"Bruce in Bangkok" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 26 Jul 2008 02:54:36 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

On Jul 26, 7:23 pm, Bruce in Bangkok
wrote:
On Fri, 25 Jul 2008 23:53:32 -0700 (PDT), wrote:
On Jul 26, 3:43 pm, Gunner wrote:
On Fri, 25 Jul 2008 21:02:52 -0700 (PDT), wrote:
On Jul 26, 10:55 am, Bruce in Bangkok
wrote:
On Fri, 25 Jul 2008 16:08:10 -0700 (PDT),
wrote:

without unions there will be no strong middle
class,http://www.unionworld.us

Must be a U.S. phenomena as there is a strong middle class in many
Asian countries with either no unions or Government controlled
unions.

Bruce-in-Bangkok
(correct Address is bpaige125atgmaildotcom)

You got figures on how many middle class there are as a percentage
of
the population, versus the western world?? - must be a GREAT place
to
work, why else would the western world offshore its manufacturing
there? - maybe, no unions to put a brake on the excesses of
capitalism.

Andrew VK3BFA.

The largest middle class in the world..is in India. By several orders
of magnitude

Yes, I know that - the same for China, Indonesia, and a few others -
they could buy and sell us all out of petty cash, so numerous are
they. (And if China stops propping up the US, your well and truly
stuffed - its unlikely, they are holding so many USD that would turn
in Pesos if they did - a bad deal for both partys. Thank heavens their
pragmatic and not run by the Wingers in their government))

BUT - are they 1%, 20 % = what? - never mind the numbers, (millions?)
- do they have a middle class large enough to control the government
to have at least the semblance of self determination, or is it the
traditional 5% who control 95% of the wealth who still run things?

Pointless, but I persist, in between pruning my roses....

Andrew VK3BFA.

In 1992 the military government led by General Suchinda fell as a
result of street demonstrations led by Chamlong, a retired general and
ex governor of Bangkok.

If you were watching television you would have seen the crowds of
people in the street wearing white shirts, dark trousers and shoes.
These were the middle class and their protests, and the responding
actions of the Army were the cause of the coup collapsing.

Bruce-in-Bangkok
(correct Address is bpaige125atgmaildotcom)

And all things are for the best in the best of all possible worlds...

Andrew VK3BFA.


Nobody has said anything about "the best of best worlds". All that has
been said is that there is a viable middle class in Asia and some
examples.

As I pointed out in the example to Gunner, it's actually quite small
compared to the middle class in western developed countries, and calling
them "middle class" requires looking at it from the point of view of
purchasing-power parity (PPP), not their status in the world economy.

There's an argument for looking at it either way. Considering the way we
define "middle class," which generally is by lifestyle, rather than by
comparative income, the case for PPP is a strong one. That puts India's
middle class at around 50 million -- 1/2 that of the US, and a MUCH smaller
percentage of their population. By any definition, most people in India
still live in poverty. Other Asian countries vary in that regard, but,
overall, the Asian middle class is tiny as a percentage of the total
population.

--
Ed Huntress