[sheswvdm] Problems new and old

Problems for the United States which I think are new, or unprecedented in size:
* Never has income inequality been so great.  I'm not sure about this one: maybe it has been?  The causes, globalization and automation in manufacturing and agriculture are likely new.
* Never has our prison population been so great.
* Technology has tremendously decreased privacy and made surveillance easier.
* Never has copyright been so wide and long.
* Global warming and associated effects

Some old problems.  Perhaps they are not as important as they seem, given that we've muddled through them before:
* Political corruption
* Censorship of offensive speech
* Using fear (e.g., fear of terrorism) to manipulate the populace for political gain
* National debt
* Military attack.  We worry of nuclear proliferation, but given our second strike capability, anyone who attacks us will suffer terrible retaliation, similar in spirit to casualties they would see for an old-style infantry invasion.
* Dysfunctional political debate
* Racial divide
* People clinging to stupid beliefs in the face of contrary facts
* Environmental destruction (though related to global warming)