I think it's extremely difficult to draw any practical comparisons of the US and USSR in any meaningful way. Imminent collapse as one commenter put it (based on one expert opinion) or as a failed capitalist state similar to the old USSR being a failed state. The USSR had roughly 70 years of being a highly dysfunctional state/government. Other than some great gymnasts and skaters, what did they produce that was world class? By any measure, not just sports or politics or economics? They failed on so many front that these failures were the bedrock upon which the Soviet state was erected.

The US is 250 years old and still the gold standard for a democratic state. There's no denying we've got problems, some very severe ones and we are excellent, perhaps the best in the world and ignoring our own faults because we lean into our past for reassurance every time people correctly point out our flaws.

The thing is - you can built an argument on a 100 truths and still come to a wrong conclusion. We all do it. I see that here - my opinion. You have valid points here. Mankind does a great job of making fucking stupid mistakes, right after they spend 2 decades fixing the last one. Why? A different article.