The United States - the world - has embarked upon a challenging period of rapid change. Every period of course, has its challenges; they have been many and they have often been staggering. Our nation has somehow survived them all, becoming stronger with each. What may be different about today is that the world has shrunk due to rampaging technology, while American power has grown - both dramatically - leaving the world looking toward America to help its people become modern, safe and prosperous. But, at the same time we are expected to make everything right, our attempts to do so are resented, challenged and often rejected. The people of the world want what they want, but they want it their way at a time when competition for revenue and resources is becoming fierce.

Meanwhile the culture upon which American success has been based is being tested as a
result of the very affluence that brought its success. A culture built upon initiative and
industry is being threatened by complacency and apathy, and the underlying precept, democracy - rule of the people and rule of law - is being tested as never before. We are awakening to the challenge, and suddenly many aspects of it are beginning to be publicly addressed: families, schools, expectations, moral precepts. But a culture of individuality is slow to realize shortcomings, and is loath to accept responsibility for them. The looming trap is one of blame: it is not my fault; and that trap is posing a threat to continuation of American culture as we know it.

Avoiding Armageddon pulls together the potpourri of associated challenges and relates them in a way that clearly reveals the cultural danger that confronts us, while building strong
evidence to show, not only that there is an American culture, but that it has a powerful
foundation, carefully developed and aggressively nurtured. While parts of that foundation are
under attack, it remains firm, and must be vigorously defended if our culture is to remain
viable.