The Fall of the American Empire

Everybody is talking about how the United States of America are past their prime. The Empire is in decline. The military debacles of Iraq and Afghanistan have demonstrated that superior technology and tactical prowess count for little on the modern battlefield. America can’t even easily field enough soldiers. Jobs are moving overseas, to those rising stars of China and India. Maybe we’re even on the road to the apocalypse, what with global warming and all. And the economy! It tanks! Is America going to fall?

As I'm sure you've noticed by now, I'm calling the United States an Empire- with a capital 'E'. I do think this country is imperial. Sure, we're a democracy- the first of the modern world. And sure, we (usually... sometimes...) stand for human rights. But at the end of the day, despite what form of government America has, it is an Empire. We are an Empire because of our foreign policy. What else can you call a nation that invades others on shaky pretexts and has hundreds of thousands of troops spread across the globe? A veritable Empire.

And what's more, this Empire is nothing new. In fact, from the very beginning, from 1776, America had imperial characteristics. This continent did not initially belong to us- we forced its previous occupants out, and violently at that. The Native Americans were all but exterminated by 1900, and the Empire stretched from sea to shining sea.

As it turns out, all the previous empires of the world only lasted about a century. So let’s see… the United States really got going in the beginning of the twentieth century… right now it’s the beginning of the twenty-first century. Yep, that’s about 100 years.

So here we are now. Quite the dubious future ahead of us. But in face of all this, the military, ecological, and financial disasters, I don’t see America falling off its pinnacle any time soon.

First off, I think we’ve proven to the world that our military alone is in fact not capable of imposing world order. Perhaps this will encourage other nations, say, Iran, to purposefully challenge our power. But it wouldn’t even matter. I say the fall of the neoconservatives’ “world police” policy will only help secure America’s future dominance. When there are no more troops in Iraq or Afghanistan, we help eliminate reasons for these other countries to hate us, and want to challenge us. An overly simplistic approach, and perhaps overly optimistic, but ultimately I think it comes down to this: we all know now that America cannot control the entire world. So, world, stop being paranoid that we’re trying to.

Also, a lot of people have been quick to point at the financial crises as evidence of America’s decline. But, the entire world economy is more or less declining with it. China will be America’s biggest economic competitor in the future, and despite the massive debt we owe them, and the millions of jobs that are being outsourced to them, America’s economy will be stronger than China’s for the foreseeable future. The reason is all of us. An economy is only as rich as its consumers, and Americans are the richest people per capita in the entire world. The average American makes over three times as much money as the average Chinese. So despite this meltdown, the American economy is still fundamentally more powerful than any other countries’.

There’s also the issue of the European Union. Some people somewhat naively believe that Europe has the power to take away America’s financial dominance. Perhaps in theory that’s true, but the reality simply does not support that. Europe’s biggest obstacle is, ironically, Europeans. The riots that started in Greece last week and spread all throughout Europe clearly demonstrate this. Europeans- the average, everyday citizen- hate the Union. Its days are probably numbered.

In the end, I think the American Empire is done with, and good riddance. However, American status as the world’s most powerful country (even if it isn’t superpower status anymore) is assured for quite awhile longer. Is that a good thing? Of course, but I’m saying that as an American. What about the rest of the world? I’d say that even they have an interest in keeping America powerful- because powerful nations act as stabilizers throughout history.

And right now, what the world really needs is stability and steady leadership. The Empire’s fallen, but American-led world collaboration is next.