Due to American innovation and the healthy demographics of the country, if the US can sustain itself through reinvestment in making itself more competitive, it will be able to defeat China in a generation or so; 2050-2060. Demographics have decimated Japan’s competitiveness and it looks to be what could do in China by 2050-2060. America can outcompete China, as it outcompeted (through all its ways) Japan and the Soviets in the 20th century, if it invests in making middle class life sustainable.
The $300 a month for each child in the US, is a great experiment in a way. Put money in the hands of families will immediately circulate in the economy (which multiplies the impact on the economy an approx. 6 fold when fully circulated; its called the “velocity of money”). The experiment is to see if cash infusions bring back towns. If the money doesn’t help then you know that town or region won’t really get the best ROI through infrastructure as another town.
Besides infrastructure, will have to be some level of consolidation (out of dying towns (where it is more expensive to provide services) and into more sustainable towns) and modernization of “Prospect cities”, and connecting them through frequent high speed commuter rail (as in the New York or Boston suburbs).
The key will be to make sure, the gap in services between rich towns and poor towns is nit too wide, otherwise private sector investment won’t come.
Prospect Cities; what China would call second or third tier cities.
Decaying Midwest towns
The current contrast between the middle of Long Island NY (where a lot of the ethnic minority middle class live) and the South Shore (where a lot of the upper middle class of NYC live). A video from this past weekend.
Hear what matters, direct from the mouths of People in a small town in Mingo County WV