What's the greatest threat to our economic future? The things we think we know—but don't...
America is at a crossroads. In the face of global competition and rapid technological change, our economy is about to face its most severe test in nearly a century—one that will make the recent turmoil in the financial system look like a modest setback by comparison. Yet our leaders have failed to prepare us for what lies ahead because they are in the grip of a set of "dead ideas" about how a modern economy should work. They wrongly believe that
* Our kids will earn more than we do
* Free trade is always good, no matter who gets hurt
* Employers should be responsible for health coverage
* Taxes hurt the economy
* Schools are a local matter
* Money follows merit
These ways of thinking—dubious at best and often dead wrong—are on a collision course with economic developments that are irreversible.
