The way things are going, it looks as though we're trying to be
a hub for hubris as well.
Its the price to pay for being small.
The other question I had to tackle was if I thought South
Korea's strategy in developing the likes of Samsung was something
other countries could emulate.
My assessment was a no.
My answer was that Taiwan's model of complementing its
industries with foreign MNCs (read SG's strategy) was more
viable.
In short, if you look at what happens today, you cant really
blame MIW for the "hub this hub that" thinking. The reason is that
we have little choice but to plug ourselves to the global economy
if we want a less risky growth strategy.
Indeed I pointed out that Samsung was lucky. Korea took a HUGE
gamble on electronics and it paid off.
If the USA hadn't arm-twisted Japan back in 1986, I can safely
tell you Samsung would have bankrupted back then!
