Decline and Fall of the American Empire Introduction

This is focused on personal observation and opinion as I watch the changes that make life so different now compared to what it was like when I was growing up, and before. 

As the American dream- every generation will do better than their parents- is no longer viable, why is it not? I'll explore that through my worldview, with the somewhat unconventional notion that the emphasis on material wealth made US weak, right at the time we will need strength, in great part due to the decline of material wealth.