<p>This letter was difficult to write. But I had to do it. Because I fear the worst economic collapse of modern times is upon us.<br /><br />I wish this weren't so. But I can't wish away the facts...</p> <ul> <li>Our education system stinks to high heaven. We spend more than most of the world on education -- $115,000 per student -- yet we rank 36th in math, reading, and science...far below our Asian competitors who are eager to eat our lunch on the international stage.</li> <li>Our American government is massively in debt. The national debt is now over $18 trillion. A third of this is owned by foreign nations, namely Japan and China.</li> <li>Our homes are open to government intrusions. Police can crash through your door for hardly a reason at all. They also have radars that allow them to peer through the walls of your home. Who knows what they are actually looking for?</li> <li>Our republic was lost long ago. The U.S. now operates as a corporate oligarchy, where our elected officials represent the interests of the ultra wealthy and powerful corporations...not the average citizen.</li> <li>Our prisons house the largest number of inmates in the world. What's more, they're operated as money-making enterprises for private corporations.</li> <li>Our health care system stinks even worse than our education system...yet it costs way more than other western, industrialized nations. Obamacare is only exacerbating the problem of both high cost and poor quality.</li> <li>An