Taiwan’s protests are a window on a dilemma for many countries: As they seek to raise the quality of their manufacturing in order to compete in the global market, they must also develop a culture of free-spirited innovation and risk-taking to keep moving up the high-tech supply chain. In Taiwan, the proposed trade pact would likely hurt mid-sized companies that have yet to develop that sort of creativity and invention to compete with low-wage firms in China. The protesters, many of whom are also worried about Taiwan becoming too close to China, had sought to delay passage of the trade bill for fuller review. “The nation that goes all-in on innovation today will own the global economy tomorrow,” President Obama reminded Americans in his latest State of the Union message.

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