History usually shows us the key events that changed the nature of a society forever. Sometimes these are recognized at the time, but in many cases it is only after looking back later that the turning point is identified.
I'd like to propose September 11, 2001 as the day the US changed from the world's leading country into one in decline. Many people have used the events of this date as justification for the further militarization of the US and as the first time that the mainland has been successfully attacked. But, I think it signals something else which I discuss more fully below.
What happened on that date only showed that the US is just like any other place in the world, and can be attacked by a small group of dedicated actors. This is not the first time that this has happened. The Oklahoma City bombing is another recent example.
What is different about this case is that it signaled the first time when repairing a civil disaster proved beyond the capabilities of government. Nearly five years later there is little sign of rebuilding of the main World Trade Center site. Even the demolition of a nearby building is still not underway. The primary reason for inaction is incompetence. This is not only from a technical point of view, but from the inability of government to provide true leadership.
The recent damage along the Gulf Coast by hurricane Katrina is a further example. Not only did government incompetence cause insufficient preparedness from a civil engineering point of view, but rescue efforts were on a level usually seen in third world countries. As in the case of the WTC we now see that improvements to the water management system are in disarray, cleanup is lagging, and rebuilding and resettlement are a massive failure. The US can no longer protect its citizens or assist in recovery from calamities.
Fifty years of poor education, emphasis on militarism and financial manipulation, and neglect of social progress and infrastructure development have caused the fading of the American dream. Recent concentration on class and race is an indication that a declining society needs to find scapegoats among the weak. The US now looks like a pack of hungry dogs fighting over the scraps. The rise in economic inequality serves to make the aggregate growth numbers appear positive, but really hides the underlying imbalances. Banana republics existed for centuries for the benefit of a select few, but these countries were never important on the international scene.
Other indicators of the decline are the failures of our current military interventions as well as the loss of economic strength reflected in the rise of India and China. Politicians and economists have refused to acknowledge the change in dynamics, as can be seen in recent proposals over trade and immigration. For example, imposing tariffs on imports where we no longer make these items domestically will not cause a rise in US production, there is none to begin with.
Is there anything that can be done? If the goal is to recover our unquestioned position of world domination, no. If the goal is to adjust to being a significant industrial power along side the EU, China, India, and Japan, then perhaps. What is needed is a readjustment of policy away from militarism, a re-emphasis on infrastructure to improve competitiveness, and a new social contract which provides for a healthy, educated and poverty-free citizenry.
Claims about unlimited growth based upon exploiting labor and raw materials from elsewhere must be replaced with a policy of wealth re-equalization by means of progressive taxation and inheritance policies. The funds raised through these mechanisms should be directed to the areas which are currently underfunded. A simultaneous decline in militarization will allow paying down the external deficit. If people are told that they will need to expect a modest decline in their standard of living they will respond favorably as long as they see the sacrifice is shared by all and is being used for a higher goal.
If these steps are not undertaken, the US will still weaken in relation to the rest of the developed world, but the domestic burdens will not be shared fairly. This will lead to social unrest and the danger of becoming a true police state. In such societies, the elite may be able to keep their wealth intact, but having them living in guarded compounds is not the US that we want to look forward to. An enslaved working class is an inefficient society and fails to compete internationally.
We need a new group of public speakers, whether politicians, academics, or media personalities is not important. What is important is that they are willing to realize that the US has changed forever and new policies must be developed which take this reality into account.