End of an Empire

i've heard political pundits
on both sides
say
we're becoming a third world country

our products are made in third world countries
all of or technology is asian
we've stopped manufacturing anything
unemployment's sky-high
we owe china billions

maybe this really is
the end of an empire,
they say

now, the only empire
i can remember from history
is the Roman Empire
where leaders had so much power

and like america, sodomy was illegal
unless it was with a non-roman or a slave

and in america, i think the seventh state
allowed gay marriages the other day,
and yesterday the president said
they will not differentiate marriage now
as only between a man and a woman

a comedic political pundit just asked
if that meant beastiality was now legal
according to the federal government

and i'm sure that it's not
but lines are being moved
and lines are being crossed

and how closely did the life of Caligula
coincide with the end of the roman republic,
i wondered