A distortion has grown up between urban and rural economies creating a condition where neither is able to sustain itself, thus restricting individual opportunities. At one time, 98 percent of the U.S. depended on the rural economy. Interrelated developments such as the input of ideas, enterprise, mechanical innovations, the opening of new and fertile lands, and the formation of new settlements contributed to early rural America's vitality and strength. While the countryside provided the material and human resources, urban centers were converting raw materials into a product. New markets began opening up for products and services in the urban areas. An interdependence and balance existed between urban and rural economies, but now the rural economic framework is no longer a viable structure and has not been for many years. Today, many communities are dying in the rural areas. If rural America is to develop in concert with the rest of the nation, a new kind of economic and social framework needs to be created, including enterprises which can raise the economic level and make it more compatible with the times and conditions of the rest of the nation. (NQ)