US vs. China by the Numbers

In this chapter, we want to lay out the main issues which we think have a profound effect on millennials as both social and economic actors. As we said in “Introduction”, all countries have their problems and all societies deal with ills. It is the human condition. However, after we did an exhaustive search on many societal issues which put pressure on millennials, we conclude that the situation in the US contributes significantly to millennial angst or anxiety in ways that Chinese millennials simply do not. We lay out 10 markers and at the end we offer a Workshop on what needs to happen to remedy these ills. One of the powerful conclusions we have arrived at is that the Apollo program that American society needs to create in order to pull ahead of China is NOT technological but social. The core issues of drug addiction via opioids, millennial veteran mental illness, and gun violence (especially in schools) — and mass incarceration as a way to deal with these ills — all need a new approach. On all these fronts, these issues hold back American society and create intense anxiety on millennials which inhibit their ability to focus, concentrate, and thrive. These ills are profound and affect the ability of people to maintain resilience in the face of obstacles or failure. The Apollo project America needs is a social one. The technological one will follow quickly.