In the past, the soul of an empire might have been driven by a vision of collective flourishing—by ideals of excellence and human potential. But today, that soul feels drained, reduced to extraction and stagnation. Whether at the top or the bottom, people are just grasping for whatever they can, while the grand promise of a shared future fades. Without a deeper purpose or a renewal of that striving, all we get is a hollow cycle of taking and waiting.