Obviously what should come first is climate change awareness, since that lack will cause the entire system to collapse,
Right after we get rid of Citizens United and overwhelming use of unlimited corporate money to win races almost exclusively for a single political ideology, which will cause the whole American system to collapse,
Right after we improve America’s educational system, since without future generations being educated, the entire system will collapse,
Right after we protect America’s election systems and processes from hostile interference, since without trust in the election system all faith in America’s government will collapse,
Right after we protect America’s infrastructure from collapse, with special attention on crumbling bridges and 91,000 dams averaging an overall rating of “D”, and needing $71,000,000,000 for repairs, because once dams and bridges begin collapsing in large numbers, the resulting death, anger and fear will help facilitate a lack of confidence as the government fails to respect the lives of its citizenry, causing the beginnings of a national collapse,
Right after we protect the Supreme Court, since without balance it all goes down the tubes, and one of our most trusted levels of government will lose all confidence, leading to a collapse of the other two branches as well,
Right after we protect the rights of Central American migrants to become American citizens, since without a reasonably inexpensive labor force willing to do work Americans won’t do, the entire agricultural sector (along with much of the service sector) will become unreliable and expensive, and we risk economic collapse due to high costs and lack of availability (and, oh yeah, the whole issue of human rights and our legal asylum system),
Right after we assure that all Americans will have cheap(ish) and effective health care, since the cost of a non-productive, non-consuming, impoverished, non-taxpaying labor force, the economy may begin its collapse,
Right after we devote adequately to America’s critical (though currently nearly non-existent) cyber-security systems, since after any cyber attacks on our power, banking, municipal and health care systems, economic collapse is nearly certain,
Right after we assure there are workplace safety regulations, as well as testing for food safety and adequate pharmaceutical testing, and can be certain that children are protected from lead in their homes and their drinking water, since without healthy children protected from neurological toxins, and protections for many millions of factory and mining (including timber) workers, productivity and tax revenue and inventories will drop, and the result may be economic collapse,
Right after we make certain that America’s military is properly funded, and has all possible technology first, since without a powerful national security America stands to collapse due to the increased costs of losing wars…..
But no matter which we put first, what will be heard from everyone (to at least some degree) is, “What have you done for me lately?”
Respectfully, there are no easy answers, as we all know. Perhaps that itself will be the source of America’s collapse.
Thank you.
