The Contrarian: The American Century is Over (by Jennifer Rubin)

[Celerity]

Making China and Russia Great Again

https://contrarian.substack.com/p/the-american-century-is-over

https://archive.ph/vJlat



President in Name Only Donald Trump delivered remarks to a joint session of Congress typical of him—overstuffed, narcissistic, mean-spirited, and deeply dishonest. And boring—not to mention interminable. Some (smart) Democrats chose not to attend, others held up signs of defiance, still others boldly walked out, with some wearing shirts stating “No King Lives Here.” He insulted Democrats; played authoritarian bully by having the Sergeant-at-Arms performatively throw out Representative Al Green for protesting his fallacies too loudly; claimed the presidency was his; whined about the prosecutions (again!); trumpeted fake numbers; and relentlessly smeared his predecessor. (He also confessed that Elon Musk headed DOGE, thereby blowing his lawyers' defense that someone else was running it.)

In sum, it was the smallest, lowest speech in modern presidential history. Far more significant than the bombast, bluster, and blatant lies Vladimir Putin’s poodle delivered to Congress and the country Tuesday night was the context in which he delivered them. Trump has brought down the curtain on nearly 80 years of American dominance in the world. To boot, in six weeks he’s gone a long way toward wrecking our economy.

Let’s remember what Trump has thrown aside in his spasm of “America First” petulance. Before the Soviet Union and satellite Warsaw Pact states crumbled under the weight of Communism’s cruelty and corruption, the United States shared superpower status with the USSR. After the Wall came down in 1989, the U.S. enjoyed a period of unprecedented influence, military superiority, and moral suasion as the world’s sole superpower.

Now, thanks to Trump’s pettiness, obliviousness, neediness, and malevolence, the U.S. has boosted China and become second fiddle to Putin’s Russia. Still possessing the world’s greatest military and economy, Trump apparently decided America should be irrelevant to European security and a scofflaw on the world stage.

snip

[creon]

1. Brilliant

The article describes the situaiton perfectly.

[andym]

2. Henry Luce declared the American Century in 1940. Trump ends the American Century in 2025

Trump is bringing the American Century, America's actual Golden Age wherein America was the world's economic, technological, cultural and military superpower, declared by Time/Life's Luce, to an inglorious end. In pursuit of his imaginary Golden Age, Trump is actually ushering in an age of decay, America's Decomposition.

[dalton99a]

3. Kick

[bucolic_frolic]

4. I first heard ideas along those lines about 2003

It was floated on NY radio an opinion that America would have to retreat a bit because they were overconsuming resources relative to the rest of the world, and exporting the pollution of that lifestyle and economy. So it was stated that America would have to absorb more pollution. It was so odd at the time that my ears perked up.

Of course there was an article in the early 70s that one day USSR and USA would switch political systems. I also heard that argument from a rather well connected Cold War type who stated the Russians would invade and come for our refrigerators. (Funny word, refrigerator. Not refirdgerator. But yes Fridge, and yes Frigidaire. But I digress.) Which argument also perked up my ears and burned in my memory.

So this current move to the right has been planned in high elite circles for a very long time. Someone powerful saw they could make a lot of money off it.