The U.S. in decline
“The United States in decline? Few people today would believe this assertion. The only ones who do are the U.S. hawks, who argue vociferously for policies to reverse the decline. This belief that the end of U.S. hegemony has already begun does not follow from the vulnerability that became apparent to all on September 11, 2001. In fact, the United States has been fading as a global power since the 1970s, and the U.S. response to the terrorist attacks has merely accelerated this decline. To understand why the so-called Pax Americana is on the wane requires examining the geopolitics of the 20th century, particularly of the century’s final three decades. This exercise uncovers a simple and inescapable conclusion: The economic, political, and military factors that contributed to U.S. hegemony are the same factors that will inexorably produce the coming U.S. decline.”
An interesting and thought provoking analysis of recent history, arguing for the idea that the U.S. is in a more or less inevitable decline as a global power, and that any military action taken to stop this decline will in fact only serve to “transform a gradual decline into a rapid and dangerous fall.” A long read, but worthwhile if you want to understand some of the broader basis of the current state of U.S. foreign policy.
Read the article here.
