Am I repetitive? Yes? Good! Today's International Herald Tribune just grabbed from my New Delhi hotel room door at 5:30A.M. I don't have to go far. Page 1. Topic ... an EXPLOSION (right word choice) of ... foreign corporate R & D labs in ... where else ... China ("Global Firms Flock to China's Brainpower"). Chinese ministry officials estimate that there are already 600 foreign-company Labs in China, such as a 170-scientist Microsoft facility (Microsoft Research Asia) in Beijing. That total is growing at the rate of about 200 labs per year, and one pundit projects that in the next five years China will surpass Britain, Germany and Japan to quickly become the #2 corporate R & D power, behind (FOR NOW!) the U.S.A.
All of which gives special relevance to a great quote I recently came across from New York Times columnist Tom Friedman: "When I was growing up, my parents used to say to me: 'Finish your dinner—people in China are starving.' I, by contrast, find myself wanting to say to my daughters: 'Finish your homework—people in China and India are starving for your job.'"
The only question: Is it funny?