People create things, they design, invent, build, repair, innovate, research, hypothesize, experiment, sweat, deliver, refine, grow, fix, erect and produce things, wealth, necessities, luxuries, experiences. The influential people in America’s history created TVs, atomic power, telephones, model T’s, airplanes, mp3 players, light bulbs, penny loafers and Levis, Rock and Roll and blues, carabineers, moon landings, Caterpillar earth movers and tiny weenie hearing aids. This is not to say America was the only country that created, it happened all around the world, and everyone prospered.
Is it a bad sign that so much intelligence, talent and research is spent, today, on just managing wealth? If we reward those who manipulate, speculate and regulate do we deemphasize producing wealth? Is the great thought of today wasted by focusing on non productive things? Are we all caught in a global Ponzi scheme where the wealth is moved around and everyone takes their slice out while contributing nothing? At some point this MLM mentality has to run out. Is it now? Or was it 15 years ago?

And now the soda machine only gave me one quarter instead of 3 for change from my buck.
I think the collapse is upon us now.