In the end a study of the collapse of civilizations always leads to:
The government taxes the people to fund various government endeavors wars, building projects, entitlements and that leads to the inability to fund the defense of the country and to invest in the growth of the economy. Failure to grow the economy leads to discontent especially among the poor and the middle class, since the wealthy and powerful have the political influence to benefit even in a downward economy.
Ancient Rome, Greece, and Egypt being examples of civilizations whose economies collapsed through endless wars and relentless construction projects (though at least the construction projects left behind cool tourist attractions for posterity) and added little to the economy's ability to produce income which is essential to meet humans' natural inclination to want more (Remember the first law of economics, humans have unlimited wants and limited resources).
This combined with the tendency of the elite in society to compete for power through political parties (as old as civilization) rather than focus on strengthening the military and economic power of a country (which relies on the rule of law, education of its people, and "profit" to achieve) leads to a nation exhausted and unable to address serious internal or external threats.
Finally, as economies are drained by the government and the wealth of the nation has been exhausted and consumed, the government resorts to devaluing the currency to create money out of thin air.
As a nation we are facing these issues... a government devaluing our currency, a government comprised of elite competing for power, the weakening of the middle class through taxes, the weakening of the military to shift dollars where they can "buy" votes.
Never in the history of the world has the middle class been behind the collapse of an economy. It has always been the abuse of political power by the wealthy who forget their responsibilities to the nation and pursue their self-interest. And lastly, the failure of government to focus on creating a growing economy to meet the "wants" of its citizens.
It is time to return to when citizens felt "vested" in society through their rights including property rights. Taxes were used to fund the military and a social safety net. Let the states worry about the rest. Focus education to create "wealth" in the form of skilled human resources that people can "sell" to earn a good living instead of using education as an indoctrination strategy.
Stop devaluing the currency through government spending. Grow the economy through pro-growth policies. Maintain a state-of-the-art military. Reduce the influence of the elite over the government. In the end, the common good is best realized by creating individual opportunity that causes each individual to seek success and to be vested in preserving that society.
