Unleashing the Second American Century

2014-02-25 Business & Economics

Author : Joel Kurtzman
Release : 2014-02-25
Genre : Business & Economics
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 104/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK

Book Synopsis Unleashing the Second American Century by : Joel Kurtzman

Download or read book Unleashing the Second American Century written by Joel Kurtzman. This book was released on 2014-02-25. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Political gridlock in Washington... the lingering effects of the financial crisis . . . structural problems such as unemployment and the skills gap of our work force . . . the mediocre K-12 educational system. Are our best days behind us? Joel Kurtzman persuasively shows why all the talk about America's decline is not only baseless but dead wrong. Our best days, are, in fact, ahead of us. Four transformational forces -- unrivaled manufacturing depth, soaring levels of creativity, massive new energy sources, and gigantic amounts of capital waiting to be invested -- have been gathering steam. When combined they will provide the foundation for a much stronger economy, robust growth, and broad-based prosperity that will propel the United States to new heights. One endlessly repeated anxiety is that "we don't make anything here, anymore." The reality, though, is that the US is the world's dominant manufacturing power -- and growing. American companies produce 20 percent of the world's goods in the US and perhaps another 15 to 20 percent outside our country. And much of what we make is recession-proof -- such as software, jetliners, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and food. Kurtzman reveals the stories of the unsung heroes who are the creative force leading the second American century, describing the payoff of the investment in our best minds. American companies have stunning levels of talent and creativity at work in the world's fastest growing economic sectors -- biotech, pharmaceuticals, computer hardware and software, telecommunications, advanced manufacturing, materials science, and aeronautical and space engineering. In these fields, Americans are without peer and consistently break new ground. We are coming to the realization that America is no longer beholden to the despots of foreign energy. Thanks to advances in technology developed in the US, we now have among the world's largest energy reserves, and are richer in energy resources than Saudi Arabia and second only to Russia. These three strengths -- manufacturing, soaring levels of creativity, and energy independence -- will be magnified and synergistically combined with the unprecedented amount of capital that now lies idle. US companies of all types are hoarding cash and securities worth more than 4 trillion -- an amount larger than the world's fourth largest economy, Germany. When the money starts flowing and is invested, it will rapidly propel every part of the economy forward.

Henry Kissinger and the American Century

2009-05-01 History

Author : Jeremi Suri
Release : 2009-05-01
Genre : History
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 950/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK

Book Synopsis Henry Kissinger and the American Century by : Jeremi Suri

Download or read book Henry Kissinger and the American Century written by Jeremi Suri. This book was released on 2009-05-01. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What made Henry Kissinger the kind of diplomat he was? What experiences and influences shaped his worldview and provided the framework for his approach to international relations? Jeremi Suri offers a thought-provoking, interpretive study of one of the most influential and controversial political figures of the twentieth century. Drawing on research in more than six countries in addition to extensive interviews with Kissinger and others, Suri analyzes the sources of Kissinger's ideas and power and explains why he pursued the policies he did. Kissinger's German-Jewish background, fears of democratic weakness, belief in the primacy of the relationship between the United States and Europe, and faith in the indispensable role America plays in the world shaped his career and his foreign policy. Suri shows how Kissinger's early years in Weimar and Nazi Germany, his experiences in the U.S. Army and at Harvard University, and his relationships with powerful patrons--including Nelson Rockefeller and Richard Nixon--shed new light on the policymaker. Kissinger's career was a product of the global changes that made the American Century. He remains influential because his ideas are rooted so deeply in dominant assumptions about the world. In treating Kissinger fairly and critically as a historical figure, without polemical judgments, Suri provides critical context for this important figure. He illuminates the legacies of Kissinger's policies for the United States in the twenty-first century.

The Next American Century

2008-01-08 Political Science

Author : Nina Hachigian
Release : 2008-01-08
Genre : Political Science
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 347/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK

Book Synopsis The Next American Century by : Nina Hachigian

Download or read book The Next American Century written by Nina Hachigian. This book was released on 2008-01-08. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The rise of other global powers is most often posed as a sorry tale, full of threats to America's primacy, prosperity, and way of life. The potential loss of our #1 status implies a blow to our safety, economy, and prestige. But this is a rare moment in history: none of the world's big powers is our adversaries. In The Next American Century, Nina Hachigian and Mona Sutphen show that the "pivotal powers" -- China, Europe, India, Japan, and Russia -- seek greater influence, but each has an enormous stake in the world economy and a keen desire to thwart common threats. India is a key ally in the struggle against terrorism. China's help is essential to containing pandemic disease. Russia is leading an effort to keep nuclear devices out of terrorists' hands. Japan and Europe are critical partners in tackling climate change. None of these countries is a direct military or ideological challenger. In fact, their gains largely help, rather than hurt, America's continuing prosperity, growth, and, to some extent, even its values. Will we have conflicts with these powers? Definitely. Some will be serious. But, by and large, they want what we want: a stable world and better lives for their citizens. We live in an era of opportunity, not of loss. To take advantage of this moment, the United States must get its own house in order, making sure that American children can compete, American workers can adjust, America's military remains cutting-edge, and American diplomacy entices rather than alienates. While America must be prepared for the possibility that a hostile superpower may one day emerge, it has to be careful not to turn a distant, uncertain threat into an immediate one. Washington should welcome the pivotal powers into a vigorous international order to share the burden of solving pressing global problems of peace, climate, health, and growth. The avenue to a truly safer and more prosperous world runs through the pivotal powers. With them, we can build a world where Americans will thrive, today and tomorrow.

Upton Sinclair and the Other American Century

2006-04 Biography & Autobiography

Author : Kevin Mattson
Release : 2006-04
Genre : Biography & Autobiography
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 221/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK

Book Synopsis Upton Sinclair and the Other American Century by : Kevin Mattson

Download or read book Upton Sinclair and the Other American Century written by Kevin Mattson. This book was released on 2006-04. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Praise for UPTON SINCLAIR and the other American Century ""I look forward to all of Kevin Mattson's works of history and I've notbeen disappointed yet. Upton Sinclair is a thoughtful, well-researched, and extremely eloquently told excavation of the history of theAmerican left and, indeed, the American nation, as well as a testamentto the power of one man to influence his times. Well done."" --Eric Alterman, author of When Presidents Lie: A History of Official Deception and Its Consequences ""A splendid read. It reminds you that real heroes once dwelt among us. Mattson not only captures Sinclair's character, but the world he inhabited, with deft strokes whose energy and passion easily match his subject's."" --Richard Parker, author of John Kenneth Galbraith: His Life, His Politics, His Economics ""From the meat-packing houses of Chicago to the automobile factories of Detroit to the voting booths of California, Upton Sinclair cut a wide swath as a muckraking writer who exposed the injustices rendered by American industrial capitalism. Now Kevin Mattson presents a much-needed exploration of this complex crusader. This is a thoughtful, provocative, and gripping account of an important figure who appeared equal parts intellectual, propagandist, and political combatant as he struggled to illuminate the 'other American century' inhabited by the poor and powerless."" --Steven Watts, author of The People's Tycoon: Henry Ford and the American Century

The Violent American Century

2017-03-20 Political Science

Author : John W. Dower
Release : 2017-03-20
Genre : Political Science
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 260/5 ( reviews)

GET EBOOK

Book Synopsis The Violent American Century by : John W. Dower

Download or read book The Violent American Century written by John W. Dower. This book was released on 2017-03-20. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Tells how America, since the end of World War II, has turned away from its ideals and goodness to become a match setting the world on fire” (Seymour Hersh, investigative journalist and national security correspondent). World War II marked the apogee of industrialized “total war.” Great powers savaged one another. Hostilities engulfed the globe. Mobilization extended to virtually every sector of every nation. Air war, including the terror bombing of civilians, emerged as a central strategy of the victorious Anglo-American powers. The devastation was catastrophic almost everywhere, with the notable exception of the United States, which exited the strife unmatched in power and influence. The death toll of fighting forces plus civilians worldwide was staggering. The Violent American Century addresses the US-led transformations in war conduct and strategizing that followed 1945—beginning with brutal localized hostilities, proxy wars, and the nuclear terror of the Cold War, and ending with the asymmetrical conflicts of the present day. The military playbook now meshes brute force with a focus on non-state terrorism, counterinsurgency, clandestine operations, a vast web of overseas American military bases, and—most touted of all—a revolutionary new era of computerized “precision” warfare. In contrast to World War II, postwar death and destruction has been comparatively small. By any other measure, it has been appalling—and shows no sign of abating. The author, recipient of a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award, draws heavily on hard data and internal US planning and pronouncements in this concise analysis of war and terror in our time. In doing so, he places US policy and practice firmly within the broader context of global mayhem, havoc, and slaughter since World War II—always with bottom-line attentiveness to the human costs of this legacy of unceasing violence. “Dower delivers a convincing blow to publisher Henry Luce’s benign ‘American Century’ thesis.” —Publishers Weekly

Popular eBooks

Unleashing the Second American Century

Henry Kissinger and the American Century

The Next American Century

Upton Sinclair and the Other American Century

The Violent American Century

You may also like...