From whence shall we expect the approach of danger? Shall some trans-Atlantic military giant step the earth and crush us at a blow? Never. All the armies of Europe and Asia...could not by force take a drink from the Ohio River or make a track on the Blue Ridge in the trial of a thousand years. No, if destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of free men we will live forever or die by suicide. - Abraham Lincoln

As an American, it's quite sad to see this country, this grand experiment, is failing. How long will it take for the country to decline and be torn asunder? I don't know, it could be quite awhile. Or maybe not. I look around at our society, and I'm shocked at how fragile it is. If some incident wiped out our communication or electric networks, the country will affectively shut down. If our food supply is interrupted, the average American is absolutely helpless to feed themselves. I feel if one of these perils does not bring us down, our own dearly held values will lead down that same path. Capitalism, the most efficient economic system in the history of the world, is turning our society into an oligarchy. We are running ourselves into the ground, and I think that will ultimately be our downfall. Abraham Lincoln uttered the above quote in 1838, and I think it rings more true today than it ever has.