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I'm not sure anyone is really sure what the main industry of this country is, anymore. We are diverse and seem to survive the changes because of that, which is always a good thing.
I remember the great threat of the 80s when automotive manufacturing was going overseas. People complained that it would be the death of the industry in the country and, I suppose, it was. But people moved on and I didn't think it was a big deal.
In retrospect, I see it as a bigger problem that really is out of our control. I always assumed the obvious answer to the automotive industry moving overseas: the auto workers just need to re-train and find new jobs. With the recent loss of so many programming positions, though, I saw that it is a lot more difficult than that. What do you do when you spent four or more years of your life to get a degree that is now useless? You've amassed student loans and don't easily have a way to pay them off and now you're simply told you need to get yet another education. Switching functions is not so easily accomplished, especially if you have a family to care for. I fear that these changes will become much more rapid in the future and people simply won't be able to adjust to it. Picking a career and getting an education is already a gamble.
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