America has periodically passed through fads, crazes and manias, and while the first two enjoy their moment and fade, manias often end in collapse. At present, parts of American society are involved with one mania or another, making most of society seem awhirl in activity and excess. Pokémon, the Internet, e-commerce, stock markets, mergers and acquisitions, and risky physical (and fiscal) endeavors are looking more and more maniacal in their intensity, although to those deeply involved, they still seem like reasonable activities.
Two principal consequences of such maniacal behavior are just now becoming clear: volatility and irreversible, sometimes damaging, endings. Those ensnared by the mania rarely see such consequences and often suffer the most when the mania ends.