It's happening and not all that slowly.

I agree we are headed down this path and it is possible we may be nearing the end of what is laid out in this article. Save me a seat on the space ship.

Good article.
Sorry to say, that their binding "social contract" which no one has ever seen will try to follow you, where ever you go.

I agree that the country is looking that way. Everyone else in the general population has blinders on. They are also listening to and watching the news from the fascist media. Who are touting that every thing is a okay! Nothing to worry about! The other part of the population is so afraid to say or do anything to rock the boat. It makes so upset that I can't find anyone who will come together in my area to create a group to challenge the status quo. The push by the political and fascist media to sell Hillary Clinton as the next president will sent the country over the cliff and create an insurrection. I'd rather see groups of states seceding from the republic. I have written about such ideas to my Congressional Representatives. I'm still waiting for a reply though.

All it takes is the collective will, and fortunes, of a dedicated group. The habitat designs are already extant, just needing the inhabitants. The lift system designs are already proven and do not need re-engineering. Many of the component parts of the vehicles can be recycled into parts of the habitat. Those parts left in LEO or Lagrange orbits can be retrieved and reused as habitat or agronomic modules. I'm ready, though my family may not be, especially my wife. She has this problem with heights.

While it would appear that we are heading down this path, In my opinion, as long as there is nowhere better to brain drain to, we can not be near the end.
I would agree that another small country could turn quickly and create the vacuum that will draw off the creative talent, but it's tough to believe any that are out there now would without a coup. It's the reason she invented Galt's Gulch to begin with.

Some historians set the start of the decline of the Roman Empire at around the time of Julius Caesar and Augustus. The Roman and US constitutions have a number of likenesses and similar evolution from their beginning until they became essentially a political tool used, interpreted or ignored. The US constitution seems to be at the same “evolutionary” place that the Roman constitution was just before Julius Caesar installed himself as emperor. If this is true and we can use Rome as a template, maybe we can expect the US to drift into a long decline for the next 250 years until Washington D.C. is sacked.
The above scenario would probably fit into a picture of people sitting around in a futuristic fantasy world with embedded electronic devices. Inflation will get out of control while higher and higher taxes are required to fund ever expanding entitlements. The decline will be exacerbated by poverty, cultural decay, loss of borders and language degeneration.
Magic Dog

Elon Musk is working on just that. Keep an eye on that guy. I wouldn't be surprised if he's a closet-Shrugger.