> These next four years are going to be hell for this country,

The last twelve years were more hellacious, especially with "W" in the Oval Office. We come into this with a budget surplus and no conflicts. Eight years later we're swimming in red ink, engrossed in two wars abroad which hijacked nationalist fervor in order to accomplish shady political going-ons to secure hegemony over more oil, and we suffered through an artifically-inflated recession that was made harder to fix because of Bush's domestic policy and this "no tax" mentality.
Essentially Bush screwed up the Keynsian economics system, using the recession practice of accruing debt and lowering interest rates during an economic rise. Destructive interference versus constructive interference, guys. It's simple harmonics.

BTW, even when Bob Dole says "do the right thing", the moderate members of the GOP are so scared of the lunatic Teabagger fringe (sorry to bust up your cirlejerk here) lingering over their heads, ready to oust them and screw this country over further. The political climate's so polar and vitriolic because of these straw-brained "politicians" who fell off the turnip truck.

> and for the Americans who were raised to be responsible.

This generation of Americans? RESPONSIBLE? BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
Their own parents didn't get the concept of DEFERRED GRATIFICATION, so they tried for fast money or pulled equity out of their homes. That's why partially in this political disaster in the first place! Until I became a university student, I had lost faith in the youth. The ninety percent of 'em that wouldn't even make it in a prestigious academic institution (or could, but only if their rich parents slipped the dean enough cash under the table) and only seemed to care about the latest bit of hip-hop/rap drivel, overpriced fashion that looks more like it's trying to increase sex appeal and less to serve the function of actually being clothing, and whatever's on Jersey Shore or Glee or...whatever!

When a piece-of-work foamer like me is the most sensible one on this thread, I feel like the world is screwed.