Why are people willing to sacrafice long term benefits to get short term success??

One of the issues is that long-term success relies on society working together toward common goals. Certainly here in the US, many people are conditioned it toward and "I got mine" attitude, and we assume that even when we do help, others won't. Therefore, we feel as though we're making a sacrifice for strangers when nobody else has to.

Long-term success in any venture does take long-range planning and cooperation. Unfortunately, we're seeing the country in a very divisive time.

Have you heard of the google lost drone generation, indoctrinated by Marxist idealogues who preach to them that the government can bring them "free" stuff and utopia? There in lies the answer, a couple of generations of group thought leftist conformity cults start to vote without using logic or common sense.

Because election cycles are only 2 to 6 years long.

What's this we shit?

The USA has already passed the breaking point long ago. That is why the debt ceiling has to be raised so often, because the country cannot even make the interest payment on it's outstanding debt. 60% of every dollar the Feds take in through taxation each year, goes directly to servicing the National Debt.