What Is It That Causes a Great Power Like the U.S. to Rot from Within?

[xchrom]

http://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/reliving-machiavelli-florence



FLORENCE — 2014 has barely dawned, and I'm standing in a cold, rainy evening at the Piazza della Signoria in Florence, staring at the round plaque on the floor — ignored by the throngs of Chinese tourists — celebrating the hanging and burning of the monk Savonarola in May 23, 1498, accused of conspiring against the Florentine Republic.

Yet I'm thinking — how could I not — of Machiavelli. He was only 29 on that fateful day. He was standing only a few feet away from where I am. What was he thinking?

He had seen how Savonarola, a popular Dominican preacher, had been hailed as the savior of the republic. Savonarola rewrote the constitution to empower the lower middle class; talk about a risky (populist) move. He allied Florence with France. But he had no counterpunch when the pro-Spanish pope Alexander VI imposed harsh economic sanctions that badly hurt Florence's merchant class (a centuries-old anticipation of US sanctions on Iranian bazaaris).

Savonarola had also conducted the original bonfire of the vanities, whose flaming pyramid included wigs, pots of rouge, perfumes, books with poems by Ovid, Boccaccio and Petrarch, busts and paintings of "profane" subjects (even — horror of horrors — some by Botticelli), lutes, violas, flutes, sculptures of naked women, figures of Greek gods and on top of it all, a hideous effigy of Satan.

[clydefrand]

1. One thing

greed!

[lame54]

10. My exact thoughts...

you typed it first

[Adrahil]

2. The "rot from within" trope is an old one.

Last edited Wed Jan 15, 2014, 12:15 PM - Edit history (1)

Frankly, I don't think we're any worse off now that at any other time in our history, and frankly, considerably better off than at most times. We're in a transition phase right now, but hardly rotting. Also, the world moves on. We will slip from the throne of dominant world super power eventually, as all powers do, but that doesn't mean we are are rotting in any sense.

[randome]

6. Hey, hold on, you're spoiling everyone's morning cup of woe.

[hr][font color="blue"][center]Precision and concision. That's the game.[/center][/font][hr]

[L0oniX]

14. You are free inside the cage until the door is shut and locked.

[liberal N proud]

3. Ah - Yes, GREED!

The monster will consume all who fall under its guise.

There is more interesting things in this reading, much more!

K&R

[Vinnie From Indy]

4. Greed

Cheers!

[alc]

5. it's the nature of humans/government

Some administrations/congresses are content to do the best job the can with the current laws. Others want more power. Over 100s of years we've had enough who want more power. And had enough emergencies (real and fake) that the people have been willing to cede freedom and give the government more power. We only give up a little at a time (usually) but rarely get it back, and it builds. Almost every generation has given up "a little" freedom which the next generation grows up considering the norm. So what is "a little" freedom for them would have been "a lot" to their grandparents.

With all the power and $$$, many organizations (banks, RNC, DNC, military contractors, etc) attach themselves to the government. Government needs to change over time, but that includes removing outdated laws (rot) as well as creating new ones. Those organizations lose much money and power if some of the rot is removed, so they put a lot of effort to keep that from happening. And most of the people give up and vote for the "lesser of two evils" to make sure things get worse at a slower pace than the other side wants rather than insisting that the rot be removed (a large majority of the voters even want much of that rot and only want to get rid of the rot on the other side).

[marmar]

7. k/r

Vehement denial contributes too (see above)

[Dash87]

8. Corruption

When laws are passed only to economically benefit those who pass them at the expense of the nation, that's when the nation rots from within.

[alc]

9. laws rot over time too

Some tax incentives had an overall positive economic benefit at the time. Now they are simply loopholes to avoid taxes.

Some laws are just bad at the time they are passed. For me, the "rot" is when once-good laws don't change with the times and we can't get rid of them or redirect the government agencies charged with enforcing them to a more useful job. Government agencies fight for their survival and even for their expansion whether or not their intended mission still makes sense. Agencies rewrite their mission to make sure they stay relevant. It should be up to Congress to decide if their mission still makes sense, if the mission should change, or if any still relevant part of the mission can be done by another agency.

[randome]

11. I've said it before, I'll say it again.

The more populous an area, the more people who want to stand out from the rest. The more people who want to stand out from the rest, the more crowded the environment becomes and the more rules are challenged, changed and ignored.

Maybe America, in terms of geography, doesn't suffer from a burgeoning population. But from a cultural standpoint, we have too damned many people all trying to find a way to stand out from the rest. Couple that with a virtually uninterrupted period of growth and accomplishment and we have a problem.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]All things in moderation, including moderation.[/center][/font][hr]

[Brigid]

12. A brief scene from one of my favorite movies,

"Swing Vote"

[L0oniX]

13. GREED!

[snooper2]

15. I have been under the impression

things have been getting better and better over the past few years...


WTF LOL