[wolfpackk]

As an American citizen, I can assure you this guy is talking out of his ass, and America will continue to be a leader in many cutting edge fields for years to come. American economic prowess may decrease relative to the rest of the world as they finally catch up, but "the writing is on the wall" is sensationalist bullshit. I will never understand the correlation between technophiles and Libertarian pseudo-economic bullshit; 0 empirical evidence to back it up, yet the same stupid causal chain of events is brought up all the time.

[dclowd9901]

> American economic prowess may decrease relative to the rest of the world

Not just decrease but get overtaken by.

- Our public K-12 education is a pile of shit and our colleges are riding on a public dollars bubble that makes the housing crash look like spilled water. Any attempt to deal with the problem ignites fury over teachers' rights, causing policy makers to run shitting their pants to the nearest podium to apologize.

- At every possible juncture, policy decision is leaning on pervading status quo: patents, bullshit municipal license bureaucracies, congressional players pandering to businesses, not constituents

- Health is a disaster, and even with Obamacare, it's looking like it got neutered just enough to do precisely shit for the long term. People go bankrupt to get care, if they can even get it.

- Culturally, a sweeping wave of anti-intellectualism has taken hold and bolsters everything above. We can't get anyone to care about any of these issues if they're fucking retarded.

- All the while, the smartest, very smartest people in our country are jacking each other off in silicon valley inventing the next cat-picture collection app, while the economic, technological and social divides keep growing. They're more interested in becoming their idoled psychopathic CEOs than actually fucking solving real problems. They're living in an absolute bubble, unaware of what 60% of the country cares about or actually needs.

How are we supposed to be the leader of anything if we're in a constant state of regression?

[will1000]

I agree that America is doing many things wrong, and has many challenges facing it now and likely well into the future. However, I would also like to remind you that America is as a nation, 237 years old. It is a country that was founded by rebels and is often in some sort of crisis and or revolution at any given time. Despite(because of?) this, great things and great people consistently grow from here, and I have no doubt that will continue well into the future.

I am surprised when I hear people talk of our current issues as if they will be what does us in. Think of the big picture here, do you really think America is going to get "overtaken" in the 21st century when in many ways we are leading it? And I do agree we are behind in some ways as well, but we don't have to be number 1 at everything to be successful, or at the least survive and progress as a nation.

[dclowd9901]

These aren't "issues of the day." These are systemic and fundamental problems that lead to downfalls of nations.

During our greatest advancements, we maintained a well oiled machine of an educated constituency, a public-private partnership and a middle class bursting at the seams with potential and opportunity.

Those things have all either been stripped, scammed or atrophied out of the public, and what we're left with is a paralyzed public sector and a private sector that's racing to the bottom of the moral barrel. I just don't see any hope in anything short of some sort of awakening. Call me pessimistic and dismiss me, or at least recognize that something has to change.

[wolfpackk]

People in Silicon Valley are making cat picture apps, haha right. You fucking idiot, gtfo people like you are shitting up the forums. America is more intelligent and wealthy than any nation in the history of the universe, stop crying on the internet and go be a part of it.

[ulfw]

As 'they' finally 'catch up'. To what really? Honest question. What do you think the rest of the world needs to catch up on?