America needs to invest in its future

Want to really make America great again? Start investing in America like the future matters. Politicians are so afraid of spending money that might increase the budget that they fail to support the structures of a great nation. Investments reap rewards (“NASA names first moon crew in 50 years and includes woman, Black astronauts,” April 3).

We became great by investing in canals, the railroad, electrical grid, the Tennessee Valley Authority, the interstate highway system, the Apollo space program and the internet. The government also created agencies that make our food the safest in the world. We created solar power and digital cameras then failed with follow-up investments only to see other countries prosper.

China is investing. They are the largest user of solar collectors and invest more in undersea rare Earth mineral extraction than the rest of the world combined. The Persian Gulf states of Qatar and United Arab Emirates are investing, with oil money, in 21st century cities. But now, no one wants to spend on rebuilding roads and bridges or electrical grids, especially those that do not directly benefit them. Spending may require taxes (no money in, no money out), a plague to politicians. The private sector is stepping up in space and robotics, built upon previous government investments. It’s the recent failures of the railroads and the Federal Aviation Administration that show how past investment were not carried through. That is not the sign of a great nation.

— Jim Martin, Middle River