The following is excerpted from the recently published “The Price of Civilization, Reawakening American Virtue and Prosperity” by economist Jeffrey D. Sachs.
“Whereas China, which saves around 54 percent of its national income, is building hundreds of miles of subway lines and tens of thousands of miles of fast intercity rail lines, America is building hardly any infrastructure at all. In fact, our existing infrastructure is increasingly decrepit, a point of shock to foreign visitors when they arrive…
“Intellectual capital, the pride of America, is also diminishing, as America cedes technological leadership to China and other countries in areas such as renewable energy and stem cell research. The energy system is in a deepening crisis. The power grid is outmoded…
“The most serious threat is to our human capital…America’s public schools are falling behind those of the rest of the world in core attainments in reading, science, and math…The United States ranked only fifteenth in reading, twenty-third in science, and thirty-first in mathematics…
“The higher educational attainment of the United States, once the world’s unchallenged pacesetter, is falling behind…”
What do all of these failings have in common? The lack of government spending , largely due to senseless military outlays, the world’s most inefficient health care system, and ever lower personal income taxes. None of the above can be corrected through ‘free enterprise’ and ‘getting the government off our backs’.
