Is the average Joe or Jane in the U.S. going to sink or swim, our future?

Question

I've recently taken the public bus and used the DMV office, and I don't get a feeling of confidence from these people. I can see why American's are hated in some other countries. I wonder, if Iraqi's ever saw the American pie movie.

Answer 1

We are going through a bumpy period in our history.  Our culture is dysfunctional.  It's always been a little like that but it's worse these last few years.  But I think it's just a phase.

Our culture has gotten very selfish and mean-spirited.  This is partly because of politics, and it's also partly because the 'pie' is shrinking, and we are all scrambling for our piece.  We are learning to expect less, and we are being encouraged to blame our problems on one another, one group against another.

But we'll grow out of it.  We always do.  Things might get worse before they get better, but we'll survive.  We survived the Great Depression, the Civil War, etc., we'll survive this too.

BTW I have a theory about the DMV.  Americans have been convinced that paying taxes is bad, that ANYTHING you pay in taxes is bad, the money is just wasted.  So every agency of government, on every level, is chronically underfunded, understaffed, overworked, etc.  If people go into the DMV and don't have to wait in line, they feel their tax money is being wasted. Same with the Post Office, etc.  Post Offices and courthouses and so forth used to be huge magnificent marble buildings, temples of the state. Today they have the look of temporary buildings, thrown up at minimum cost.  Our old post office had six windows, our new one has TWO windows of which one is always closed.  But there's an old one downtown, built in 1905, that looks like a cathedral!