They are not for profit financial cooperatives
Well this is a very opinionated question but personally:
Astronauts improve society by using the newest and most expensive technology to be able to explore space as we know it.
Major weaknesses that appeared in the American economy is that the stock market crashed. This was because there was a rapid growth of bank credit and loans in the U.S. and also because Americans were encouraged that the stock market was a one-way bet.