tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4413935813892441553.post4234263672389578860..comments2024-03-29T00:30:39.262-05:00Comments on real economics: USA economic competitivenessJonathan Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05217670446743983955noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4413935813892441553.post-75695462950606663732011-01-25T12:41:46.045-06:002011-01-25T12:41:46.045-06:00Your mention of the Panama Canal project reminds m...Your mention of the Panama Canal project reminds me that during the 60s, I was talking enthusiastically to my grandfather about the space race--which I followed so carefully. He listened for a while to my excitement over the insanely difficult problems that were being solved on a daily basis and said, "If you want to get all excited about our country doing something difficult, you should have around during the building of the Panama Canal. Now that was difficult. And when it was done, we had altered ocean shipping forever. I am not so sure your space race will have such rewards."Jonathan Larsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05217670446743983955noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4413935813892441553.post-5063737428518711642011-01-25T09:03:10.682-06:002011-01-25T09:03:10.682-06:00"Since most of the serious damage was already..."Since most of the serious damage was already done by 1990, there are people in their late 30s who have no memory of what the industrial culture can accomplish."<br /><br />My wife and I are in our late 20s. Last night, we were watching a documentary on the local public access channel about the construction of the Panama Canal. At some point, after the documentary had described much of the engineering work being done and the background of the lead engineer (Stevens, from the US railroad industry), I turned to my wife and said "I can't imagine the US doing anything like this today. We just wouldn't be able to do it now, yet we did it over 100 years ago."<br /><br />We've lost so much.RJMeyershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10148496665487999948noreply@blogger.com