History repeats itself.
There are many reasons leading to the fall of the Roman empire, but one in particular seems very relevant to this thread.
Reason why the Roman Empire fell
extract -
"Reason why the Roman Empire fell - Unemployment of the Working Classes (The Plebs)
Cheap slave labor (eastern europeans?) in turn resulted in the unemployment of the the people of Rome who became dependent on hand-outs from the state. The Romans attempted a policy of unrestricted trade (EU?) but this led to working class Romans being unable to compete with foreign trade. The government were therefore forced to subsidize the working class Romans to make up the differences in prices. This resulted in thousands of Romans choosing just to live on the subsides sacrificing their standard of living with an idle life of ease. The massive divide between the rich and the poor increased still further. "