Future at risk: U.S. is fast letting its tech edge slip away By DAVID BALTIMORE

Where does all this leave the United States, a nation with so many who are poorly educated and whose educational system does a particularly ineffective job with math and science? We have more people who believe in the devil than who believe in evolution. Why? …

So the cascade could begin: If America becomes a less affluent society, we will see a diminution in support for the research that is critical to our future. There are already clouds on the horizon: because of the deficit, federal budgets will get tighter and science funding is likely to suffer. The economic recovery is generating too few jobs. Silicon Valley still has lots of vacant space. The venture-capital industry is scared and conservative.

These trends are real. We cannot afford to ignore them. We must think deeply about the realities we face. We need to respond to the newest challenges of globalism. A fortress-America approach will get us nowhere.