One of the most interesting points discussed in Objectivist circles is, of course, the prediction of how the current USA compares to that depicted in the novel. The question that arises quite consistently is how far the US can slide into the Peoples' State before the dramatic end to that system. I have heard predictions from others, some of whom never read AS, that we are slated for a financial crash, an oil drought, a terror attack, martial law, etc. How true or likely is this claim? And can we, as educated Objectivists, lend insight to when or how this could occur?