Of all the cultural attitudes, collective beliefs and national policies promoted and defended around the world, few - if any - can lay claim to anything like the record of "openness" as an unfailing path to generalized enrichment, economic prosperity, sanity and success.

The benefits of openness stretch far beyond the economic sphere, into every dimension of social and cultural life. Indeed, they are so manifold and fundamental that it would be reasonable to argue that beyond merely promoting development, openness and development are essentially synonymous.

A closed society already demonstrates its failure, the ugly details of its economic disasters, narrow popular prejudices and stunted cultural evolution are no more than footnotes to the primary social disorder.

Even though none of this is likely to be very controversial among the enlightened citizens of modern China, it is worth remarking nonetheless, because the advantages of openness typically exceed the expectations of even the wildest optimists - because the alternative is so grim. It seems to be intrinsic to domestic politics of every variety that a certain dismal downward trend emerges, characterized by sloth, despondency and complacency. It is only the shock of foreign examples - however unwelcome they may be - that Jolts such degenerating societies from their endogenous slide into decay.

It is probable that the importance of such external stimulation operates at every social level, from that of the international "community" down to that of the individual. Daniel Defoe imagined his Robinson Crusoe diligently building a replica of civilization for himself after being marooned alone on a desert island, but it seems more plausible to envisage him sunk in the miserable apathy which solitary existence naturally induces, consuming his meagre supply of salvaged rum while entertaining thoughts of suicide.

Having been an international development star for two decades, based on a resolute orientation towards openness, China is once again facing interesting times, with a revival of stimulating competition from outside. China's once-reluctant pupil India, whose reform and opening process lagged behind that of the PRC by a full decade, is now proving itself a worthy contender, with year-on-year growth for the last quarter coming in at 10.4 per cent, surpassing even China's spectacular 9.9 per cent growth over the same period.

India's recent advances have been so dramatic that the US protectionist lobby have even been distracted from the threat of the "rising dragon" and have begun turning their fire on the economics of "outsourcing", whereby highly-skilled US jobs are (supposedly) haemorrhaging out to the Indian subcontinent. This is undoubtedly significant, because attracting the ire of the world's protectionists is a unique honour and a reliable indicator of development success.

China and India are comparable in so many ways, as well as deeply complementary in many others, that their productive economic competition will inevitably provide the most uplifting story on the international stage for many years to come. With each of these demographic superpowers now having a high-achiever next door, the energizing power of openness looks certain to keep everyone awake.

starcomment@yahoo.com