U.S. Comptroller sees 'striking similarities' with the fall of Rome

God takes care of drunks and the United States of America.

Or so it has often seemed.

There have been any number of occasions when the Republic seemed to be cruising for a bruising: The nation's capital on fire in the War of 1812, the great Civil War still being played out today, the feared prospect of a nuclear holocaust that accompanied the Armageddon-like showdown with an atheistic mindset that lost World War III but like in Iraq fights on with asymmetric means.

In the darkest hours, warnings have boomed fromt he nation's pulpits. But the comptroller of the United States?

In an interview with Financial Times, David Walker outlined “chilling long-term simulations” between conditions in the U.S. and those that led to the decline and fall of Rome.

These include “dramatic” tax rises, slashed government services and the large-scale dumping by foreign governments of holdings of US debt.

Drawing parallels with the end of the Roman empire, Mr Walker warned there were “striking similarities” between America’s current situation and the factors that brought down Rome, including “declining moral values and political civility at home, an over-confident and over-extended military in foreign lands and fiscal irresponsibility by the central government”.

Remember, this is not an evangelist speaking.

“With the looming retirement of baby boomers, spiralling healthcare costs, plummeting savings rates and increasing reliance on foreign lenders, we face unprecedented fiscal risks,” said Mr Walker, a former senior executive at PwC auditing firm.

Current US policy on education, energy, the environment, immigration and Iraq also was on an “unsustainable path”.

“Our very prosperity is placing greater demands on our physical infrastructure. Billions of dollars will be needed to modernise everything from highways and airports to water and sewage systems. The recent bridge collapse in Minneapolis was a sobering wake-up call.”

And he's not even touching on the Islamization of Europe, Southeast Asia and well the United States or the "peaceful" rise of China and its People's Liberation Army.