Final Thoughts

It is difficult not to be impressed by the economic achievements of the United States. Life expectancy and living standards have risen throughout most of the twentieth century. The specter of famine, which continues to haunt millions around the world, has sharply diminished in the United States. Most people are well housed and well clothed. Alarge variety of consumer products, high-tech devices, and numerous services are available. It is true that several industrialized nations have caught up with the United States in recent decades, and the standard of living of their poor has surpassed that of America’s poor. Yet the United States has one of the highest per capita GDPs in the world, and even if median GDP per capita is more indicative of a typical person’s economic welfare, the U.S. standard of living is still high. The educational and career opportunities for men and women serve as a model for other nations. By global standards, an unusually large percentage of U.S. high school graduates enroll in colleges and universities. Unemployment rates for several decades were lower than in most European nations.1 The job market is probably more impersonal, open, and flexible than just about anywhere else. These accomplishments should not be taken for granted.