How to Make America Great: Invest in Her People | Opinion
The United States is declining in global quality of life rankings, falling to 32nd in the Social Progress Index and performing poorly in health, education, and safety indicators. Authors Mike Honda and Michael Shank argue that the U.S. must shift priorities by investing in human capital and social programs to reverse this trend. They emphasize that other high-ranking nations achieve success by prioritizing preventive, inclusive, and people-centered policies.
- ▪The U.S. ranked 32nd globally in the Social Progress Index, a significant decline from 18th fifteen years ago.
- ▪Other indices, including the Sustainable Development Report and the Democracy Index, also rank the U.S. poorly, between 28th and 44th globally.
- ▪High-performing countries invest in upstream social capacities such as universal healthcare, public education, affordable housing, and conflict prevention.
- ▪The U.S. spends heavily on defense while cutting health, education, and housing programs, exacerbating poverty and homelessness.
- ▪Nations that invest in human capital see higher trust, better governance, and improved quality of life outcomes.
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...By Mike Honda and Michael ShankShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberSee more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.President Donald Trump’s defense spending request of $1.5 trillion, which will cut much-needed health, education, and housing programs, will inevitably plunge more Americans into poverty and homelessness and illustrates just how maligned Washington’s priorities have become.America’s poverty levels are already problematically high, and a new progress report card published by the Social Progress Imperative delivers an even more comprehensive blow.
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