By Andrea Pigneri
The United States is fading as a global powerhouse. What is even sadder is that no one seems to know or care about it, despite the urgent facts that are appearing.
Do people not care because we have become spoiled by the earnings of our achievements? Is it that citizens assume this will fix itself? Or, as you are reading this now, do you see me as an extreme pessimist? Well, here are some reasons that will hopefully open eyes as to why America’s falling from the top of the food chain.
Reason one: Our home grown intelligence is dropping. For the second year in a row, there has been a decline in SAT and ACT scores, according to U.S. News and World Report. A research study, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, found that “32 percent of recent high school graduates were qualified to attend a four-year college.” Clearly, we need to improve our school system. “The failure of schools to prepare students for their future hurts America economically, socially and intellectually,” as stated by Review America, a Web site dedicated to promoting the goals of our founding fathers.
Reason two: The United States has a bad reputation. This is far more damaging than it appears. Other countries are viewing us as having poor leaders and being very mistrusting, and they have the right to do so.
The U.S. lost a lot of international credibility when they invaded Iraq without United Nations sanction. Regardless of whether significant progress is being made in Iraq, our continued presence there, and the daily stories of casualties on both sides, continues to reflect poorly on the reputation of the U.S.
The prevailing image that our presence in Iraq is actually about securing oil resources, and not freedom or democracy, throws gasoline on the fire of our image.
It is not bad to be going after oil to look out for ourselves, but the way our country and its leaders decided to go about it creates a very poor image of the States. This has caused other nations to look to places other than the U.S. to help meet their needs, according to http://www.globalcomplexity.org.
Reason three: There is a decreasing trend for foreign intellectuals to emigrate from their countries to the U.S. Due to the bad reputation we have earned ourselves in reason two, foreigners simply do not want move here. According to http://www.foreignaffairs.com, “Pluralities in 29 countries say that Washington’s policies have had a negative effect on their view of the United States… reducing the ability of the United States to achieve its goals.”
If we cannot get bright minds from other countries, nor create them in our own country, then what will become of us? Are we destined for survival of the dumbest?
These three reasons mixed together create quite a destructive potion. Of course we are not doomed yet, but we cannot keep on sipping from this nasty brew. People need to know the direction our beloved nation is taking. We have more than enough potential to continue succeeding here, on our own soil, but we must improve our schools and improve our international reputation, or it won’t happen.
