As the painting in the Capitol put it, "Westward the Course of Empire Takes Its Way."
Posted on 01/13/2022 6:46:21 AM PST by Kaslin
Studies show that an empire survives, on average, a mere 250 years. Did you know that?
To put that into context, the world's oldest person recently died at 124 years old; so, she lived nearly half as long as most empires do. Most Americans are unaware of this small but crucial statistic, which may suggest much about our country's future. It is past time for Americans to confront the painful reality that our time as a world superpower may be limited, and it is time to explore how to slow down what, frankly, is inevitable at some point -- that the United States' global domination will not persist indefinitely. This may be difficult to grasp and accept, but it has never been true for any civilization in the past, and it will never be true for any society in the future.
As we consider historical empires, it is worth noting that the vast majority of Americans do not regard the United States as an empire in the classical sense despite the fact that many people throughout the world do. However, for the purposes of this column, the United States, although being modern in every meaning of the word, does indeed qualify as an empire.
Since World War II, the United States has been primarily concerned with spreading democracy and freedom across the world, seeing itself as a sort of global liberator. In reality, the U.S. maintains over 800 military outposts and special operations groups spread around the globe. This is a critical consideration in determining where the United States belongs in the pantheon of former empires since, like those before it, it has been primarily interested in extending influence and power. This is not something that I mean as a criticism but rather as a contextual point. However, it is this overreach in the pursuit of continuous power and influence that frequently leads to empires withering, albeit slowly.
In 2026, the United States of America, founded in 1776, will celebrate its 250th anniversary. We're rapidly nearing the 250th anniversary of the fall of most previous civilizations. With ongoing internal turmoil ranging from race to financial disparity to political tribalism, and other countries gradually pulling away from the orbit of U.S.-led supremacy, it appears that the tides are turning against us. I fear that this mere statistic may soon become a reality that alters the course of our lives. After all, many citizens and politicians would celebrate our downfall, not realizing the perilous impact it would have on the freedoms they believe they do not have. I am not sure if it will be a huge international conflict, a financial catastrophe or a civil war that causes the United States to fall apart, but I do believe that learning from the past is critical if we are to slow down the inevitable.
As odd as it may seem, perhaps Chinese history and culture might teach our country something. Why has China survived for 5,000 years? What have they discovered that the rest of the world's great empires haven't? They have seen empires such as the United States rise and fall, and they have seen other dynasties come and go. If we are to defend our nation, I believe we must learn from our adversaries.
Being a part of an ancient civilization brings a number of benefits. The main thing I've noticed about China is that it has a distinct and complicated cultural value system that is embedded in the individuals who make up the country. The value system that defines what it is to be Chinese and what a Chinese society looks like has had an unusually long period of time to form. Their desire for knowledge and skill, as well as a cautious commitment to not overextending militarily, have proven crucial to their persistence as a country.
China is clearly interested in expanding its worldwide domination, but more so in terms of economics and finance than in terms of actual resources. They look to be primarily focused militarily on their own backyard while gradually advancing through technology the capacity to have global military reach if required. This is in stark contrast to the United States, which has endeavored to expand itself over the globe to as many places as it possibly can with raw manpower. All past empires seem to have struggled because of their exclusive concentration on worldwide military superiority. However, I think we need to rethink this. I think we need an ultra-advanced military that's not spread as thin, with the capabilities to be worldwide whenever needed. Additionally, we should focus on financial and economic dominance through trade, global finance and other monetary measures.
There are important lessons for the United States to learn, including the fact that it is not too late to save our republic. It has been demonstrated that if we learn from history, a great nation can endure and outlive others; the critical issue is whether we will do so before it is too late.
I think what the author of the OP was getting at is that the US is the dominant political and economic force throughout the world, and has placed military assets in every corner of the planet.
The stability that we provide on a world stage is actually much more sound than the internal stability we are experiencing now with our cultural disintegration. But that is likely to change as our State Department and Defense Department move away from the primary mission, and move to progressive priorities.
My point was that the intention of the Founders was not to form an Empire, but rather to form a Republic.
The difference IMHO is that a Republic is a consensual union, whereas an Empire is held together by coercion.
When did the union stop being consensual? - I think 1865.
But the good news is - that gives us another 80 or so years before our Empire reaches its expiration date! :-)
Exactly
America won't be conquered from the outside, it'll disappear under our noses when it's no longer inhabited by Americans.
People have been parroting that nonsense for years. John Glub played fast and loose with definition and timelines in order to fit his round pegs into square holes.
That made me laugh.
But I like my humor like my coffee. Dark
People have been parroting that nonsense for years. John Glub ignored empires (ex: The Byzantine Empire, the Ottoman Empire, The Khmer Empire, etc) that didn’t fit his thesis and played fast and loose with definition and timelines in order to fit his round pegs into square holes. Glub alluded to that in his comment in THE FATE OF EMPIRES and
SEARCH FOR SURVIVAL
“The dates given
are largely arbitrary. Empires do not usually
begin or end on a certain date. There is
normally a gradual period of expansion and
then a period of decline.”
Since about the time Horace Greeley said, "Go west young man."
China, as we know it today, did not exist until the 30’s.
The period before was a series of small bandit kingdoms.
China HAD been unified several times before, and then split up for a period of time.
Exactly. China as a culture and enthicity have been around for 5000 years or so, not any single empire or empire.
One could argue that by the time the US was dominant it was primarily a front for the British Empire, which had learned to hide its power.
The Brits surpassed the Spanish by 1800, so one could argue that the Rothschild/British Empire globalists are due to fall over the next couple of decades.
Suicide.
....and spread out too thin all over the god forsaken ancient world.
I agree with that in principle. However, today's Congress would just blow the money on Climate change or some such other BS.
It is a mistake to believe that this is fate. It is the result of people purposefully acting to destroy the civilization. We even know who many of them are, courtesy of George Soros and his henchmen. Empires aren’t fated to collapse. They are destroyed purposefully.
The USA is not and has never been an “average empire”...Please make a note of it!
As the painting in the Capitol put it, "Westward the Course of Empire Takes Its Way."
We have had the longest running government in modern times. Empires have come and gone over the centuries. We had a good thing going, but we no longer have the spirit of the past. The pioneer spirit is gone, along with what was once a great “work” ethic. The last century had us riding high, but its been going down hill since the late 60’s. Our morality has declined, our politics has turned sour and our minds corrupted. Will we have a rebirth? Forgetaboutit, there are too many dark clouds on the horizon. Everything that was good about this country has been sold and transferred out, our economy was the glue that held us together. If you want America back, get our industry back and produce, skip the BS social issues, “its the economy stupid”. WE now have shortages? Ah, but isn’t it great we have a guy wining women’s swimming competitions?
All of the indicators point toward the show being over. I know folks for the last hundred years have said the same thing. People tend to think in terms of ethno-centric but also era-centric. They tend to think the past/present/future is centered on them. Most won’t believe their world has imploded until it is way too late to do anything about it.
Seriously? We have ~800 bases throughout the world. Our currency is the worldMa reserve currency. I can go on and on.
It’s a bit late for that. Prepare accordingly.
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