazon pricing is not included in price watch

In Praise of Hard Industries Book

The supertanker is the image that has come to symbolize America's economic might over the last decade--rock solid and steady. Low inflation, high productivity, and a booming stock market have combined to help create one of the most prosperous periods in American history. But Eamonn Fingleton would argue that this ship is steering the wrong course, and that lurking just below the waterline are some troublesome leaks. Fingleton argues that American business is sacrificing its once valuable manufacturing base in favor of the new economy, or postindustrialism--an umbrella under which he includes the service, software, information, and entertainment industries, among others. While he writes that he does not seek to dismiss the merits of postindustrialism--although he calls the financial-services industry a "cuckoo in the economy's nest"--Fingleton finds fault with the new economy in three areas: the mix of jobs it produces, its slow income growth, and the fact that postindustrial activities don't export very well. At the same time, he believes that modern manufacturing has become wrongly associated with low-wage or stagnant economies--Japan, in particular, which, he argues, is not the basket case that many believe it to be. At the heart of Fingleton's argument is the idea that postindustrial activities are relatively easy to pursue compared to manufacturing, which requires much more capital and know-how but offers far more upside in the long run. His prescription for revitalizing manufacturing includes boosting savings, directing much of it into industrial investment, and instituting a trade policy designed to allow manufacturing to thrive in the United States. While Fingleton's dour assessment of the new economy seems overdone, his basic argument about the relative worth of manufacturing is well articulated. In Praise of Hard Industries is a good contrarian read for policymakers, managers, and anyone interested in a different view of both the U.S. and Japanese economies. --Harry C. EdwardsRead More

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  • Product Description

    Challenging conventional wisdom, Eamonn Fingleton argues that manufacturing expertise -- not the new information economy -- is crucial to jobs, exports, and growth. It is universally accepted that the future of the U.S. economy depends on its successful adaptation to a postindustrial, information-based global economy. The same conventional wisdom says that advanced economies should abandon manufacturing in favor of information-driven services such as finance, entertainment, and software. In this surprising and provocative book, the acclaimed financial journalist Eamonn Fingleton demonstrates that by every measure, including high-wage job creation, contribution to national income, and balance of trade, the manufacturing sector outperforms the "new economy." In Praise of Hard Industries argues with compelling logic that America's long-term economic success depends on its strategic advantage as a manufacturer of sophisticated equipment and producer goods.

  • 0395899680
  • 9780395899687
  • Fingleton
  • 21 March 2000
  • Houghton Mifflin (Trade)
  • Hardcover (Book)
  • 288
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