@bernie12, I think that it’s due to more short-term selfish thinking, which (somewhat ironically) goes hand-in-hand with lack of an existential threat. The payoffs of basic science research are often uncertain, far away, diffuse, and unexpected. When the US and West were facing the threat of Soviet Communism, there was greater abasiya among American elites (you can read Peter Turchin on abasiya) and thus greater resolve among them to invest in projects that will benefit society as a whole rather than engage in mere money-grubbing.