Recent data shows China's economy overtaking the U.S. in key sectors, with projections indicating it could surpass America by 2030. Chris Hedges, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, views this as evidence of imperial decline. He compares it to the British Empire's fall before World War I.
Historical Parallels to Past Empires
Hedges draws lessons from the British Empire's early 20th-century decay. Physical unfitness plagued 60% of Englishmen, mirroring today's 77% of U.S. youth unfit for service.
Economic inequality fueled Britain's downfall, with one-third in abject poverty due to low wages. Similarly, 41% of Americans are poor or low-income, living paycheck to paycheck.
Rudyard Kipling warned of complacency in
The Islanders,
criticizing distraction by sports. Hedges sees U.S. society echoing this with cultural diversions amid crisis.
Signs of Economic and Social Decay
The U.S. debt exceeds $35 trillion, surpassing GDP. Hedges notes this unsustainable burden signals brittleness in empires.
According to economist Richard Wolff, erratic policies like tariffs act as desperate measures. They create uncertainty, harming workers and risking recession.
Social pathologies include rampant corruption and repression. Hedges describes a society celebrating deceit and violence, inverting moral norms.
Military Fiascos and Global Shifts
Failures in Iraq and Afghanistan drained resources, eroding hegemony. Hedges calls these blunders the death knell for empire.
China's rise, with BRICS nations comprising 35% of global GDP, challenges U.S. dominance. Countries now seek Beijing for infrastructure deals.
The dollar's reserve status is waning, dropping to 40-50% of global reserves. Losing this could trigger depression and military contraction.
Pathologies of a Dying Empire
Hedges quotes:
The last days of dying empires are dominated by idiots.
Leaders retreat into fantasy, ignoring facts.
Christian fascists in power seek a theocratic state, condemning pluralism. They promote racism and conspiracy theories like great replacement.
Wolff adds:
These are desperate behaviors of a dying empire.
Policies merge corporate and state power, fostering fascism.
State violence controls unrest from immiseration. Climate crisis exacerbates breakdown in services and rage.
Predictions and Implications
Hedges predicts collapse by 2030, per Alfred McCoy's analysis. Empires unravel quickly when revenues shrink.
Once the dollar falls, expect soaring prices, unemployment, and fascism fueled by despair.
Democrats' acquiescence hastens this. Re-empowering popular movements could counter, but chaos looms.
Fascism and the Empire's End
Trump embodies societal pathologies, promising glory amid decay. Hedges warns of rights erosion and spectacle over substance.
Institutions serve elites, not citizens. This mirrors Rome's fall, where prosperity bred decay.
Collective despair leads to cruelty, with surveillance tools turned inward. A new dark age may follow.
Understanding Hedges' perspective illuminates current geopolitical shifts. It urges proactive reforms to mitigate decline's impacts on society.
