Reacting to the developmental excesses of figures like Robert Moses, the American legal profession, led by thinkers like Ralph Nader, transformed from enablers of large projects into regulators and litigators. This 1960s shift created the anti-development legal culture that paralyzes the U.S. today.

Wisdom emerges from the contrast of diverse viewpoints. If future generations are educated by a few dominant AI models, they will all learn from the same worldview. This intellectual monoculture could stifle the fringe thinking and unique perspectives that have historically driven breakthroughs.

Critical media narratives targeting experienced tech leaders in government aim to intimidate future experts from public service. By framing deep industry experience as an inherent conflict of interest, these stories create a vacuum filled by less-qualified academics and career politicians, ultimately harming the quality of policymaking.

Lawyers often act as "handmaidens of the rich," enabling wealthy individuals and communities to use the legal system to block public good projects like mass transit or affordable housing. This subverts the public interest and creates a society that functions well for the wealthy but fails the majority.

The U.S. has a historical engineering tradition it can revive to solve its building crisis. China, however, lacks a deep-rooted liberal or lawyerly tradition of constraining state power. This path dependency makes it far easier for America to become a better builder than for China to become more rights-respecting.

From the transcontinental railroad to the Apollo missions, the U.S. once had a powerful engineering culture that drove national progress. This identity has been lost, replaced by a lawyerly culture that prioritizes obstruction over construction, leading to decaying infrastructure and societal stagnation.

A nation's leadership class shapes its priorities. China's government, heavily populated by engineers, excels at long-term, systematic infrastructure and technology projects. The US, dominated by lawyers, often gets mired in litigation and short-term cycles, hindering large-scale execution.

China, led by engineers, treats national problems as megaprojects to be built. The U.S., dominated by lawyers, excels at blocking initiatives through legal challenges. This core difference explains why China can build rapidly while the U.S. struggles with infrastructure and progress.

The US has historically benefited from a baseline level of high competence in its government officials, regardless of party. This tradition is now eroding, being replaced by a focus on loyalty over expertise. This degradation from competence to acolytes poses a significant, underrecognized threat to national stability and global standing.