That is the American tragedy of the early 21st century: a vital and self-renewing culture that attracts the world’s talent, and a governing system that increasingly looks like a joke. One thing I’ve never heard in my time overseas is “I wish we had a Senate like yours.”

In the most-recent issue of the Atlantic, James Fallows has an insightful examination of the strengths and flaws of the contemporary United States of America: How American Can Rise Again. He is largely optimistic, but as the quote suggests, he identifies our political system as unrepresentative, unable to engage major issues and perhaps irredeemably broken. An interesting read.