What 40 Years of lack of Leadership did to America. The Raw Facts

were still in operation. Source: The American Prospect

2- The United States has lost a total of about 5.5 million manufacturing jobs since October 2000. Source: The American Prospect.

3- The United States has lost a whopping 32 percent of its manufacturing jobs since the year 2000.

4- As of the end of 2009, less than 12 million Americans worked in manufacturing. The last time less than 12 million Americans were employed in manufacturing was in 1941.

5- In 1959, manufacturing represented 28 percent of U.S. economic output. In 2008, it represented 11.5 percent. Source: The American Prospect

6- Ten years ago, the United States was ranked number one in average wealth per adult. In 2010, the United States has fallen to seventh.

7- The United States once had the highest proportion of young adults with post-secondary degrees in the world. Today, the U.S. has fallen to 12th

8- American 15-year-olds do not even rank in the top half of all advanced nations when it comes to math or science literacy.

9- In America today, consumption accounts for 70 percent of GDP. Of this 70 percent, over half is spent on services. Source: Economy In Crisis

10- In 2001, the United States ranked fourth in the world in per capita broadband Internet use. Today it ranks 15th. Source: MACLEANS.CA

11- In 2008, 1.2 billion cell phones were sold worldwide. So how many of them were manufactured inside the United States? Zero. Source: The American Prospect

12- The television manufacturing industry began in the United States. So how many televisions are manufactured in the United States today? According to Princeton University economist Alan S. Blinder, the grand total is zero.

13- Printed circuit boards are used in tens of thousands of different products. Asia now produces 84 percent of them worldwide.

14- Manufacturing employment in the U.S. computer industry is actually lower in 2010 than it was in 1975. Source: Businessweek

15- One prominent economist now says that the Chinese economy will be three times larger than the U.S. economy by the year 2040.

16- According to a new study conducted by Thompson Reuters, China could become the global leader in patent filings by next year.

17- Back in 1980, the United States imported approximately 37 percent of the oil that we use. Now we import nearly 60 percent of the oil that we use.

18- The U.S. trade deficit is running about 40 or 50 billion dollars a month in 2010. That means that by the end of the year approximately half a trillion dollars (or more) will have left the United States for good.

19- Between 2000 and 2009, America's trade deficit with China increased nearly 300 percent.

20- Today, the United States spends approximately $3.90 on Chinese goods for every $1 that China spends on goods from the United States.

21- According to a new study conducted by the Economic Policy Institute, if the U.S. trade deficit with China continues to increase at its current rate, the U.S. economy will lose over half a million jobs this year alone.

22- If our trade deficit with China increases at its current rate, the U.S. economy will lose over half a million jobs this year alone. Source: Economic Policy Institute [PDF]

23- As of the end of July, the trade deficit with China had risen 18 percent compared to the same time period a year ago. Source: Economic Policy Institute [PDF]

24- The United States spends approximately $3.90 on Chinese goods for every $1 that the Chinese spend on goods from the United States. Source: The Economic Collapse

25- One prominent economist is projecting that the Chinese economy will be three times larger than the U.S. economy by the year 2040. Source: MarketWatch

26- In the 2009 "prosperity index" published by the Legatum Institute, the United States was ranked as just the ninth most prosperous country in the world. That was down five places from 2008.

27- The economy of India is projected to become larger than the U.S. economy by the year 2050.

28- From 1999 to 2008, employment at the foreign affiliates of US parent companies increased an astounding thirty percent to 10.1million. During that exact same time period, U.S. employment at American multinational corporations declined 8 percent to 21.1 million. Source:Tax Analysts [PDF]

29- The Census Bureau says 43.6 million Americans are now living in poverty, which is the highest number of poor Americans in the 51 years that records have been kept. Source: Washington Post

30- Approximately 750 good paying middle class jobs are going to be lost because making Ford Rangers in Minnesota does not fit in with Ford's new "global" manufacturing strategy. Source: Economy In Crisis

31- Dell Inc. has announced plans to dramatically expand its operations in China with an investment of over $100 billion over the next decade. Dell has announced that it will be closing its last large U.S. manufacturing facility in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Approximately 900 jobs will be lost.Median household income in the U.S. declined from $51,726 in 2008 to $50,221 in 2009. That was the second yearly decline in a row.

32-The United States has the third worst poverty rate among the advanced nations tracked by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

33- Since the Federal Reserve was created in 1913, the U.S. dollar has lost over 95 percent of its purchasing power.

34- U.S. government spending as a percentage of GDP is now up to approximately 36 percent.

35- The Congressional Budget Office is projecting that U.S. government public debt will hit 716 percent of GDP by the year 2080.

36- Do you know what our biggest export is today? Waste paper. Yes, trash is the number one thing that we ship out to the rest of the world as we voraciously blow our money on whatever the rest of the world wants to sell to us.

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