The Measure of a Nation: How to Regain America's Competitive Edge and Boost Our Global Standing

If America were a corporation, how would an independent analyst judge its ability to compete against other corporate giants? According to the author, that hypothetical analyst would label America a corporate dinosaur and recommend that the nation either change or face extinction. This book focuses on how to improve America by first comparing its performance with thirteen competitive industrial nations, then identifying the best practices found throughout the world that can be adopted here in the United States. The author lays out some disturbing facts about America's lack of competitiveness in five key areas: health, education, safety, equality, and even democracy. Taking the approach that "data doesn't lie," the author notes alarming statistics, for example:-Americans have the lowest life expectancy among all competitor nations.-Americans are at least two times more likely to be murdered and four times more likely to be incarcerated than any other competitor country, including Japan, France, and the United Kingdom.-America shows the sharpest disparity between rich and poor among all nations on its competitor list. Using charts that clearly illustrate the unbiased, party-neutral data, the author uncovers the major problem areas that the nation must address to become a leader again. Homing in on best practices from other countries than can be adapted to the United States, the author plots a course to transform America from a corporate behemoth burdened by internal issues and poor performance to a thriving business with an exciting portfolio of solutions.

Howard Steven Friedman is a leading statistician and health economist for the United Nations. He has worked with major organizations including UNICEF, the World Bank, the World Health Organization, UNFPA, UNAIDS, UNDP, and UNESCO. He is also an adjunct professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, and he formerly directed data analysis teams in the corporate world. He is the author of more than thirty-five scientific articles and book chapters in areas of applied statistics and health economics.