But what makes Vodafone's forecast truly heroic is the belief that mobile-phone operators will capture most of that revenue.

ECONOMIST: Waves of the future

Already, in advance of the publication next month of the Quadrennial Defence Review, a government forecast of what America's armed forces will need from now to 2010, Bill Cohen, the secretary of defence, has hinted that more bases will close, there will be fewer men in uniform, and more aircraft will not be bought.

ECONOMIST: Defence spending

But based on the forecast, that's what we prepare for.

WHITEHOUSE: Press Briefing

What counts is that the U.S. grows at a far faster rate than the forecast.

FORBES: Magazine Article