What Do Switzerland, Sweden & Singapore Have in Common?

They all begin with the letter “S” and have “N” in ‘em? Sure if you want to ignore yet another giant elephant in the room, and the one-time American entrepreneurial claim to fame: we are… er… were… the most productive nation on earth. In 2009-2010, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report, the United States fell to number two, behind Switzerland. This year, Sweden and Singapore zipped past us in competitive values. We’re number four! We’re number four!

What is competitive value? The measured output per unit of labor, usually complex amalgamation of capital equipment and specialized education and training, but a whole host of additional variables apply. According to the September 9^th 247WallSt.com: “The Global Competitiveness Report’s competitiveness ranking is based on the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI).The GCI sits on 12 pillars of competitiveness, providing a comprehensive picture of the competitiveness landscape in countries around the world at all stages of development. The pillars are: institutions, infrastructure, macroeconomic environment, health and primary education, higher edu cation and training, goods market efficiency, labor market efficiency, financial market development, technological readiness, market size, business sophistication, and innovation. The data used in the survey also includes a poll of more than 13,500 business leaders were polled in 139 economies.”

Computers and robotics might make us more efficient for a time, efficient capital markets move money where it is best applied, infrastructure moves goods and services quickly and at a reasonable cost, but since sooner or later these technologies and financial capacities become pervasive, it almost always means that the skill-sets of your workers – the very folks who create the these technologies and financial systems that foster efficiency – is the ultimate determining factor in competitive edge. Education and training. And guess what we are slashing and burning in an effort to balance our budgets, federal, state and local? The long-term damage resulting from a reduction in educational qualifications and skills cannot be calculated, but for those who believe that future generations will have to pay back the massive debt we have incurred, pray tell, exactly how are under-skilled and less-than-globally-competitive workers supposed to do that?

And yes, the second world (along with some developed triumphs) is on the march too, as their infrastructure and educational systems kick into ever-higher gears: “China continued it march up the rankings of the survey. The People’s Republic of China (27th) continues to lead the way among large developing economies, improving by two more places this year, and solidifying its place among the top 30. Among the three other BRIC economies, Brazil (58th), India (51st) and Russia (63rd) remain stable. Several Asian economies perform strongly, with Japan (6th) and Hong Kong SAR (11th) also in the top 20. In Latin America, Chile (30th) is the highest ranked country, followed by Panama (53rd) Costa Rica (56th) and Brazil.” 247WallSt.com.

We’re heading down the wrong road. Unemployment, impaired infrastructure (read: deferred maintenance), reduced levels of education, debt and deficits are dragging us down. We are seeing a polarized society where the “haves” have a lot more and the “have-nots” are growing at an alarming rating as the ranks of America’s traditional middle class are depleting in a bad economy mired in an increased exposure to global competition. No political system can survive for long with this set of vectors. It’s time for us to stop taking the American value system supported by a wondrous political structure for granted. Fight for it, improve it or lose it!

I’m Peter Dekom, and the United States of America is a country very much worth fighting for!