Off topic

I just finished reading " How to Make an American Job Before It's Too Late" by Andy Grove in the July edition of Bloomberg Business.  Even if that does not make me particularly original, I’ll say that this is exactly how I feel except that I’d say Canadian job instead. 

What do you think?  As always comments are welcome.

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Comments

[Rob van Hell]

Patrick,

It's a bit chilling to read that article. Even more chilling when you consider that much of the "high value" work is starting to be sent offshore also. We are indeed oiling our guillotine.

Rob.

[Patrick Richard]

It is indeed chilling, especially so because it is self-inflicted.

The big fallacy is that owning intellectual property (IP) will protect its owner.

This is false on at least 3 levels:
• IP gets stale and has to be refreshed or innovated and that costs money. Since brains are evenly distributed on the planet and since emerging economies can throw more people at the innovation game for the same amount of money they have an edge. And they also have more people to start with.
• IP ownership is not enough of an economic powerhouse to sustain a whole country. I remember a documentary series called “India Reborn” in which the head of Mahindra Satyam (I think) was being asked if India should jump clearly over manufacturing and into high-technology. He answered that only 6 million (maybe the wrong number) Indian work in IT which is a minute percentage of the population. He also said that Bill Gates (the Bill) told him that you can’t expect to live purely on tech, you have to make things.
• IP gets exported all the time. Train someone here, then deny them the right to stay, and then watch as the next generation of brains take their ideas (IP) away.