China: transitions from real estate to manufacturing
Saudi Arabia: transitions from ghost megaprojects to AI
sounds about right
So instead of completely divorced from reality, nominally adjacent to reality
Double posting because I keep thinking about this article.
Does anything show the inability of capitalism to solve large scale crises quite like the economic output of Saudi Arabia? I mean think about it for a second: here you have a country driving towards a big cliff, that KNOWS it’s driving towards that cliff, has functionally infinite money, and still can’t stop itself from driving towards the cliff. Within their own borders, the Saudis have more power over what goes on and where money flows to than almost any other capitalist country, and THIS is the best they can get done. They are at once enabled by and paralyzed by the same system, they might as well throw their dollars into a big fire and run a steam turbine with it for all the good they do.
In a free market structure, Saudi oil exports create huge demand for the Saudi Riyal, making it appreciate massively against all other currencies. This makes any other export uncompetitive, and imports really cheap. Thus, it kills off most of Saudi Arabia’s domestic industries, actively punishing diversification despite being the smart thing to do.
To extend this further, Saudi Arabia exemplifies how capitalism is very efficient at making huge profits, but really bad at building a functional economy. It’s why the US spends 17.6% of its GDP on healthcare, and yet has a terrible life expectancy for a developed country.
I thought “neom” was the sound an airliner hijacked by saudis makes just before it crashes into a tower.
I found a YouTube link in your comment. Here are links to the same video on alternative frontends that protect your privacy:
You can now experience NEOM in second life everyone!
