Poll: What is the shelf life of the United States...

[Virginia Dare]

Since the MSM is bound and determine to make this a completely maudlin and depressing day for all of us, I thought in the spirit of things I would post this poll: and feel free to post your comments as to what will be the final nail in the coffin for the U.S.

[William769]

1. More than 500 years.

[Coyote_Bandit]

2. The Roman Empire

stuck around for a long time after its glory days. Why would I expect any less to happen here?

[Virginia Dare]

3. Yes, and it wasn't pretty...n/t

[Coyote_Bandit]

8. Exactly n/t

[heidler1]

7. IMO it mostly depends on: will we learn the lessons of cause and effect?

WE ignore the fact that Muslims are pissed because we help Israel kill them off. This causes more and more terrorists, but we go at it by getting more deeply involved in the killing.

Global Warming is another example.

It all reminds me of the guy who dropped his car keys and went over under the street light to look for them because it was too dark where he dropped them.

[Coyote_Bandit]

13. Indications to date

are that we as a nation are becoming more ignorant of the events around us, less willing to compromise, less tolerant, and less educated. Cause and effect will be ignored if it does not promote the preferred ideology. Never mind the fact that we have a growing underclass that simply must focus on their survival and self-preservation. Anything else is a luxury. It is one thing for individuals in a society to recognize causes and associated effects. It is quite another thing to modify our national policies and responses to a given situation.

[heidler1]

17. Agreed, We are going all too willingly in the direction of ignorance.

The Pope just stated that we must not depend on science over faith. Bush has been pushing for the same crap since day one.

[enigma000]

4. Longer than most of the existing countries

China's going to have social pressure from the wealthy minority on the coast and the poor 1 billion living in rural China. It will breakup in the next few decades. The birthrate of Europeans have cratered and new immigrants may wish to create their own political structures and national borders. The number of failed states - either politically ungovernable or ecological dead-zones - will grow throughout Africa and Latin America.

The US may be declining, but much of the rest of the world is in end game.

[leftofthedial]

5. this country died, for all intents and purposes,

on December 12, 2000.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

6. The collapse has already started.

Much like the empires that preceeded this one we are relying on military force to hold on to the client states. The military has been proven to be incapable, if not downright inept, at performing the function assigned it by the bosses.

In every other catagory from education to manufacturing to the arts, we are falling behind the rest of the 1st world.

The rest of the world has grown weary of supporting our greed and has seen that we can be beaten at our own game.

But we can still bluster and throw our weight around like a dying elephant plagued by gnats, doing little damage to the gnats, but playing havoc with the surroundings.

How long? Until the money runs out that's financing the death throes.

[enigma000]

12. The US doesn't have much in the way of client states

at least not ones that require military occupation. There is what? Puerto Rico, Guam, Kabul, the Green Zone?

Not much of an empire. And one that could be cast aside if the right congress or administration was in power.

[Odin2005]

20. The American Empire is based of the rich elites of 3rd world nations,...

...especially in Latin America, being our buddies.

[enigma000]

21. As you know, they don't like you as much anymore

They seem to be on improving terms with China - they don't have any human rights qualms.

[Odin2005]

22. That's why the American Empire is screwed.

[FSogol]

9. Geez, what a bunch of chicken littles and pessimists. The US has survived

much worse than * and company. (Although admittedly, not much worse)

[lpbk2713]

10. 100 to 500

Simply because the whole planet will self-destruct in less than 500 years.


Global warming, overpopulation, polluting the air and water, class warfare, nuclear proliferation, drug-resistant viruses, it's a stacked deck and humankind won't win. Ironic how we created our own annihilation.

[lectrobyte]

18. I think the planet will be just fine. Human life on the other hand, is

more likely to not make it through those challenges you mention... Maybe George Carlin is right, humanity is just the Earth's way of adding some plastic to its diet.

[Hugin]

11. We're basking in the after-glow...

In my most humble and optimistic opinion.

[hunter]

14. We're expired and smell a little stinky.

But there is a bright future outside the refrigerator.

First we get composted, and then we grow very nice organic vegetables.

[mnhtnbb]

15. I'm very worried that by 2012 things could be really bad in the US

[Baclava]

16. We'll be fine till our alien overlords decide it's time to end the charade

To be sure, they will need a few of us as breeding-pen masters.
That's why I'm holding on to the dream.

[marmar]

19. I think the country will be around...

it just won't be the world's military and economic superpower anymore, and that's OK. It will be a painful transition, accelerated by these freaks in control of the country now, but it's going to happen. Great Britain and France did it, it wasn't always pretty, but they turned out O.K.

[Xenotime]

23. All good things come to an end...

Thanks to *, it is almost here.

[TahitiNut]

24. Tell me when we'll have a National Strike for labor equity.

Since I cannot foresee Pat Patriot getting up off his/her fat ass and acting in Solidarity with other workers in the remainder of my lifetime, I'd say we've seen the beginning of the end.

RIP "American Dream" ... our long national nightmare has just begun.