In the final analysis, I agree with you that America is not getting dumber. It appears that way because our country being is led by an ignorant, grifter, and megalomaniac person. This person who should not be named is using and elevating and appealing to the bottom-feeders of our evolving and changing mainstream society to maintain power. These bottom-feeders dwell on all the social media platforms and the darker corners of the internet. They are supported by a pseudo-news broadcasting tv station that openly promotes these bottom-feeders on their station for ratings and not actual news. This is the reason that the bottom-feeders seem to be so prominent in our society when in actuality, they represent only a tiny segment population-wise of our American society. They are like the fame and fortune-seeking people who are so absorbed in their self-importance that they believe that the next “selfie” they take will propel them into the world of celebrity and wealth. Then they fall off cliffs, waterfalls, and injuring or killing themselves and sometimes others for a moment in the sun. The GOP is slowly undergoing a process of self-extinction due to their pretend support of these bottom-feeders. The present President, the GOP, and all the bottom-feeders moment in the sun will fade in the 2020 election when all actual thinking Americans vote out these people and we can once more follow the U.S. Constitution as our focal point to form a more perfect Union and improve our American Democracy. Thank you for a great read and story, Melissa! Welcome to Metaphorically!