(12-24-2022, 03:59 PM)Minimalist Wrote: Biden's smartest move was to get that microchip production bill passed. There is a huge Intel factory going up about 15 miles away from here. I don't know where they will get the workers from but the factory is being built at warp speed.I'm willing to agree with this statement. We can't rely on Taiwan for 100% of our chip production. It's a national security risk to have our collective ass hanging out like that.
There are people crabbing about how this won't work for the same reasons we originally sent production overseas -- people here won't work 12 hour shifts in clean rooms for low wages to make the chips. We'll have to run 3 shifts instead of 2, and we'll have to pay a lot more. But that's better than not being able to make anything because we have no chips because of some war in the Taiwan Straight, or some earthquake or whatever.
More broadly I think Biden actually intends to invest in making America the world leader at making basic goods in an environmentally sustainable way. To whatever degree we succeed at that the world will beat a path to our door. We will have kicked off what might be called an "environmental sustainability arms race". Some in Europe, especially the French, have picked up on this, and are concerned we have a plan when they don't.
My wife just finished writing an article on "green steel" production using hydrogen, which is one aspect of that, so it's top of mind right now.
