The American people have been underemployed and disillusioned for nearly a generation. The U.S. Government, about to embark upon an asteroidal mining venture, has promised the profits to its citizens. But when an unexpected climate-change catastrophe forces Congress to choose between rebuilding the American heartland and going forward with the mining venture as planned, U.S. political stability is thrown into upheaval. An obscure economist, in a dramatic teaching moment, reveals an electrifying solution during a joint emergency congressional hearing—but can entrenched political power buy into it?

In this sequel to "The Architect Who Couldn't Sing," architectural themes and concepts are expanded and illustrated, but now they are placed in the context of an economic explanation which—unexpectedly and dramatically—makes them possible.