It's pretty well known that foreign investors own quite a bit of the American landscape these days (not at dangerous levels, yet) and are servicing a huge load of the debt this country has -- mostly in the consumer sector. Is this a good thing for the U.S. economy? In terms of foreign confidence in out economy, it is.

FDI (foreign direct investment) in the U.S. rose over 67% in 2006 over 2005 levels, which would get most informed economists do a double-take. "This huge increase in foreign investment is a remarkable vote of confidence in the U.S. economy and the American worker," says Todd Malan, president and chief executive officer of the Organization for International Investment (OFII).

If we look all the way back to 1997, it's pretty easy to chart FDI through the last nine years or so and plot it against the status of the nation in various years within that period; the Internet boom, the terrorist attacks, the slow years, and the rebound years (including 2007 so far). According of the OFII, the renewed optimism from foreign firms investing in the U.S. economy is a stark contrast to their attitudes toward reinvestment in their American subsidiaries just a few decades ago, according to Forbes.

Are more and more countries seeing the U.S. as a base of opportunity and an economy of brightness as we hunker down and make it through the last few years of this decade?

All signs points to yes so far.