US military advantage has eroded, study says

Photo: MANDEL NGAN;Mandel Ngan / AFP / Getty Images

 

WASHINGTON – The United States has lost its military edge to a dangerous degree and could potentially lose a war against China or Russia, according to a report released Wednesday by a bipartisan commission that Congress created to evaluate the Trump administration’s defense strategy.

The National Defense Strategy Commission, comprised of former top Republican and Democratic officials selected by Congress, evaluated the Trump administration’s 2018 National Defense Strategy, which ordered a vast reshaping of the U.S. military to compete with Beijing and Moscow in an era of renewed great-power competition.

When Scary Headlines Don’t Scare – Climbing The Wall Of Complacency

From “Scary Headlines Don’t Deter Investors” by Bernard Condon, originally posted by Associated Press,

The U.S. economy is growing at a painfully slow pace. Greece still threatens the euro. Chinese stocks have just pulled out of a frightening free-fall. Big companies in the U.S. are struggling to boost profits.

You might think it’s been a rough year for investors, but it’s mostly been a smooth ride – and a profitable one.

Money is flowing into bonds issued by the riskiest of companies, home prices in some big U.S. cities are soaring, shares of technology companies are still near all-time highs – even after a drop this week – and auction houses are enjoying record sales of art. A Picasso painting sold at Christie’s for $179 million in May, the highest ever for an artwork at auction, prompting one dealer to exclaim, “I don’t really see an end to it.”