Habitual Blindness

The US is a creature of habit and that means repeating old mistakes, according to author Eric Rauchway. Reaping benefits of industrialization and expansion while devoting few resources to the process, thanks to immigration and foreign capital, the US too often mistakes “habit for virtue.” Rauchway contends that the US deludes itself into acting as though circumstances have changed little since World War I, and cannot expect the global economy to continue peacefully moving along without some driving effort from the world’s lone superpower. The US taxes too little and spends too much – doing far too little to promote lasting peace in the world. If the US does not adapt to the current global context, by investing seriously in a peaceful economy, Rauchway argues, it will steer itself toward obsolescence. – YaleGlobal