Several centuries ago, there was a nation that rose to become a world power, on the strength of its innovation and its dedication to capitalist enterprise. It became a major center of trade, a financial powerhouse whose name well known across the planet. It was blessed with an unusual society that rewarded talent and hard work, not social position - one of the few places where a person who had nothing could realistically dream of a far better life. And then this vibrant place, the envy of the world, suddenly collapsed. Its economy shrank; its people left.
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What is so troubling and worrisome is that those who are now making literally hundreds of times more income than the rest of us are not going to give up their positions of power and wealth. What are we to do? Start a new revolution? No one wants that.
Revolutions can come in different forms.
So why do nations fail? The one-word answer, "Politics'' is not enough. Add to that 2) poor leadership, and 3) an ignorant populace, that goes to the polls knowing nothing but which i-tune they last down-loaded or the latest message of a political campaign.
I really think that the answer to solving many of these policy problems is to stress the local. Get people actually talking to one another again. We get into these anonymous bubbles (this forumwould be a good example).