In Praise of Hard Industries: Why Manufacturing, Not the Information Economy, Is the Key to Future Prosperity

A former editor of Forbes and the Financial Times, Fingleton ably articulates a contrarian thesis, arguing that manufacturing--not America's ""postindustrial economy"" based on services and information technology--is best equipped to deliver high wages, low unemployment and a bedrock for future prosperity. His scathing, selective tour of the U.S. computer, financial services and entertainment industries turns up colossal waste, puny exports, mismanagement and hype. Noting that, since the dawn of the computer revolution in the early 1970s, America's rate of growth in productivity has actually fallen, Fingleton suggests that the Internet has done and will do remarkably little to benefit the U.S. economy. He joins a diverse band of critics of laissez-faire globalism, including James Fallows, Patrick Buchanan and Jerry Mander, adding his own unique slant on East-West relations and manufacturing conditions. He contends that, contrary to Western press reporting, Japan is not an economic basket case, but is instead an affluent dynamo poised to challenge the U.S. for global economic leadership (a theme he set forth in his 1995 book Blindside). Bolstered by close analysis and chock full of intriguing examples of manufacturing triumphs and untapped opportunities, Fingleton's sobering report deserves close scrutiny by CEOs, labor leaders and policy makers. (Sept.)