BEIJING/HONG KONG (Reuters) – When Jack Ma and his colleagues sat down in 2001 to put out Alibaba’s defining values, they named them after a martial arts technique drawn from Ma’s love of kung fu novels and their heroic themes.

Before the financial disaster, Google’s gung-ho commitment to innovation, and even its $1 bn company-huge retention bonus, would have been perfectly in tune with what I can’t resist calling the nationwide zeitgeist. But what made Arora’s feedback so putting this month was their sharp contrast with the mood of America, and even many of the developed world.

Take the healthcare invoice for instance. Republicans said no because there were unsure about change. This compelled Democrats to bolster-up the cost. In reaction to this over enthusiasm, insurance companies balked. The entire factor was stalled and hyped for thus long it is only questionable that it is an efficient bill. While the … Read more

Saying ‘yes’ is without doubt one of the dominant tropes of American life. America’s favourite politicians are the sunny optimists: assume Ronald Reagan and Morning in America.” In fact, the culture is so insistent on trying on the brilliant facet that, as Barbara Ehrenreich complained in a current e book , injunction will be heard on the most cancers ward. You may even say — and a few historians have — that Americans themselves have been pre-selected for his or her optimism: you or your ancestors needed to have a powerful faith within the New World and the opportunities here to make the trek over within the first place.

One purpose this recession is so tough on the American middle class is that by habit and by inclination, it belongs to the culture of sure. But excessive unemployment, a stalled housing market and fewer access to consumer credit has trapped … Read more