Unfortunately in an integrated and globalised economy, where people / countries depend on each other, even when it comes to technology, it's not easy to be isolationist anymore. Further, the trade imbalance between China & the US is partly as a result of policies which have kept wages / cost of living low in some parts of the world, whereas in a different part, wages (and the cost of living) have increased significantly (or uncontrollably?) over the decades.
You may argue that the US-China trade"war" was probably necessary to reset things, but no one wins from this, not even China.
Finally, there is this falacy of infinite growth.There can't possibly be infinite growth in any economy (or across the world as a whole), because the earth's resources are ... finite. Even if you go to the moon to extract minerals, or some other planet, you'll still need things from earth, to make your existence possible.
So, I doubt its possible to achieve infinite growth because there would be costs associated with bringing those resources to earth, and until we find other habitable planets (and practical ways of immigrating to those planets), actually another way of looking at it is that China is the country which has been fiscally responsible by keeping wages & the cost of living relatively low for its people (however controversial that process is deemed to have been). Western countries are the ones who should learn something from China. On that basis, the jocks are right.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
