I have greater faith in the American public than most. We have a system that has a built in revolution that is carried out either every 2 years, 4 years or six.

As for the debt, just think 8 years of 4% growth and it is gone!

As for taxation the lowest since WWII.

Our problem seems to be the unequal distribution of wealth to the wealthiest at the expense of everyone else.

Maybe that should be addressed in a reasonable fashion.

But, then again you right wingers will come to the defense of your wealthy patrons as your own peril because the wealthy will never come to your defense!

Any serious student of history would concede that all civilisations follow a cyclic path, rising and flourishing for a time before degenerating into chaos born of overabundance, complacency, greed and corruption. One only has to look at the Fertile Crescent -- the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and the so-called 'Cradle of Civilisation" -- to appreciate the truth of this. So too any major civilisation you care to name, including the famous Greek and Roman ones. A study of China's history is also a great way to understand this truth of this, especially the Post-Meiji Restoration era through Mao Tse Tung to the present day.
Arnold Toynbee has a lot to say on the subject('A Study of History'), but I don't know whether anyone reads his books nowadays.
I join Hal in his apprehension that the Land of the Brave and the Free, overfed and complacent, may be presently in the early stages of its final tailspin into chaos and ultimate eclipse by hungry, desperate and ruthless peoples.