Fallows states, “Our American republic may prove to be doomed, but it will make a difference if we improvise and strive to make the best of the path through our time—and our children’s, and their grandchildren’s—rather than succumb.” We have to remain optimistic that something can be done – the point when we give up is the point when we should really worry.

One of the main things Fallows brings to light is that the United States has the power to correct itself and realign its course of action. The main concerns boil down to jobs, debt, military strength, and overall independence. In each case, we can make a difference by taking steps towards curbing the problems and highlighting the strengths that already exist.

There are lessons to be learned from other countries, both economically and politically. Our government is a major cause of the restriction of our development. We must reassess our needs as a country and find a new way forward with the state of our political system. We will see what the future holds for America – hopefully we can recognize our flaws and take action to work on them.

However, the limits of growth are starting to take effect in China. The mother of all housing booms has left millions of brand new apartments empty. In a few years, they will become rundown, and become relics, like the abandoned faux Disneyland, a sign of things to come.

America was the country that put a man on moon. Those same NASA scientists that achieved the impossible are now put down by the majority of Americans, who believe that Global Warning is made up. They say the NASA studies are fraud. Which is it? Are they the best scientists in the world, or is it the greatest hoax perpetuated on mankind?

Unfortunately, most people who accomplish stuff, by their very nature are liberal, and conservatives will have a very hard time with this. You can be A CONservative without A Con. You can’t move forward and to the future by trying to return to the past. In order to create more conservatives, you need to create less educated people, because educated people self align with liberalism. If you look at the goals of the Republican party you can clearly see this. Presidental candidate Rick Santorum wants to return to the days when everyone is homeschooled, all grade levels at the same time in the same place. Even though he himself went to college, colleges are bad. No wonder psychologists have linked conservatives to a lack of education.

If America is to become great America, if it is indeed no longer the case, we need to stop listening to the naysayers and start listening to the people who do great things. We need to return to the time when scientists and explorers and astronauts were our heros and the the media stars, not Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, and whoever is rapping about money and ho’s.

America has always attracted smart minds from other countries. As this helps America move forward it negatively impacts the countries left behind. China needs its innovators to come up with solutions for the impending issues, they cannot afford to have them leave. It is good that more students who get their MBAs are staying in China.
My favorite saying is, “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results,” attributed to Albert Einstein. So how can America expect to make changes but keeps the same structure as 200 years ago? Gerrymandering has made it incredibly difficult to bring in fresh faces. My parents’ (who live in Arroyo Grande) representative’s district stretches all the way to Bakersfield. Now how is that representative helping them? Now that Proposition 20 passed I hope when the lines are redrawn they are conducive with allowing change to happen.
Reading about how America is failing in infrastructure just reminds me of how much more money we would have if we didn’t go into the Middle East. I’m not trying to say that if we didn’t go to war our country would be perfect, but it could be so much better. I think the main thing is that resources are being wasted because we cannot fix them (20 gallons of water per American a day).

If given the choices to do more or to do less I am right with Fallows. We need to do more- more thinking ahead, more choices that don’t just benefit the super-rich.

I agree with Fallows views on China. Their growth is not something we should fear, but rather embrace. The country is huge! Even at a quarter of the financial success per capita of America, China will pass the size of our economy. It’s going to happen. Good. A wealthy and happy China is a good partner to work with. Fallows says that it is okay to fall behind, but not okay to fall short. China will naturally grow larger than us, but we need to keep alive the advantages that America holds in its attractiveness to outside talent because of things like America’s excellent university system and start-up opportunities. America holds many great advantages, but it holds an aging system that runs it. My thoughts on the rise of America are on track with Fallow’s when he suggests that we must look to the future. Despite its flaws, we must fix issues such as the falling infrastructure and reinvest in future programs that generations ahead can thank us for.

In my opinion, there are a lot of things broken in America. I believe that while we certainly could put forth the effort to try and fix everything that is broken, there is no possibility that we could do so with the resources we have. I call reference to the 80/20 rule and assert that we could see an 80% increase in the wealth & infrastructure of America by fixing 20% of the problems. As such, the key is not fixing everything, but finding out what really needs to be fixed. In no way would a complete constitutional rewrite benefit the country, but there are certain things that should be addressed (e.g. perhaps our president should be elected by popular vote instead of the electoral college). While updating our technological infrastructure may seem like a huge task to take on, I see it as an opportunity to provide jobs for workers and stimulate the economy.

In any case, we should look no further than to China to find out what they are doing to make their country grow at the rate it is growing at. China has come a long way in a very short amount of time. While every country has its problems (including China) they have been able to transform into a nation that will someday be greater than we can imagine. The dilemma we are facing now is not about the “decline of America” but rather “keeping up with China”.

Fallows’ first point is that America has constantly feared “falling behind” for centuries. One particular quote I liked was “anything America is going through is not as bad as the Civil War”. This helped me realize that we are not only better off then the vast majority of the rich in other countries, but better off than our parents and ancestors. A lot of media is driven by fear and constant stories about China or other countries overtaking America is overstated and used to drive up ratings.

One continuing story line is how the U.S. education system is falling behind China and India. Fallows disputes this by showing that 17 of 20 of the world’s top universities are American and none are Chinese or Indian. More college students are coming to America to study than anywhere else, and either contributing to the American economy or to American influence in their home country. This is a vital comparative advantage that America must maintain as top university graduates start the best companies as is seen in the Silicon Valley, Boston and other places around the country.

When Fallows’ talks about California it shows America’s condition magnified. California is the center of American innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit but has more governmental and financial problems than every other state. Maybe political California can be an example for the whole nation, although I bet almost no one expects to see it soon.

Fallows and Zakaria both argue that government gridlock and shortsightedness is crippling the country and diverging our potential from our reality. America’s political system is becoming more corrupted and dated every year. The future success of America depends on us finding a new way forward with regards to politics. The scary part is that apathy over the system seems higher than ever. I believe that having Obama or a Republican elected in 2012 will do little to fix the broken system. Unfortunately it is a view that I think is shared by many people.

This article reminded me a lot of Postcards from Tomorrow Square, Reports from China in that the overall notion was that the US will be fine in the long run. However, I agree with Fallows that the US government structure needs change. His analysis on the breakup of the senate verse the overall populations of each state made me realize how much power these little states can have in accepting or rejecting new policies. I believe there needs to be some sort of change in this area because it gives these small populous states too much power to influence the nation. However, i agree with Fallows that in the long run, even with the flaws in America, it is up to us to make America successful into the future. I thought that the advice to make decisions by thinking about 75 years ahead is a great point and these long term decisions are probably the most important for our country to be successful in the future.

He uses infrastructure as an example of where we’re falling short, but I’m not sure that’s a good example. Fewer people are dying on America’s roads than on Chinese roads. Yes, it may well be that it’s because Americans are safer drivers. But with highway fatalities in America falling to the lowest level on record, how important is spending money on roads? Wouldn’t fewer people lose their lives if an 8.0 earthquake were to strike an American city than a Chinese city? It’s one thing to say our infrastructure gets a “D”, but quite another to say this is where we should allocate $2 trillion to get it up to adequacy with more urgent (or more urgent sounding to the American voters!) concerns amid a growing national debt.

I didn’t expect the cell phone coverage to be better in China. But how profitable are the cell phone companies there? How many people there have landline phone access? Are the people there more cell dependent due to lack of substitutes?

He talks about the US higher education system being the best in the world, which attracts foreigners. Having universities that attract foreigners is a good thing, but having inferior domestic students is not. America’s primary and secondary education is falling short and behind. When I was in elementary school, my parents hired a Russian math tutor, not because I had problems in math, but because math at my American public school wasn’t up to the Russian level. In fourth grade, If I didn’t complete all my assignments in a given week, my teacher would send home a note with a sad face on it saying that I didn’t complete some of my assignments, “Please try harder next time.” Great motivation. Persuading foreigners to stay here after completing their degrees may benefit America, but it’s no substitute for American students raising their game. Let’s generate more talent, not just absorb it.

Do politicians really want what’s best for America in the long run, or do they merely want to maintain power? Of course they want power, but I believe they also want what they think is best for the country. It’s hard enough to balance self-interest with one’s vision of America’s interest. It’s even more difficult for a politician promote what’s best for America when others are trying to promote a different vision of what’s best. Getting an overwhelming majority on the same page about a plan for America’s success is almost impossible. Politicians should look beyond the next election cycle. In fact, it may be better to have no such thing as re-election. You get one term to serve. Then you live with what you did or didn’t contribute and go back to your day job. US president looks pretty good on a resume.

One of my favorite lines from this reading was when Fallows quoted Nader, saying: “You’ve got to be very careful about thinking things can’t rebound. My favorite phrase is ‘America is a country that has more problems than it deserves, and more solutions than it applies.’ We don’t want to be Pollyannas, but we really should believe that we can turn things around.”

Although we live in a somewhat tumultuous time, optimism is good, rare, but good.

America is a resilient country, and because of its competitive nature feels as though it needs to best the rising superpowers. What we have learned about globalization is that this is bound to happen and that we should embrace it rather than get depressed by it. If China does well, we will do well because of the larger successes of the world’s economy.

I agree with Fallows when he writes that America is getting old and that change is needed — another great line is when he states America has, “a vital and self-renewing culture that attracts the world’s talent, and a governing system that increasingly looks like a joke.” The fears we have are not new (jobs, debt, military strength), however, unless something is done to influence our government, change may be hard to find. Fallows even lists “coup” as a fix-it strategy. Getting a jeremiad for today is no different than say 30 years ago, but if we embraced America’s change on the world scale — and how it interacts with China and India — perhaps the list of woes would be a bit shorter.