What is surprising about this first downgrade in the US credit rating is that it took so long. I believe that this nation has passed the tipping point. Calvin Coolidge said that the business of America was business. What is it now? Is it selfserving politicians and bloated government? Is it the land where minority special Interests usurp control over the best interests of the nation and the will of the majority?

Whatever it has become, America is a nation that has transcended from one where government was limited and the free enterprise system flourished—to one where various minority extremists have crushed the mighty machine of freedom and enterprise. Simple tweaks like lowering corporate income tax rates or cuts in the payroll tax are not going to create a rebound.

The combination of federal, State, and local regulations impacting business—from building a factory to running a lemonade stand—has finally crushed America.

Increasingly over the past 50 years, new regulations, licenses, fees, permits, and litigation has grown to rob us of our values, erode faith and family, slow down business growth and drive industries out of America to overseas locations.

Government regulation has hamstrung our use of abundant natural resources and caused us to become dependent upon despotic nations for the fuel essential for our national survival.

Unions and government interference have destroyed the public education system and government loans have done much to undermine higher education.

Due to zoning, impact fees and code enforcement, the poor have been excluded from the housing market (while corrupt government action to counteract this via the promotion of subprime [translation: unqualified/risky borrowers] loans has near bankrupted our economy in one fell swoop).

Politicians buy votes by raising the minimum wage, which only results in inflation rapidly eroding any gain while entry level jobs are irretrievably lost.

We supplant opportunity with government handout programs that are designed to keep people within the level of poverty and dependent upon government.

Middle class growth has been in government bureaucrats.

Our main growth industries are fast food, obesity, and government.

Within the past decade the bubble burst—we are now living on borrowed time.

Our economy will founder for a while, with minor ups to give some hope, but the trend is down—it cannot recover, it cannot grow—so long as We the People continue to allow government to rob us of our freedom.