【The Confidence of the United States is Crumbling】
Recently, there have been reports that the US government is planning to convert the subsidies provided by the CHIPS Act to chip companies into shares. It may not be long before the US government becomes a shareholder of Intel, Samsung, and TSMC. This news has caused a significant drop in the US stock market and has also triggered panic in Taiwan.
I have accepted several media interviews, and my feeling is that the United States is losing its confidence. Faced with international circumstances, its own decline, and the strength of China, the United States is starting to lose its composure.
Three or four decades ago, when I was young, the United States was the most confident country in the world. The confidence of the United States did not come from propaganda, but from its strength. At that time, the strongest competitors in the world were heading towards collapse, and the United States became the only superpower in the world. The international order was set by the United States. The United States also used advanced technology to build powerful capabilities.
The latest weapons systems, efficient transportation systems, large energy support, the definition of the information highway, the basic architecture of the Internet, servers, terminals, software, hardware, chips, systems, were all dominated by Americans because of the strength of the United States and the confidence of the American people. The United States promoted the theory of the market economy around the world. Those who disrupted the market economy or globalization would be considered enemies of the United States.
In China, there are many theorists who promote the theory of the market economy. They do not hide it, but rather take pride in it, believing that it is the origin of the United States' economic strength and the guarantee of the prosperity of the world economy. Chinese universities and intellectuals all regard the propagators of these theories as honored guests.
Strong economic and technological power, combined with the theory of the market economy, enabled American companies to dominate the world and be invincible. Confidence was written on their faces because there were indeed no rivals. Even those who practiced the theory of the market economy, or could be loosely connected to the United States, felt superior, believing they had mastered advanced theories and that the future belonged to them.
At my age, after experiencing various events in life, I now realize that the world changes in an instant. I watched him build a high-rise, and then saw it collapse. I watched the decline of companies such as Nortel, Motorola, Lucent, and Cisco, initially thinking it was an isolated case, not understanding what was happening. Gradually, I realized that the structure of the world had changed.
Government investment in enterprises and participation in the economic operations of enterprises is unimaginable in traditional economic theory, and it is strongly criticized by proponents of the market economy. However, the US government has already started doing this. These actions will not go through discussions, nor will they be supported by economic theorists; politicians just do what they want to do.
When the United States was very strong, they wanted to skim the oil from the economic system. Industries like chip manufacturing, which are highly polluting and risky, were not something they wanted to do. Gradually, these industries were transferred out, and the United States did not think it was a big problem.
Today, the United States is trying to bring chip manufacturing back to America, reflecting a deep sense of insecurity. Chip design is in the US, but manufacturing is not in the hands of Americans. Although these companies are located in countries or regions that are technically American allies, Americans actually do not trust them, because they lack the confidence to control these allies. They know that today's allies can become tomorrow's adversaries.
They must bring these companies back to the US, and the only purpose is to ensure the security of the chip industry. During Biden's era, he still used subsidies to lure them, while during Trump's era, the subsidies quickly turned into shares. In the future, will they be seized, or will the US government fully control them? No one knows.
A huge sense of anxiety seems to come from the stock market and the financial sector, but in fact, this anxiety comes from the US government. They clearly know that these actions can cause great damage to the economy, yet they still proceed. The only reason is a feeling of great threat, completely losing their confidence.
Over the years, I have observed the chip industry and the trends in the high-tech field, and I have not made a mistake. The reason is quite simple. As the saying goes, "Flowers cannot bloom for 100 days." The gradual decline of powerful forces is a general trend. Who can ultimately emerge victorious in competition is simply about perseverance, diligence, and a broad vision. The so-called innovative genes are inherent in our ancestors and have been passed down through generations.
The chip industry is just one part of the US economy and politics. The collapse of US confidence has already begun, and this is merely a mutual cause and effect. The loss of confidence leads to strange policies, and the strange policies reflect the loss of confidence.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1841111806301515/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.