[Chocobean]

The solution has been pointed out hundreds of years ago, that is, the people need to reform. The hardware (factories, buildings, businesses, investments, machines...) are all there, the software (human minds) isn't up to speed.

I am no historian or economist, but I will suggest that perhaps the States had the "protestant work ethic", and that the Japanese had "loyalty to manager, company, and country."

The Chinese have neither; in a country that went from Corrupt and Dying Monarchy to War to Communist Revolution to Rapid Modernization, Materialism and Capitalism in a hundred years, the Chinese are still searching for a culturally unifying identity. Esp the last 50 years has been cut-throat, sell-your-mother-to-prosper survival mode, and the way businesses are run now reflect this. When the people feel more in control, feel ownership of their lives, they will start to feel more responsible towards themselves, their families, and to their communities.

I don't know, that's just what I think/hope. Anyone else?