Japan as Number 3

Do you remember the fright headlines and books of the 1990s predicting that Japan was going to supplant America as the world's most powerful economy? The iconic title was Japan as Number One. (It's not selling very well these days.)

Well, it's now official: China has supplanted Japan as the world's second economy, which means that Japan became Number 3 before it ever made Number 1. It should make us cautious about projecting the present into the future. Blue skies! -- Dan Ford