The End of Pax Americana? [a.k.a. Back to National Malaise?]

...The trouble is that strength -- measurable and impressive -- does not translate directly into power. Power is the ability to get others to do what you want. Here, America is weaker.

Iraq has reminded us that religious and ethnic loyalties dim the appeal of democracy and freedom. Militarily, "asymmetrical threats'' often neutralize conventional advantages, as Boot notes. Iraq has confirmed that, too. If Iran and North Korea become permanent nuclear powers, the U.S. military edge will decline further....

The end of the Cold War probably reduced, not increased, American power. Without the Soviet threat, Europe and Japan felt less reason to follow U.S. leadership. China's emergence is altering the world balance. In spirit, its economic policies are mercantilist. It subsidizes its exports with an artificially low exchange rate; it is seeking captive oil supplies. China's policies are for China, not a stable world order.

America won't retire from the world stage, but how active it will be is unclear. Iraq has reduced national confidence and credibility. Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid spending are already twice defense spending. Generational attitudes are shifting. A poll of 18- to 24-year-olds finds that 72 percent don't think the United States should take the lead in solving global crises, reports Paul Starobin in National Journal.

Given the rampant anti-Americanism abroad today, the fading of Pax Americana may inspire much glee. The United States is widely regarded as an arrogant source of instability, blamed for many global woes -- from greenhouse gases to Islamic militancy to unpopular globalization. No one can know what will replace Pax Americana, but with time, the people who now celebrate its decline may conclude that its failures were mainly those of good intentions and that its successes were unwisely taken for granted.

I'm old enough now (47) to have seen this go full circle in my adult life. I was 18 or so when Jimmy Carter had me sitting in gas lines on odd-days due to the gas rationing that occurred from the Arab oil embargo. Meanwhile those "dark conspiracy" folks were saying that those tankers sitting out in the Chesapeake Bay near my home were just waiting for the price to go up before they came into port to unload. There were the Iranian hostages, 18 percent interest on home loans, and the whole national malaise thing.

Then Reagan came along and we all breathed a sigh of relief. Ronnie cut taxes, but even more his optimism and patriotism inspired a generation. I joined the Air Force and served proudly under him as our Commander-in-Chief. Under the surface however, there were those same "dark conspiracy guys" working, quietly in the background.

They came back with George Bush 41, who celebrated the New World Order in public speeches and put the likes of James Baker at the center of his international policies. From that moment on, American prestige began to slip. After the first Gulf War, Bush lauded the new age of cooperation between nations and cut back the military drastically. Seeing the writing on the wall, I began to consider leaving the service.

Then came spoiler Ross Perot who handed Clinton the White House twice with only 43 percent of the vote. Clinton's policies made the service unbearable. The military's mission changed to nation building. It was obvious that no one was guarding the home front anymore. The military was the armed enforcement wing of the New World Order.

Enter Bush 43. He continued the same internationalist policies of his dad and Clinton, driven by a new wave of idealistic neocons. When 9/11 came, my suspicions were confirmed, that the defense of the US homeland was secondary to building a transnational system of governance. The Republicans, after 12 years of control, (which we always dreamed of under Reagan) left America vulnerable and failed to enforce the borders.

Now the Dems are on the ascendance and the whole thing comes full circle. What's on the radar? Just go back and read the history. Recession. Failing real estate markets. Dollar devaluations. Soaring interest rates. Only now, this will be coupled with war, higher taxes, and higher consumer prices on gas and almost everything else. Regulatory intrusions are going to skyrocket.

The "dark conspiracy" guys are still there. James Baker, Warren Christopher came out of the woodwork to ensure the correct election results were obtained. Henry Kissinger is back advising a sitting president. We just tossed the best guy we ever had at the UN in my lifetime and we might stick some Muslim guy in there now? With the 2008 elections, watch for a major conservative spoiler to split the conservative vote so Hillary can prance in there and become President Rodham.

Folks, the 70s are coming back with a major attitude. It's time to batten down the hatches.

America has never been more powerful

We control two major states with populations of 50 million people.

We have increased a powerful alliance with India that offers us a powerful counterbalance to China.

China does our bidding on North Korea.

The US was removed from Somalia in short order in 1993. The US continues a military presence in Iraq longer than WWII despite widespread global opposition. No power can displace us.

All roads to limiting US power lead through the American electorate. No external power can contain us.

The author of the article is an ignorant idiot.

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