Fuedalism with small possibility of advancement. Our kids and grandkids are screwed.
We can't afford to be arrogant. Civilizations *do* fall as well as rise. If we think we're going to run a first world country on Wal-Mart greeters and masseuses; if we think that spreading our forces all over the globe for "nation-building," and that an *inefficient,* *aging* and *clunky* defense industry are all going to keep us from being a plum ripe for the picking, we're delusional.
Almost fifty years ago, President Eisenhower built the interstate highway system *for national defense.* (Suburbia was an unintended consequence.) In the 1960s, we had a space program *for the national defense.* In that same era, we loaned college money to future teachers under a program whose original name was the National *Defense* Student Loan (later changed to "Direct" to salve the consciences of those against the Vietnam War.) We saw an educated populace as a *national security priority.*
Similarly, we need to treat engineering as a high priority issue of national security/defense. Same thing with manufacturing capabilities. But I fear we won't see it until it's too late.