Let us be optimistic.The unraveling of the American Empire began

[KlatooBNikto]

when we invaded Iraq. This war, entered into without the "informed" consent of the Congress by a delusional junta which rose to power by fraudulent means, and which is dominated by two of the most power mad men ever to come to office, Rumsfeld and Cheney, has begun the slow process of the economic ruin which, in turn, will undo this empire.The process is being hastened by two historic forces.The resistance of the Iraqi people against the invaders and the rapid rise of China and India with smaller Asian countries following suit.

The unanticipated resistance of the Iraqi people reminds me of what happened to Hitler's invading Army within sight of Moscow.There too
a conqueror drenched in hubris met defeat from a popular resistance when he was counting on the Russian people to rise up and turn on Stalin.Now all the stories about Saddam Hussein have been turned on its head and the Iraqi people are beginning to see him not as a monster that Bush and Blair would have us believe but as a patriot
who stood up to vastly more powerful invaders.The entire sorry tale is full of ironies.

As this country wastes its blood and treasure on a desert chimera, countries like China and India are investing their resources in education, health, infrastructure building and very likely will be leading the entire Asian continent to an economic miracle in the next decade.An Asian common market is entirely a possibility and will pose a formidable challenge to our economic dominance.

The results are already in evidence and the detrioration is only going to get worse.Our cities are unable to afford the basic services.Our people are being impoverished deliberately.As the tax cuts for the wealthy takes hold, the revenues left are being stripped away by the gargantuan needs of the military machine and yet is unable to provide the soldiers with what they need.

I see these as good trends because without the collapse of our economic dominance and the realization that we are just one among many nations of the world, we are never going to lack imperialists like Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld, who will plunge us into wars.They do not feel the consequences of their misdeeds.It is only when enough common Americans realize that their well being depends on our becoming full fledged world citizens that things will change for the better.That process, in historical terms, I think has already begun.

[izzie]

1. I think this is the start of it. Down we go.

---

[mandyky]

2. Iraq is to the US what Afghanistan was to USSR

Our defecit will continue to grow, the foreign countries that own our debt will call our loans, we won't be able to afford any social programs, and our country may well fall apart. Meanwhile the fearmongering will bring on perpetual wars until we've killed off a generation of young men and women, and become the most hated country in the world.

[Lost147]

3. Way back, this kind of war isn't a first

In the early 1900's, maybe even earlier you consider sewards purchase of Alaska. After we defeated Spain we collect what was left of their colonies and held them for many years and even hold a few today. We always had our eyes on getting Canada but that never worked out.

We had to deal with a similar situation like Iraq when we were in control of the Phillipines.

[sweetheart]

4. coup-2000 was the start

It demonstrated that democracy is a joke in america, and ended any
serious acceptance that the constitution is in force. Since then,
its been nothing but a long case of montezuma's revenge.

[teryang]

5. "Our people are being impoverished deliberately"

Yes, that's the plan.