Synopsis "Third World America"
Its not an exaggeration to say that middle-class Americans are an endangered species and that the American Dream of a secure, comfortable standard of living has become as outdated as an Edsel with an eight-track player. That the United States of America is in danger of becoming a third world nation.The evidence is all around us:Our industrial base is vanishing, taking with it the kind of jobs that have formed the backbone of our economy for more than a century; our education system is in shambles, making it harder for tomorrows workforce to acquire the information and training it needs to land good twenty-first century jobs; our infrastructureour roads, our bridges, our sewage and water, our transportation and electrical systemsis crumbling; our economic system has been reduced to recurring episodes of Corporations Gone Wild; our political system is broken, in thrall to a small financial elite using the power of the checkbook to control both parties.And Americas middle class, the driver of so much of our economic success and political stability, is rapidly disappearing, forcing us to confront the fear that we are slipping as a nation that our children and grandchildren will enjoy fewer opportunities and face a lower standard of living than we did.Its the dark flipside of the American Dream an American Nightmare of our own making.Arianna Huffington, who, with the must-read Huffington Post, has her finger on the pulse of America, unflinchingly tracks the gradual demise of America as an industrial, political, and economic leader. In the vein of her fiery bestsellerPigs at the Trough, Third World America points fingers, names names, and details whos killing the American Dream.Finally, calling on the can-do attitude that is part of Americas DNA, Huffington shows precisely what we need to do to stop our freefall and keep America from turning into a third world nation.Third World America is a must-read for anyone disturbed by our countrys steady descent from 20th century superpower to backwater banana republic.From the Hardcover edition.
