America’s Greatest Risk? Forgetting What Made It Great In The Fifth Risk, Michael Lewis peels back the curtain on how the Trump I administration sidelined the very federal agencies tasked with keeping the country safe, smart, and functional.
Fast forward to Garrett M. Graff’s NYT op-ed, and it’s clear: the unraveling isn’t over.
The Manhattan Project’s true legacy wasn’t the bomb — it was a model for government-powered innovation. Think Oak Ridge, DARPA, NIH, and the NSF. That engine powered America’s golden age of science and tech.
Now? That engine’s being stripped for parts. Research funding gutted. Scientific talent turned away. A war on universities, labs, and even facts themselves. China’s building the future, while America’s shredding the blueprint.
Lewis warned that the real danger isn’t chaos — it’s ignorance in charge of complexity. What we’re seeing now isn’t just shortsighted. It’s the fifth risk made real.