Commentary on the symptoms of the decline• Defensiveness A nation consumed by greed will go to any lengths to protect its hoard of wealth.
• Pessimism Greed is all consuming. In a society dominated by greed profit is everything. Greed acts to concentrate wealth into fewer and fewer hands producing larger and larger profits. As profits grow payrolls diminish and the cost of goods and services rise. The population at large suffers from the stress of paying more with less. Financial insecurity becomes the norm and people become less optimistic.
• Materialism Greed is a spiritual disease. Materialism is an expression of the progress of the disease.
• Frivolity People seek escape from pessimism.
• An influx of foreigners People from all over the world seek the wealth concentrated in the nation’s power centers.
• The Welfare State Starting in the age of affluence women begin seeking independence as the poor seek justice. In America this was manifest in the women’s suffrage and labor movements as well as Roosevelt’s new deal. In the age of intellect the value of education is recognized and the youth benefit from various government education subsidies. The plight of the poor is recognized and government assistance is legislated. In the age of decadence these otherwise beneficial changes become noticeable.
• A weakening of religion Greed is a spiritual disease and love is the cure. It should be no surprise then that the principle of love should become corrupted in the decadent age. In America the word love was used as a polite form of the word lust; and religion began to preach the ‘prosperity gospel’ generally ignoring anything in scripture having to do with charity, tolerance, or generosity.
• Internal political division By its nature greed produces selfishness, self-centeredness, self-interest, and self-righteousness which traits make compromise impossible.