The categories are somewhat muddled. I do think, however, that the most important issues facing America nowadays are a combination of Security (including immigration) and Upward Mobility issues (including housing and healthcare).
There are some issues that I don't know where to begin on. Education is one of them. Part of the problem with education in America is that too many American parents AND kids don't understand how significant their present educational opportunities actually are. On the other hand, our public schools are extremely problematic because of the behavioral issues of the kids there that stem, in large measure, from the problems they have due to the breakdown of the marital family, and the problems that ensue from the types of family structures that take their place. Intact, marital families, in the aggregate, produce better outcomes for children than single parent families, blended families, etc., and it is, disproportionately, children from these other family structures that bring the most disruptive behaviors into public schools, and their behaviors negatively impact ALL students there.
The obvious solution is to encourage persons, as strongly as possible, (A) not to have children out of wedlock, (B) not to view divorce as an option when there are children involved and the issues are ones other than infidelity, violence, or other severely dysfunctional behavior, and (C) to recognize that family was meant to be the primary unit through which children were civilized and instilled with the basic traits of what we would consider to be "good citizens" (folks with a sense of personal responsibility, consideration for others, and a stake in the welfare of their country and community). Unfortunately, we've come so far from these ideals that I honestly have no idea as to how government action would significantly push society toward this. I really do believe, however, that the decline of the traditional intact marital family unit in America is at the core of a massive swath of social and economic problems. I also believe that folks' sense of guilt at their own personal choices and defensiveness about this topic is the biggest barrier to beginning a solution.
And of course the irony is lost though irony never really helps.
Poll
