In 1776, Edward Gibbon, a British historian, wrote Volume I of his six volume series, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. He finished the sixth volume in 1789, but the series actually took him 26 years in total, from start to finish. 

Here are the five reasons he listed for the decline and fall of the Roman Empire:

1. The undermining of dignity and sanctity of the home, which is the basis of human society.

2. Higher and higher taxes and the spending of public money for free bread. 

3. The mad craze for pleasure. 

4. The building of gigantic armaments when the real enemy was within: the decadence of the people. 

5. The decay of religion—faith fading into mere form—losing touch with life and becoming impotent to guide the people.

One could argue that in recent history, and especially today, the U.S. embodies all of these factors. Others argue that while the U.S. is going to fall, it will be largely for economic reasons. I summarized some of the reasons in a previous piece. 

What do you think? Does the US share the same fate as the once-powerful Roman Empire?