That Used to Be Us: How America Fell Behind in the World It Invented and How We Can Come Back--Thomas Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum

I truly believe that all Americans should read this book. Friedman and Mandelbaum outline how America became great and how America has gone off track from the successful formula that we once used to reach the top. I pretty much agree with everything they say including their solution to our problem.

Before going any further, I want to emphatically state that they are bipartisan, blaming both sides, Red and Blue, for the dire situation the US is in at this time.

They divide the book into the following parts:

Part 1: The Diagnosis

Part 2: The Education Challenge

Part 3: The War on Math and Physics

Part 4: Political Failure

Part 5: Rediscovering America

I am not going to go through each of these sections--read the book. However, as an example take Part 3, The War on Math and Physics. This section has nothing to do with academic math and physics. It is a treatise on how politicians are altering and ignoring the math of economics. For example, supply-side economics has not worked in the US and will not work if you look at the numbers. It only works for those who "believe." The War on Physics is about those who deny global warming and climate change. It is the same group who think the world is six thousand years old and people roamed the plains with dinosaurs. The Earth is warming and the authors tell us that we better do something about now when it is cost effect because in the future no amount of money will solve the problem. . . They give reasonable solutions to all of the problems that they discuss.

I really liked how they opened the book to set the scene for what was coming later. They tell the story of Friedman's trip to China where he visited a convention center, which is many hectares in size, that was built in 8 months. The Chinese are using this center for conferences to show off their new technologies. In contrast Friedman tells of a broken escalator at his Metro stop in Washington that took two years to repair. I rest my case.