Will Cold War Re-Vitalize the USA?
Some years ago I wondered if a new Cold War, between the US and some other superpower, would have similar effects on US domestic policy and life as in the prior confrontation with the Soviet Union.
So far, the answer seems to be NO.
Last time, the US invested heavily in public education, building monumental schools, investing in teachers, and expanding access to higher education…
…this time, the US is building trailer park public schools, rendered the teaching profession as menial factory labor, and has made higher education a path to debt servitude for an entire generation of youth.
Last time, the US dramatically expanded the middle class and workers came together to fight for better quality of life…
…this time, the middle class (what’s left of it) is on the ropes, labor unions aren’t even a shadow of their former selves, and workers have few options for employment.
Last time, the US built up its infrastructure, roads, bridges, the interstate highway system, water management, electricity grids, passenger rail, etc…
…this time, they are still largely using the same roads and bridges that were built 7 decades ago, the same electrical grids that cannot handle modern power distribution and spark massive forest fires, and can’t manage to build railroads.
Last time, the US established a telecommunications framework that guaranteed access to all radio and TV broadcasts nationwide…
…this time, the US has only limited broadband internet access outside cities, and even in cities the service is lagging behind the rest of the developed world.
Last time, the US had the capacity to build things and as a nation…
…this time, the only thing the US still makes for itself is military weaponry.
Last time, difficult times called for great leaders, and they were already there and ready to step up…
…this time, talented young leaders have been beat down as competitors and there is no system to cultivate and prepare the kind of leadership that is needed.
Last time, the US dealt with monopolies and ensured diversity and competition in the markets…
…this time, the US has allowed monopolies to take over large swaths of the economy and there is no discussion whatsoever about stopping them.
Last time, the US still had some ideals that inspired its citizens to come together as a nation, allowing them to face great challenges together…
…this time, there is no unifying purpose, nobody trusts anyone else, and people are divided against one another and manipulated in order to prevent them from wielding the power of democracy on their own behalf.
I could go on, but I think you get the picture. The US that faced the Great Depression and came out of it stronger than ever before, enabling it to develop into a superpower unequaled in world history…that US no longer exists, and a cold war is not going to change this fact.
