But I'm generally really nice to people who think I'm younger than actual.

You were off by one on the low side.

And there are great examples of the simple degeneration of this society...not all our government's doing, either.

Handshake deals went away with the rise of spurious lawsuits. Government can't act against this without being accused of infringing on >more< rights...the debate around medical malpractice and tort reform is a shining example.

Yes I do wish for the time when I could trust my neighbor with my child's life...instead of living in fear that my neighbor would spirit them away and kill them like happened not too long ago in sunny CA. Is that lack of faith in mankind the government's fault?

A doctor afraid to lend help in a roadside accident for fear of litigation...the American desire to be good semaritan held hostage by the freedom to sue anyone for ridiculous sums of money.

Shining examples of our loss of liberty brought on by >ourselves<...not by our government. What do you expect from a society conditioning itself to believe that >NOTHING< is ever our fault. Perhaps you saw HBO last night...Inside Sports I think is the name of the program...where lawsuits were filed against >high school< coaches and refs because "my Johnny is BETTER than the others...and since you lost the game...my boy didn't get that huge pro deal".

No...nothing is ever our fault...nothing is ever "life"...shit doesn't happen anymore.

That is not government's doing. That is the "me" generation coming firmly into adulthood.