Manifestations of American imperialism a sign of weakness?
LAST DAYS OF EMPIRE
http://dominionpaper.ca/features/2003/the_conceited_empire.htmlhttp://dominionpaper.ca/features/2003/the_conceited_empire.html
[From an interview with French historian and demographer Emmanuel Todd.
“There will be no American Empire.” According to Todd, whose 1976 book
predicted the fall of the Soviet Union, there is no question: the
decline of America the Superpower has already begun.]
DOMINION, CA - The US is still the most powerful nation in the world
today, but there are many indicators that they are about to relinquish
their position as solitary superpower. In my 1976 book, La chute finale
(Before the Fall: The End of Soviet Domination), I based my prediction
of the fall of the Soviet Union on the relevant indicators of the time.
An analysis of current demographic, cultural, military, economic, and
ideological factors leads me to conclude that the remaining pole of the
former bipolar world order will not remain alone in its position. The
world has become too large and complex to accept the predominance of
one
power. There will not be an American Empire.
Q - Nevertheless, if others are to believed, this empire has already
been long in existence. “Get Used to It” was a recent headline in the
New York Times Weekend Magazine.
That is very interesting. Now that the concept no longer corresponds to
reality, it becomes commonplace. While there actually was a basis in
reality, there was scarcely a mention of the concept.
Then you are of the opinion that there was an American empire at one
point?
The American hegemony from the end of WW II into the late 1980s in
military, economic, and ideological terms definitely had imperial
qualities. In 1945 fully half the manufactured goods in the world
originated in the US. And although there was a communist bloc in
Eurasia, East Germany, and North Korea, the strong American military,
the navy and air force, exercised strategic control over the rest of the
globe, with the support and understanding of many allies, whose common
goal was the fight against communism. Although communism had some
dispersed support among intellectuals, workers, and peasant groups, the
power and influence of the US was by and large with the agreement of a
majority throughout the world. It was a benevolent empire. The Marshall
Plan was an exemplary political and economic strategy. America was, for
decades, a ‘good’ superpower.
Q - And now it is a bad one?
It has, above all, become a weak one. The US no longer has the might to
control the large strategic players, primarily Germany and Japan. Their
industrial capacity is clearly smaller than that of Europe and
approximately equal to that of Japan. With twice the population, this is
no great accomplishment. Their trade deficit meanwhile, is in the order
of $500 billion per year. Their military potential is nevertheless still
the largest by far, but is declining and consistently over estimated.
The use of military bases is dependant on the good will of their allies,
many of which are not as willing as before. The theatrical military
activism against inconsequential rogue states that we are currently
witnessing plays out against this backdrop. It is a sign of weakness,
not of strength. But weakness makes for unpredictability. The US is
about to become a problem for the world, where we have previously been
accustomed to seeing a solution in them.
