Dan Carlin has a podcast episode in "Hardcore History" where he describes the US as a "schizophrenic giant" (though I think he is quoting someone). Essentially

Dan Carlin has a podcast episode in "Hardcore History" where he describes the US as a "schizophrenic giant" (though I think he is quoting someone). Essentially he describes the US as being ineffective at making decisions, but when they do, they move quickly and with great force. The Covid vaccine is a great recent example. A truly astonishing amount of scientific work was done in an incredible time-frame when the need for the vaccine became clear.