Houston Chronicle columnist Rick Casey interprets the most recent edition of Rice University sociologist Stephen Klineberg's annual survey of Houston attitudes.
For the past five years, a steady 60 percent to 62 percent of Houstonians have said they personally expect to be better off in three to four years. This year it dropped moderately to 56 percent.But when they were asked whether the United States was heading for better times or more difficult times, those expecting better times plummeted in the past year from 42 percent to 26 percent.
This is an astounding figure. And it comes at a time when most economists are not nearly so pessimistic. What it describes is a citizenship that has faith in itself but not in the competence of its leadership.
Why would that be the case?
Oh, I don't know. Maybe Katrina, Iraq, disclosures of FBI bumbling prior to 9/11, confusion in the Medicare drug benefit program, the mammoth deficit, school finance, the Children's Health Insurance Program.
And, of course, our inability to control our borders.
In addition to government functions that have been bungled, we are being told there are many things we can no longer afford to do.
We can't afford Social Security at its present level. We can't afford Medicaid. We need to privatize toll roads because we can't afford to build our own highways. We can't even afford to maintain our state parks.
Make your own list.
Houstonians are, at the moment, confident in themselves but not in their nation. And if the people of Houston — aptly described as a city only optimists could imagine and pull off — aren't confident about our nation's future, imagine how the rest of the country feels.
Casey doesn't address one important factor in the shaping of public attitudes: the relentless war on President Bush by a media class that despises him. That said, however, it's becoming hard to dispute that the Republicans haven't bungled their shot at both national and state leadership.
Posted by Alan at April 2, 2006 12:11 PM