Globalization

San Jose's 30-year quest to be an "entrepreneurial city." A single-minded focus on corporate-based redevelopment never paid off for the city's residents.

The current system clearly hasn't been so good for those to whom the benefits were supposed to trickle down. But the U.S. remains a mighty economic force, one that could push back effectively if it wished to, and cross-national cooperation could yield a mutual defense pact to protect countries from having to compete in a race to the bottom.

In attempting to promote “insourcing” by American companies, the Obama Administration has embraced the report of a private consulting firm that asserts that gains in “competitiveness” can only be maintained with policies that have yielded lower wages and weak unions. The President praised business leaders who have brought jobs home for their patriotism, but experts suggested that businesses were simply looking at their bottom line.

In BCG report, cost — not national allegiance or societal concerns — is the only value to consider in deciding where to locate and invest.