This is prolly going to get closed... let's keep flames and such down and keep it clean and a nice, healthy, educational debate. As for my view... yes. These times are different. We have instant communication, incredibly advanced medial supplies, hospitals, etc. and transportation is being able to go to the moon, although that's not wide-spread. Indeed, in our lifetimes, for the teenagers here and everyone older, we're not going to see the downfall. Unless China and North Korea and some other countires decide to have a nuclear winter, you shouldn't bet on it happening. 5. I believe that a corrupt internal government, weak, and a megalomaniac for a leader, along with rioting people, and high gas prices/taxes/etc will most likely to be the downfall. It depends. Of course, no one can tell the future. I would very much like to believe that the world will stay peaceful, taxes will decrease along with gas prices, and the government will be run by an earnest, righteous man. But, most likely, it won't work out that. My view? Expect the worst. Expect what you think will the worst thing to happen. That way, you'll be prepared. And if it doesn't happen, well you were prepared and at least had a chance of surviving through it, unlike others. I'm taking Advanced Placement Environmental Science at my school, and one of the issues is whether the precautionary Principle a Sound Basis for International Policy? Haha. If you went outta control, and just made progress and progress and advancements and advancements, and you didn't care about the earth, the ecosystem, and everything natural and living in it, and, as you made progress and the like, you looked back on the world, and whoa… The oceans are polluted with fatal chemicals, the sky doesn't have definition anymore, and people can barely go outside because there is so much smog, dust, pollution, etc. Sure, you can cure people with the new medicines and transport faster, etc. but people are dying faster than you can get to them. Turmoil… of course, this is the most morbid of all examples, but still. What do you want: slow progress, but still progress, that is not only beneficial to humans, but also animals, and the earth itself, or, do you want incredible advancements within our society, but have the ionosphere be full of toxic gas molecules, an ocean where you can even go 50 feet without getting radiation and toxic poisoning, etc. Haha. Let's face reality. Don't be optimistic when there's a chance for failure. Of course, the situation always depends. Personally, I'm an optimistic person. Whenever I go up to play a song on the piano for about 600-1000 people, man, in my mind, I'm just saying, “I'm gonna play this soooo right and soooo perfect and I'm gonna impress those people out there beyond their wildest dreams.†I usually say that. Seriously. And, I do play perfectly. But this is different. Being optimistic, *sigh*, usually won't help a bit. Action, my friends, action. If there's a species that's on the edge of extinction, and you go, oh, it's ok, they'll make it out o.k., they'll survive, and they don't… haha. You can't take it back. Sure, on a test that you are optimistic on, yet you fail, well, you can do better on the next test, etc. but for life… I'm sorry, but there's no “re-do†for that. Yeah. I sorta went off topic, but there's relevance. The U.S. is a good country. Seniors have massive health care, and social security, and it's all free. Kids have playgrounds and schools that are good enough for some of them to get into Harvard, Princeton (where I'm going), etc. But it won't last forever. The debt this country has, along with an ever-growing population, and with other malicious factors, well, this country's life will elongate enough, but there will be a point… maybe not, don't get me wrong, but as I said earlier, face the worst. The situation depends, again, but face it because you'll be ready for IF it comes. Thank you, I'm done.