As I recall from some years ago, the average life cycle of nations is about 220 years. They go through a cycle of several steps.

1. From bondage to spiritual growth
2. From spiritual growth to great courage
3. From courage to liberty
4. From liberty to abundance
5. From abundance to complacency
6. From complacency to apathy
7. From apathy to dependence
8. From dependence back to bondage

So, where are we in this cycle? Seems to me that given the huge number of people on all forms of government support/welfare we are rapidly approaching stage 7.

Well, I'm not sure where we are on the list. I am pretty sure though that if we did suffer under the rule of a tyrant nation as we did, this current populace would not rise up and sacrifice whatever was necessary to build a new nation.

To further that point, there is a meme out there concerning Central and South American migrants. It basically says if it's so bad down there, fix it like we did. The problem I see though is that "WE" didn't fix anything. Our predecessors did. Some lived some died but none of us did. (I'm not talking about war in general but the Revolutionary War specifically).

People don't have the stomach today to loose caramel machiatto's and instant entertainment and personal property and blah blah blah. All of which potentially would be lost in a bid to separate from a tyrannical rule.

Given a choice between liberty and air conditioning, I bet 75% or more of the citizens of this country would pick air conditioning.

Not to be the voice of doom.... but 7.

I think we are between complacency and apathy. The American population is just plain spoiled. We want all of the toys but are unwilling to pay for the necessities like good roads, safe bridges, clean environment, etc.

At least 5 but not a solid 6.

Depending on the social metric we look at, somewhere on the road from 5 - 7.

I told my wife yesterday that I'm glad I won't be around to see where our nation is in 50 years or so. I believe we're at about 6 on this scale, maybe 7. Close to a tipping point, at any rate.

Not that it matters, anyway, because the whole friggin' planet is doomed.

Between 6 and 7, no doubt about it.