Industrialized Nations after the Cold War
United States Faces New Challenges
- World's only superpower
- great military and political influence
- September 11, 2001
- President Bush declared "war on terror"
- 2002 - sent forces to Afghanistan
- 2003 - invaded Iraq, toppled dictator, Saddam Hussein
- 2009 - Barack Obama first African-American President
- forces still in Iraq and Afghanistan
Economics
- 1990s - budget surplus
- George Bush
- slow growth, massive military spending, tax cut for wealthy Americans
- Budget deficit - gap between what government spends and takes in
- 2008
- global recession
- unemployment
- President Obama instituted multibillion dollar stimulus package
- increased federal spending
- tax cuts
Changes in Asia
- Pacific Rim
- Asian nations that border the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Rim
- 1500s - Pacific Ocean became highway for world trade
- by 1990s - traffic greater than the Atlantic
- why?
Japan and China
- 1990s - Japan economic downturn
- China's economy boomed
- 2008 global recession hurt China's export based economy
Asian Tigers
- Taiwan
- Hong Kong
- Singapore
- South Korea
Asian Tigers
- modernized by 1980s
- stressed hard work, loyalty and education
- started with light industry (textiles)
- shifted to higher priced exports (electronics)
- growth due to
- low wages
- long hours
- hurt by 2008 recession