Thanks to everyone who has participated in this discussion. I was hoping for a more exhaustive discussion on the points I raised, but I suppose 26 posts isn't bad.
After reading through the various opinions on this issue, my thoughts haven't really changed. Those of you who have mistaken my search for an answer as pessimism have missed the point entirely. Those of you who have clung to some sort of jingoistic fantasy, I pity you and I hope that you will open your eyes. We won't have reform until people are snatched out of their cozy little cocoons that tell them everything is perfect. You now live in a country where the President has asserted the power to deny any American citizen of due process and lock them away in military prisons without outside verification of adherence to constitutional protections. He has claimed the ability to do this without any check on his power - judicial or legislative - and without having to offer proof of criminal activity. The accused has no opportunity to face his accusers in a court until his accusers deem it necessary - if they do. Can anyone seriously claim that the Founders of America had that kind of executive power in mind when they drafted the Constitution?
The best response was the one that talked about class mobility and entrepreneurial opportunities. It's a fair point, and one that I had considered. But it leaves us with another question to consider. Is this all we have to offer - economic opportunity and the ability to move between social classes? I thought we were the "beacon of freedom." I think the Founders of America gave future generations of Americans way too much credit - we have become ignorant of history, uninformed about current events obsessed with personal wealth, arrogant beyond measure, civically disenchanted, and have almost completely abandoned our responsibility to hold government accountable for its actions. In short, we are a country that is ripe for tyranny, and make no mistake, it's on its way.