| Perhaps no other critic in the history of political | | | | While private investments are important to stimulate |
| economy has been more debated than Francis | | | | the market into spending, public investments protect |
| Fukuyama, who wrote the seminal work The End of | | | | a country from degeneration. There is a need to |
| History. Fukuyama theorized that the United States | | | | further train workers in hundreds of industries around |
| economy was the veritable "end of history", meaning, | | | | the United States. There is also a need to upgrade |
| it was the final frontier. There were no alternatives, | | | | and improve existing infrastructures, including the |
| no other meaningful channels of social transformation. | | | | healthcare and educational systems. Without the |
| The dynamism that is implicit in US political economy | | | | necessary changes pushed forth by the erosion of |
| we owe of course to the never-ending cycle of | | | | existing infrastructure, a downward spiral will result. |
| capital and production, including public investments. | | | | Productive capacity |
| Brad Pearson of Leithold Financial Strategies states: | | | | How does one affect change in the general |
| "No one can really tell just how important public | | | | productive capacity of a national economy? There |
| investments are in the over-all schemata of things. In | | | | must be sufficient outlay of public investments in |
| the end, investments dictate the ebb and flow of | | | | early childhood needs and education. Education should |
| whole national economies. Everything is pegged to | | | | involve the whole chain, from primary school to |
| investments, from the dollar economies to the euro | | | | subsidies in the university. While it is true that the |
| economies ruled by supranational administrations of | | | | partially redistributive nature of US economics allows |
| the European Union." | | | | many students to borrow money, it is still not |
| Public investments translate to a robust economy | | | | enough. Many Americans stop at high school, to be |
| According to Dean Baker, an economic analyst for | | | | underemployed for the rest of their lives. |
| The American Prospect: | | | | Is the US government doing its part in making sure |
| "Economists agree that what has contributed | | | | that productive capacity is high in the future? The |
| significantly to economic growth over the last half | | | | answer is a discouraging no. Since 1976, investments |
| century is public investment. Some studies suggest | | | | in fields such as education have fallen more than |
| that expenditures on public investment actually affect | | | | 50%- a large figure considering we are talking about |
| productivity more than private investments do." | | | | more than 100 million Americans. |
| Baker continues with: | | | | Sustenance of the national economy can only happen |
| "But even if the impact of public and private | | | | if physical capital is high. Physical capital includes roads, |
| investment on productivity is roughly comparable, | | | | bridges, hospitals and similar infrastructure. The human |
| recent trends are alarming because the decline in | | | | capital can only be supported by outright physical |
| public investment has not been offset by increases in | | | | capital. |
| the private sector." | | | | Lack of physical capital can force large sections of |
| Kill public investment, and one kills the national | | | | the population to migrate to other countries, or to |
| economy. Public investments have more far-ranging | | | | saturate specific regions of the country where |
| consequences because the returns of these | | | | private investments have produced better physical |
| investments can be seen only after a period of time. | | | | capital for the state. |