It seems that, while none of us was looking, the tidal outflow of jobs from the US has begun to reverse. Something nobody talks enough about is how productive the US is in comparison with the rest of the world, especially the developing world. Our labor markets are expensive, yes, even very expensive, but those costs are predictable and stable. The only thing a place like China offered is extremely cheap labor, so cheap that the huge risks and uncertainties of that arrogant country could be attempted profitably. Now that the visible cost of China is rising, its invisible costs are beginning to weigh and show that country wanting.

Energy independence, the return of manufacturing, innovation and technology galore. Do we stand on a precipice, as so many on both sides gleefully shout, or at the base of a tower with stairs disappearing into the clouds above?

Ever the eternal optimist, I'm ready to start climbing.