I not sure what your measuring sticks are.
As I said, we produce a lot of basic foods, in fact we are a large exporter of agricultural products. We do not produce enough fresh produce, coffee, bananas, etc. items to meet our demand.
I was around in the 1960s and 1970s as a youth and my family has much greater standard of living now verses then....everything from electronics, internet, medical advances, etc., markets today are much more accessible and advanced (at least until this week), greater knowledge, better life expectance, etc. In the 1950s and 1960s the KKK was still running around - Racial inequity, gender discrimination, less equality, etc. It's not really that hard to see how we have advanced since the 1950s and 1960s....but I do realize folks hold on to simpler times...I realize we certainly have problems today....
I mentioned that we cannot produce everything we consume to make a point that imports in many ways increase our standard of living.
Where we have a technologic advantage, superior economies of scale, advanced production capabilities, etc. we still export to the world....
I don't support tariffs....over time they hinder advancement, stifle innovation, add costs, and hinder overall market growth and development, etc.
Russian is a third world country with nukes, oil, and a military that has not stood up to its reputation....not a dynamic economy. China has its own set of problems including large banking and real estate issues - and it is still a centrally controlled economy with the Communist Party leading the way. India is a country with potentially a great future, if they can figure it out how to advance beyond where they are today.
A voice from the past from tick tock
https://x.com/illegalLuminary/status/1897344048639435057
I grew up in the 1980s and 90s, the homeless people were usually old drunk dudes out of sight or confined to one area of town. Now, we have drugged out zombies of all ages EVERYWHERE. Homeless camps EVERYWHERE.
I'd argue that the social issues are worse now than they were then.
Can the average family of four afford a house, two vehicles and everything needed to run a household with one paycheck without .gov assistance? My Dad did all that with just a high school education and even managed to send my sister and I, (GenX) to private school and SAVE money.
Can the average GenZ do what my dad did then, today? I don't think so.
If you under estimate Russia, China, India, and the other BRICS nations and think they aren't a threat looking to unseat the US as the sole superpower, you're not paying attention.
If you want to keep the pharmaceutical manufacturing base in China and India, we should just keep doing what we're doing now. After all the status quo has got us $37+ Trillion in debt.
