Employment Trends in the 21st Century

[HolidayInnExpress]

Finally we get to the theory behind all of your statements. It

[GaryP]

The problem I have with your intellectual property theory is that the performance of American kids in math and science is steadily losing ground to other nations. America currently is not even in the top 10 nations in regards to these metrics and barometers. The nations that will lead in intellectual property will be the nations that are best educating their kids....which is not the USA.

People have an aversion to reality when reality collides with their preconceived notions. We all want to feel good about America, our kids futures and how we rank as a society and people. The truth is, however, America is not what it used to be in relative metrics, although maybe in absolute. There was a time when no one could make what Americans made at least not comparable in quality and price. Thus, the world needed our products and we exported finished good and increased the income of the nation. There also was the time where most of the intellectual capital existed in America and developing countries exported their talented youth to America to be educated in the Best Schools, many of them staying and utilizing their intellect for American enterprise. These things have changed in degree to the detriment of our standing. Many countries can make/produce all that we produce, with just as good quality ( if not better) and at a cheaper cost. Developing nations now have some of the world top Universities....plus growing economies...keeping the best and brightest at home.

In summation, America has reached its economic zenith sometime ago. The only thing that is preventing a rapid fall is global dollar hegemony; especially the fact that oil must be traded is US dollars, as well as the fact that the Dollar is the reserve currency that many foreign currencies are backed with. If these things were not true of the dollar...the standard of living of Americans would rapidly plunge. We as a nation are not what we used to be.

American Universities are the best in the world. There are other great universities, but no other country can graduate the number of highly qualified students the way we do.

The decline in foreigners coming here for post graduate work is troubling.

[HolidayInnExpress]

American Universities are the best in the world. There are other great universities, but no other country can graduate the number of highly qualified students the way we do.

The decline in foreigners coming here for post graduate work is troubling.

That is true....but the monopoly will soon be an oligopoly...which will attract talented students away from the monopoly holder. America cannot affort to simply keep thinking that we have the best of everything....and not strive to change and improve. The result is that others will catch and surpas us while we sit around brain washed that we will always be the best, without having to do anything differently.

[LJinPA]

I think experience and social alliances are just as important as a degree. One man was saying before how hard it would be to raise a family on $9 an hr. I'm 28, have a BA and never even made THAT much. Of course most will say my BA is in a liberal arts area so that is to be expected, but it does seem like the economy may be getting so high tech that your learned skill is a lot more important than a BA. I don't consider my education to be a waste however because of my love for studying sociology, phychology, anthropology, geography, and the better understanding of human nature & cultural awareness I have from it. (and yes I have been told stuff like "Unless you're going to be a Psycho-therapist or LSW that those subjects are useless knowledge and a waste of time in our high tech world") What concerns me is that no matter how high tech we get wouldn't a better understanding of human nature help business go more smoothly? (Actually I still don't understand human nature as much as id like )

What's kinda depressing is seeing now how my area (Scranton/Wilkes-Barre PA) is now close to the national average for unemployment. 5.2 percent in October- We were 11-12% in the early 90's... 5.0 is considered "full employment" but it sure doesn't feel that way and the young people are still leaving but I'm not exactly sure where to.

I'd love to know the economic projections for the mid-atlantic metros in the 21st century since Texas and Arizona and Rochester, MN and Raleigh/Durham are so far away.

As far as liberal arts and social science, I have heard of very $$$ colleges who offer only liberal arts degree some just in General Studies... (eg Thomas Aquinas College in CA). They will say oh, these degrees make you "trainable". But will that really hold as true nowadays?