Word: problem
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...Beijing, having $1.4 trillion to invest is a nice problem but a complicated one nonetheless. "It's the classic elephant-in-the-room syndrome," says a Western banker who advises the State Investment Co. "Where does he sit? Anywhere he wants, sure. But he's got to be very careful that he doesn't squash anything when he does." The mere whiff of a rumor that, say, Beijing may shift part of its foreign-exchange holdings from dollars into euros has rattled world currency markets several times in the past year...
...that been the only political problem tied to foreign investment for China. Beijing has not forgotten the protectionist uproar that was triggered in the U.S. when CNOOC tried to buy the Los Angeles-- based Unocal. The lessons, say people involved in the deal, have been seared into the brains of the Chinese and have been evident in the plays in Barclays and Blackstone. Rather than trying to swallow big, high-profile Western firms in one bite, the Chinese are taking smaller, strategic stakes and working, in the case of the Barclays deal, with another prominent partner, Temasek...
...identity is not just who you think you are but must also encompass the perceptions of others. Telling the people I meet here I’m American won’t change my ignorance of my family’s culture and language; in fact, it exacerbates the problem...
...concrete roadway supported by gridwork of steel. "When you use both concrete and steel like this," says William Miller, an expert on bridge engineering at Temple University in Philadelphia, "there can be chemical reactions going on where these two very different substances meet. This is especially a problem in extreme climates where water can get into the cracks between supports, freeze and expand and cause a huge amount of damage." Beyond that, says Miller, "concrete is a very forgiving material, and so it can stand up to a lot of cracking and wear. Steel on the other hand, cannot...
...would be so expensive to fix hundreds of thousands of bridges that it's just not going to happen. But these numbers highlight the problem of the nation's infrastructure. No word is likely to make taxpayers' eyes glaze over more quickly. As a result, officials at all levels of government tend to defer maintenance on bridges and roadways; the voters wouldn't stand for the required expenditures, estimated at more than $9 billion a year. They might, however, be willing to pay for more frequent and thorough inspections, which could distinguish the structurally deficient bridges in imminent danger...