America today is a technology nation. U.S. Steel and General Motors can't bring about its recovery. Only companies like Cisco and EDS can do that. Their recovery demands policies that encourage free and open use of the Internet, free and open change in technology and basic trust of the people by their government. Failure won't become apparent all at once.
Failure can grind down slowly, painfully, over more than a decade.
That's what has happened in Japan, where the people have given up on their government and institutions. Necessary reforms here must still walk a fine line between complacency and demands for revolution, but that's the walk we must embark upon. That's how we take back the Net. I'm pleased to note that I've gotten new orders for reporting from AdAge, B2B and Boardwatch, ending a personal freefall in orders due to the Internet recession. I hope your business is turning around as well.