The New United States

The future of our nation is uncertain, but we are continually moving forward. An increasing amount of cities are looking to make their cities Eco-friendly and urban development is moving towards maximizing efficiency. Urban lofts and condos are becoming more popular in real estate, on the contrary I see more "for sale" signs in the suburbs now. My hometown of Lexington is been providing incentives for more LEED certified buildings to improve Eco-efficiency according to the Lexington Herald Leader. Along with the Eco-friendly attitude of urban development, the Internet has had a major impact on the United States. The free flow of information to those who can afford the service is very powerful tool for citizens to use, not only in leisure time but also to keep tabs on our government. This is somewhat of a pro and a con, because of the flow of information we can sometimes become too involved. What I mean by this is that we think we know better than some of our elected officials on issues that, require experience in that particular field, in order to make a sound decision. But the Internet also allows us to get our voices heard more easily to our Representatives or Senators. Indeed there is a fine line between obsessed and observant, and we must speak wisely when we let our officials know our opinion. The Age of Information has changed us whether we admit it or not, and it continues to propel us forward, always innovating new technologies and discovering ever more complex ways to use it to our advantage.

The New Challenge

Now that we have decided to start the health care reform, we must now focus on a new set of challenges before us. The baby boomer generation is now getting older and sooner or later most will utilize social security. Now in case you aren't clear about what a baby boomer is, they are mostly considered as someone born during the demographic post-World War II baby boom. There were 78.2 million estimated number of baby boomers as of July 1, 2005 according to the United States Census Bureau , http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/006105.html , and let's say it would have probably declined to about 75 million in 2009. This is a startling figure for us because of the fact that social security is very expensive for the government to upkeep for 75 million people. The annual cost of social security benefits represented 4.4 percent of GDP in 2008 and is projected to increase to 6.2 percent of GDP in 2034, and then decline to about 5.8 percent of GDP by 2050 and remain at about that level according to the Social Security Online website, http://cc.bingj.com/cache.aspx?q=approximate+social+security+cost&d=4950345029059122&mkt=en-US&setlang=en-US&w=972102d3,1c437d0a . Basically this means that social securtiy cost will rise about 1.8 percent from 2008 to 2034, then it will decrease 0.4 percent from 2034 to 2050. All in all there is an increase in the cost and with the pilling deficit from bailouts to the stimulus packages, our government continues to spur the inflation and increase the debt that future generations are held responsible.