Reply #39: Empires fall.

[Spider Jerusalem]

It's too late to act to reverse the decline; there are too many external geopolitical forces at work, in addition to the internal malaise and rot. Most of our former allies/client states are divorcing themselves from the US sphere of influence; the rise of the euro as a major world currency and the emergence of China as a major player mean that America's days of economic dominance are all but done. The impending shift to the euro as a reserve currency and medium of exchange for petroleum will be the final nail in that coffin. The US is in the same position, more or less, as the Britain at the end of WWII; no longer the major player on the world stage, yet fighting against the reality of the twilight of empire. Now, we can rage against the dying of the light all we want, but it won't change anything. The only question for the future is whether the US is going to be able to adjust to the new reality of a reduced international role; Britain managed to make the adjustment, and quite well, following the missteps made by the Conservative governments of Churchill and Anthony Eden in the 1950's. Refusal to adjust is mere pride and arrogance, and you know what they say about pride and what it leads to...I really hope that's not where we're headed.