The future seems pretty uncertain right now, with the consequeces of years of bad economic policies and bad environmental policies seeming to come to a head. There are some perilous scenarios for the future, like economic collapse or serious disruption brought on by climate change. But there are also some decent possible outcomes too, if we do the right things and act soon. We have just as much chance to make it through the next few years as any other country does, and a better chance than some.

I do not see the future so much as a decline of America --- I think there will probably be a rise of other nations. There are so many countries who have rapidly expanding economies and huge potential for future expansion. I think they will continue to rise. In 20 years or so, the US might no longer be the one dominant player in the world, but will share top status with equals or be surpassed by others. But it may not be because we declined as much as we were passsed up by others with more capacity to expand. There is a big difference in those two scenarios. But I think Americans would still have a little trouble adjusting to the idea that we are no longer top dog, regardless of whether it happened because we declined in power or were surpassed. We like being on top.