In what besides defense spending?
The US is a young country relative to most European and Asians counties who have histories that extend more than 2,000 years. China's history extends more than 5,000 years.
Until World War 1, the US was primarily an agricultural and a debtor nation. During World War 1, the US earned hundreds of millions of dollars in defense hardware and munition sales. After World War 1 ended, we were no longer a debtor nation.
World War 2 also helped our economy when we produced ships. aircraft tanks for our allies in the UK and Russia. However, in 1992, we had more in foreign investment in the US than we were investing in other countries. We are now a debtor nation again.
The US is no longer the nation of big ideas. China is that nation.
When we have the Olympics in the US, it is a city event much like the last Olympic event is Salt Lake City which was more like a state rodeo, than an international olympic event. In China, the Olympics were a well-coordinated national event and a source of pride for the Chinese.
The last largest concrete dam in in the US was Grand Coulee Dam built in 1942. The largest dam in the world today is the Three Gorges damn built in China which was completed in 2006. It's China who has the fastest and most modern rail system in the world.
Why has the US lost its edge? it devoted much of the national treasure and blood to a series of failed wars that have sapped the strength of the economy. Some economists believe that more than 90 per cent of the national debt is due to defense spending during the "fog of war."
Republicans will suggest it is programs like Medicare and Social Security that need to be scaled back but these issues are not even debated in Canada and many of the European nations. There is no discussions about limiting organized labor or child labor either. These countries are successful because they have scaled back their armed forces and don't engage in military adventurism.
In addition, the GOP has been advocating tax cuts and state's rights since the era of Ronald Reagan. Fragmenting a nation with state's right legal salvos has not strengthened the US. It has weakened us as a nation.
The conservative philosophy that each person take care of their own and that the US should return to the outmoded values of our 19th century founders is doomed to failure.
The checks and balances of our forefathers has made our government unwieldy and a newer model is needed. Do we really need two legislative branches and judges that are appointed for life? Can our democracy be made more democratic with national plebiscites?
The centralized model of China with a single congress is more efficient than the outdated separation of powers model in the US with its continuous gridlock.
China is now the country of big ideas while the US is sinking into the parochialism of states rights, low taxes and limited government.
China will be the next nation ot visit the moon and it may try to harvest Helium 3 on the Moon. If it is successful and return this element to earth, it will control the primary energy supply of the world for the next 1000 years.
China dares to be great while the US retreats into the insular politics of weakening health care law and a chopping away parts of national railway upgrade. Meanwhile the national infrastructure crumbles while the two parties and the state and federal governments collide.
We need to change the way we do business in the Us before it too late. Unfortunately, it may already be too late.
Perhaps another "Sputnik moment" would sober us up!
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