Should the U.S. follow Great Britain?

I'm not talking about current politics. Researching history I noticed how after WW2 former British Prime Minister Clement Atlee took the steps to turn the Britain from an empire to the Commonwealth. The United States is currently the only superpower in the world and at great cost. There are 300 million citizens in the U.S. It is difficult to maintain the U.S. as a superpower and support everyone and everything in the U.S. Military spending alone in the U.S. is way more then any country out there.
www.globalissues.org...
www.globalsecurity.org...
This is not very shocking to me but should be to others.
I would for our government to concentrate more with American influence and the citizens while we can still be on the world stage.

What are your thoughts on the U.S. ceasing to be an empire and start following the U.K?

reply to post by Romantic_Rebel


Well i suppose the U.S.A is different from the British in that it does not have a raft of countries seeking Independence from them .The U.S.A`s form of Empire is distinctive , in that it does not require as many boots on the ground ( exceptions :Afghanistan/Iraq) . Its multitudes of carrier groups and military bases throughout the world make it unnecessary .Its cultural influence is pervasive ...... its military machine ..... most persuasive !
U.S military projection is used to keep the U.S.A economy above water .
It will be very busy over the next few decades imho.

You could probably do with cutting your military budget hugely, not that it bothers me too much really. After all, what you spend on the military, we don't have to.

Do you mean by America withdrawing it's armed forces from it's bases around the world? I can never see that happening to be honest. If it did some countries might think it's their birthday and they can start to do what they want and inevitably another country will arise to take America's place such as China, Russia or India.

reply to post by Kram09


Many people couldn't see the British Empire not existing, too. The latter part of your post is almost inevitable: Nobody stays on top forever.

reply to post by LeftWingLarry


Yes that's true. After the Second World War the United States had surpassed Great Britain. Great Britain was no longer in a position economically or militarily to keep it's empire. I believe a Third World War would break America or at least America as we know it today.

reply to post by Romantic_Rebel


Might i suggest that the US is already under the control of England as well as under the greater if not total control of Rome!!!!!
This link should explain my point more in depth
www.abovetopsecret.com...

Also money is nothing please watch these videos in the thread and you will realize how money has no real value so it is useless to even discuss the spending of this country!
www.abovetopsecret.com...

Originally posted by Kram09
reply to post by LeftWingLarry

 

Yes that's true. After the Second World War the United States had surpassed Great Britain. Great Britain was no longer in a position economically or militarily to keep it's empire. I believe a Third World War would break America or at least America as we know it today.

Really the UK went into decline after the end of WW1, although it didn't really begin to call it a day until after WW2. That was when we moved further to the left (with the creation of the cradle-to-grave welfare state and a shift in attitudes from external imperialism to internal maintenance). After that the fall of the Empire was pretty much inevitable, although I'm proud that we managed to do it more-or-less peacefully.

America is already in decline, no world war needed: China resembles the west during the Victorian era - Imperialistic, establishing spheres of influence in Africa/ Asia, cheap-labour-fueled rapidly growing economy, etc. Whilst America follows in the footsteps of the rest of the developed world and moves further to the left and becomes more liberal.

Yes I think they should.

Eventually Russia or China will consolidate there region of influence, but I doubt that they have the ambition to rule the world. As it gives more problems then is favorable.

Originally posted by Kram09
reply to post by LeftWingLarry

 

Yes that's true. After the Second World War the United States had surpassed Great Britain. Great Britain was no longer in a position economically or militarily to keep it's empire. I believe a Third World War would break America or at least America as we know it today.

Let's be realistic here. We do not need a WWlll to break the good ol' U.S. of A.. Obama is doing just fine without it! This is not a Dem v. Rep. statement. In all honesty, the USA has been collapsing steadily for a while now. Obama is only accelerating the inevitable. The blame does not rest on Dems or Reps., it rest squarely on the shoulders of all able-bodied, registered voters for not recognizing and acting upon the social decline that started, in my opinion, in the 1960's.

When Americans can learn to pull their heads out, stop worrying about politics and start doing the right thing, America will be just fine. But the problem is that we are lazy and don't want to be bothered after 5PM (thats our time). We are truly pathetic people. We have been blessed with so much and we have thrown it all away. Instant gratification is only helpful and beneficial to one group, prostitutes! We are not prostitutes, so why do we act like them?

Follow the UK? nah, we're good.. Talk about whores.

Originally posted by getinout?
Might i suggest that the US is already under the control of England as well as under the greater if not total control of Rome!!!!!

Yes, you have the right to suggest it, but it is still a pile of drivel and a fantasy.

To topic... If the suggestion is that the USA draws down its military and becomes more isolationist alongside a reduction in international involvement then they could do so. They have been isolationist in the past, although some could argue that the US isolationism was merely a way they could profit from other nations misfortunes - WW1 and early WW2, to name two big profitable enterprises, (please forgive the cynicism).

The size of the US military is a hang-over from the Cold War and could be reduced, but I feel that there is too much politics involved in so doing. Reduction in military would have no real effect on the US as the major economy, thus retaining economic superpower status. Whether the US would chose to withdraw from participating in the worlds affairs would be interesting. We can all concentrate on what many of us see as unnecessary military actions (e.g. Iraq and Afghanistan), but tend to forget the good the US military do in other theatres either as stabilisation or actively, although often reluctantly such in Serbia.

We can also cry about the US around the world, but I would rather a democratic nation with some form of accountability working with nations, rather than e.g. China which has no scruples or accountability. Better the Devil you know.

Regards

A us withdrawl from the world stage would begin a new global arms race as other powers move to secure sea lanes and areas of influence. China would be forced to build a blue water navy, Europe would re-arm as would Russia. Asia would be a hot bed with a Japans loss of US protection and remilitarization spuring on China, the Koreas, and other Asian powers to build up. With the loss of the US global presence regional conflicts would become more common as early on no power would have the ability to intervine. You would also see a rush of new nuclear powers as the power vacuum would create a lot of instability. Unlike after WW2 when two new powers were already armed form the war, no powers would be ready to step right in. This would create a very unstable world with lots of jockying for power unitl 2 or 3 powers managed to become global powers and start a new cold war.

Follow Great Britain where? Into obscurity? Into becoming a whole different nation due to extremely lax immigration laws? Into having a much poorer health care system. We are already on that road. I'm not liking it either.

Originally posted by LeftWingLarry
Really the UK went into decline after the end of WW1, although it didn't really begin to call it a day until after WW2. That was when we moved further to the left (with the creation of the cradle-to-grave welfare state and a shift in attitudes from external imperialism to internal maintenance).

Around the same time that communism infiltrated Empire education establishments, Oxford, Cambridge et al, and promoted socialist, anti establishment ideals? All part of the communist agenda to undermine the west from within.

After that the fall of the Empire was pretty much inevitable, although I'm proud that we managed to do it more-or-less peacefully.

What else could we do? The peoples of the Empire had fought side by side with us to rid the world of facism. They had earned the right to deny British Soveriegnty and reclaim their Soveriegn identities! I'm more proud of the moral fibre that acknowledged the equality and rights of the diverse peoples of the former Empire and let go. That the Commonwealth was born is testament to mutual respect.

America is already in decline, no world war needed: China resembles the west during the Victorian era - Imperialistic, establishing spheres of influence in Africa/ Asia, cheap-labour-fueled rapidly growing economy, etc. Whilst America follows in the footsteps of the rest of the developed world and moves further to the left and becomes more liberal.

Maybe McCarthy wasn't so demogogic after all!

Originally posted by paraphi

The size of the US military is a hang-over from the Cold War and could be reduced, but I feel that there is too much politics involved in so doing. Reduction in military would have no real effect on the US as the major economy, thus retaining economic superpower status.

It would be interesting to see if American based corporations would keep their contracts (commodities) in those areas currently occupied by US big guns and ships or if the contracts would go to companies from whatever country, construct or alliance that sent big guns and ships to replace American ones.

Whether the US would chose to withdraw from participating in the worlds affairs would be interesting.

USA based corporate lobbyists would continue to apply pressure to US government, influence government policy so it seems unlikely that America will withdraw altogether. Become more protectionist than isolationist perhaps. Interesting nontheless.

We can also cry about the US around the world, but I would rather a democratic nation with some form of accountability working with nations, rather than e.g. China which has no scruples or accountability. Better the Devil you know.

Hear, hear!

Originally posted by FlyersFan
Follow Great Britain where? Into obscurity? Into becoming a whole different nation due to extremely lax immigration laws? Into having a much poorer health care system. We are already on that road. I'm not liking it either.

Into obscurity? We no longer have an empire, but we haven't gone into obscurity.

A whole different nation? Have you even been to Britain? If so please tell me your observations and the differences between how it was and how it is now since the extremely lax immigration laws.

Poorer health care system? Are you joking?