There are no reliable data about the wages in Communist
China. However, a visit to your local discount store will turn up silk
shirts for $25 and AM/FM portable radios, with headphones (bat-
teries not included), that work quite well for $5, both made in
China. It is probably impossible to determine the wages of the peo-
ple who made these things. Common sense says they can’t be very
much, perhaps slave level.
To a significant extent, the cause of the decline in income in the
United States is irrelevant. Whether the statistics accurately de-
scribe reality is somewhat irrelevant, too. For many people the free-
dom and joy of self-determination and self-expression that they
reap from their own business far exceeds the value of even a lot
more money from a job.
The remainder of this book is designed to equip you to meet
the economic challenges that are the legacy of the economic devel-
opments just described.
Entrepreneurial skills will aid you in your job search, should you
choose to continue as a wage earner in the unstable job market, be-
cause you will be more competent and confident selling yourself.
Obviously, the skills you are about to learn also will aid you greatly if
you choose to start a side business to augment your current income
from wages or to launch your own business full time.30 What the Global Economy Means to You