America Has Gone to Hell… But We Have Proof There’s Hope

Andy Snyder|September 12, 2022

We just got back from Joel’s place. Manward held its latest in-person event – the Great Liberty Revival Retreat – at his world-famous Polyface Farm.

It’s perhaps the most prestigious stage we’ve taken yet.

Sure, we’ve spoken in some grand ballrooms in some of the world’s swankiest spots. We’ve recited our thoughts in front of the heads of the FDA, billionaires and even presidential hopefuls.

But this stage – in front of more than a hundred of your fellow readers – was the grandest of them all.

Joel is perhaps one of the most important leaders of our time. He’s the kind of leader who folks follow without ever realizing they’re being led. He’s the kind of leader who’s responsible for great change.

Where we spoke, kings and dignitaries from all over the world have traversed. It’s a place where revolutions have started. And, most importantly, it’s a place where many folks have opened their eyes to fresh and useful ideas.

What a powerful place.

We talked a lot at the event. That’s what happens when your face is on it all. But we started off with a topic we hope is familiar to you… our powerful “Gone to Hell” scale.

“America ain’t what she used to be,” we said.

But what does that mean… and what in the world can we do about it?

Hell on Earth

We figured it was the ideal way to start a two-day conversation about liberty, money, history and even the food we eat.

“The last few years in America have been hellish,” we said.

Some would say that condition isn’t limited to the States, though. It’s been hell on Earth.

The ignorant will blame a tough series of events.

They’ll say contested elections, race riots, round after round of pandemic panics, a couple of economic shake-ups and a war in Europe all occurring one right after the other is a mere coincidence.

The suffering was supposed to end once a new leader was chosen. Then it was supposed to end when 2020 turned into 2021. After that, 2022 was supposed to be the year of hope… after the masks came off.

But each passing day only seems to disappoint the naïve. They’re convinced, like a dead-broke gambler at a blackjack table, that the next hand is the winner.

Now stocks are falling and the economy is a mess.

Folks are going broke.

Eventually, the casino will call them a taxi. It’ll be a long, blurry-eyed ride home.

The truth is, none of this is coincidental. The chaos in the world is no more the result of chance than the success of the well-prepared man. What’s the old saying… “Luck is what happens when preparedness meets opportunity”?

It’s a critical idea.

That’s why we gathered at Polyface… to marry preparedness with opportunity.

What has taken place over the last three years is merely the result of the same idea… just flipped on its ugly little butt.

What we have now is what happens when a lack of preparation and thought meets reality.

Stupid Hurts

Decades of spending on all the wrong things. A floundering education system that fails to tell the world’s important history – or its painful consequences. A carefully crafted system of checks and balances that’s been pushed aside for feel-good laws and politics. And, perhaps the invisible killer, a social safety net that swallows its victims instead of bouncing them back to independence.

We’ve written about it all before.

In early 2019, we famously debuted the “Gone to Hell” scale – a unique rating system that can be used to gauge the health of not just the American economy and culture but also any government system of any scale.

Each time we bring it up, we put ourself at greater risk. Folks don’t want to hear this stuff. They take offense at the idea.

“How dare he say the Social Security system is a fraud?” they protest. Or “How dare he say those innocent teachers are leading our kiddos astray?”

But look in the mirror, America. That black eye isn’t from some creep who came in from the back and sucker-punched us. It’s a self-inflicted wound. We got drunk and careless. We tripped on our own ignorant pride and fell right down the steps.

It’s no coincidence that each year seems to be worse than the last. It’s the result of a long string of bad choices.

We’ve all bashed our fingers with a hammer. It’s only when we keep pounding our thumb into the board that we have a problem.

The sane recognize the pain, admit their mistakes and take action to avoid it. The sick and the ignorant pound harder and harder, thinking that eventually the pain must stop.

We hear lots of pounding these days.

But there is hope. The wise and the rich in thought still exist.

We met many of them over the past few days.

We thank everybody who joined us. You’re part of a movement… a growing movement.

We’re celebrating our liberty. We’re getting under a revival tent, putting our hands in the air and chanting “amen” to the wonderful ideas that surround it all.

Indeed, America ain’t what she used to be.

But at least we’re doing something about it.

Thanks for letting us lead the way.