“Some complete destruction comes after the hard times.”
Victor Davis Hanson comments on that a lot. He points to ancient civilizations that were completely wiped out by the victors after a brutal war. The cities were razed, all the people were killed. The libraries were burned. There was literally NOTHING left.
He also points out the danger of our severe “normalcy bias” in the USA that the good times will continue forever.
> He also points out the danger of our severe “normalcy bias” in the USA that the good times will continue forever. <
Yep. Awhile back I read an article about the fall of the Roman Empire. The author listed all the usual reasons. Then he added one of his own.
The Roman Empire fell because the Romans couldn’t conceive of it falling. The Empire was all-powerful, and evidently eternal. Rome simply could not fall! So there was no need to take any corrective action.
Too many Americans have that exact same mindset today.