21–30 of 45 posts
It's interesting they didn't cite figures from 2007 to 2013 yet they link to them. From their EIA link, it appears we import about as many barrels per month as we did in 1973.
Note: Published December 5, 2010.
Well then, since Obama has steered the ship of state in an entirely different direction for the past 5 years, we should be OK by now. /s
The ridiculous thing is that there's no reason America has to be in decline right now except hubris. The idea that military superiority is the end-all-be-all of power, the idea that every American deserves to be richer than than the average Chinese, etc. We still have amazing natural resources and an amazing entrepreneurial can-do cultural attitude. The problem is too many resources devoted to skimming the cream at t…
At this point it looks like Russia will be the next imperial world power although they are certainly doing it differently than other empires of the past. The Euro-Asian Union is likely to officially hold the crown but as we all know, the size of Russia will mean that it dominates in that Union.
Of course, that empire too will run its course and I wonder if humanity can continue on the road paved by Russia. First, it was the Russian people who ended the Soviet Union and that was a remarkably peaceful event because Russians actually don't like wars. Next, the way that they are building the EAU as a partnership based on the model of the EU holds out some hope that it will be an empire that is less willing to throw its weight around globally. And finally, there has to be an end to empire. We humans have to learn how to share this planet under a different covenant than the one given to us by history. The EU is an example that all countries need to emulate, not by expanding the EU but by applying the EU principles in a broader more global way so that countries are no longer sovereign, but are subject to some sort of regional federation which mediates political and social affairs within and without the countries in the region.
Most empires end through overreach. The tiny nuggets at the center of the Roman, Mongol, Ottoman, British, Austrian, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, German and Japanese empires couldn't maintain the many nationalities they lorded over. So they collapsed. The Soviets lasted a long time, despite their worthless, murderous government, simply because the Russians had a huge core in the center. The American empire received it…
What are you referring to? Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965?
Then comes the military power. No other country has had as much experience as the united states. Air superiority still remains to be the most essential battlefield in any war. Those who control the skies determine where their territories end. The United States by far has a great deal of experience in this field and it's spending on military hardware eclipses the entire world by many times.
The perfect empire is the one we can't see, and that is the empire of US dollar. As long as we depend on oil for energy output, so will the world's dependence on American dollar.
The article is giving me a 502, so I'll just say this: I think the American decline is a lot like the iPad market share. Most nations today are peaceful market economies who believe in individual rights and trading internationally. As a result, the U.S. is becoming less "indispensable". Is that something to fear, lament...or to celebrate? As a U.S. citizen I'm bullish on the future.
No one can predict the future, and this is sensationalism and speculation, not reasoned journalism. Let's talk about the "fall" of the UK. The British have universal healthcare and London is a leading global city. The biggest things that can be said for bad about the UK are (1) that London is extremely expensive, and (2) that the weather sucks. (1) is true but hardly seems to have anything to do with global decline;…
Here's an article from 1995 titled "Japan May Still Surpass U.s. To Become Leading Economic Power By The Year 2000": http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-04-10/business/95041... While the overall trajectory maybe right, the comparisons between the likes of USSR is really incorrect. The actual "fall" of the USSR came at the dissolution of the lands conquered by the old Russian Empire. The tensions driving that, bes…
This is my opinion. The world is built on American financial institutions such as World Bank, World Trade Organization. These entities ensure American dominance when it comes to economic power. China maybe taking the 2nd spot, but that's where it ends. The stage is always rigged so that United States prevails. The rules change in favor of United States, at the whim of it's administration. Then comes the military powe…
Those are not American financial institutions. The World Bank is an international organization and the WTO's headquarters are in Switzerland.
The article is giving me a 502, so I'll just say this: I think the American decline is a lot like the iPad market share. Most nations today are peaceful market economies who believe in individual rights and trading internationally. As a result, the U.S. is becoming less "indispensable". Is that something to fear, lament...or to celebrate? As a U.S. citizen I'm bullish on the future.
No kidding. I dream of a world economy that has grown such that the median Chinese or Indian citizen can enjoy the lifestyle of the median American or Swede today. I don't think people can conceive of the magic that kind of productive bounty would represent.