It's Over

Divorce of English Gay couple
stymied over who gets cheese grater
and communal paint pots.

“It ain’t over ‘til its over.” I take no pleasure in this, but I have to say I believe it’s over. It’s true the fat lady hasn’t sung yet, but she is rehearsing. There is still some withdrawing and cleaning up to do but the American Empire and the American Dream are about to disintegrate. There may be different ways to look at this but the indications are there and are becoming more and more obvious. It has been said for some time now that Colonialism is dead, but that is not, strictly speaking, true. The last two colonial powers, the United States and Israel, have been hanging on for some time, but that is changing right now before our eyes. Remember when there was a Belgian Congo, a French Equatorial Africa, a British India, a Dutch East Indies, a Kaiser Wilhelmsland, German East Africa, or a French Guinea, and so on? These colonial empires are all gone. While it is true there has not been a United States of the Congo, or a United States of Bolivia or Peru, or a United States of Brazil or Argentina, we have shamelessly exploited all countries around the globe in the basic colonial pattern for years, either through economic pressures or military threats or both. With some 04% of the earth’s population we have exploited at least 20% of the earth’s resources to enable us to live “The American Dream.” This is coming painfully to an end. I believe there is considerable evidence for this.

The American public, however ill-informed and ignored, are often ahead of their government when it comes to such things. Some 27% of Americans now report they do not believe their children will be able to live better than they do. I believe this is a significant admission that economically things are going downhill. Most economists now predict that unemployment is not going to come down for many years, certainly not in the foreseeable future. This is another indication. Some even believe that.0 9 or 10% unemployment may be with us from now on. Well-paying jobs have been, and continue to be, exported to other countries where labor is much cheaper, thus inevitably bringing down wages in the U.S. for companies that manage to survive. People who have been unemployed and later find jobs are forced to work for less than they did before. Labor unions have suffered significant losses and influence over the last couple of generations, leaving American workers more and more vulnerable to the demands of employers. Home ownership is declining at an accelerated rate, the idea that everyone in American should own their own home, is becoming a thing of the past, never mind “a chicken in every pot,” or two cars in every garage. Food has become increasingly expensive, a reduction in food stamps and permanent unemployment are becoming more commonplace. It is becoming obvious the government has no very workable solutions to these problems. Claiming that things are going to turn around next year or even the year after are probably meaningless. Structurally, there is no reason to believe this, China, India, Russia, Iran, Turkey, Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, and other countries are not going to allow us to recklessly exploit everyone else as we have done for so many years. “The American Century” is coming to an end.

We have lost the ability to govern ourselves. Congress is unable to do much of anything, bipartisanship is a thing of the past, when our elected officials were interested in the good of the country and its citizens rather than what their corporate masters dictated. We are becoming a third world nation where the most of the wealth is in the hands of a few and the majority are little more than wage slaves or peasants. This has no more to do with Obama than it has to do with any other administration, it is simply a matter of fact, the inevitable result of free market capitalism destroying itself. Things are not going to come back the way they were, not in the next quarter or the next year, or ever. As we are virtually bankrupt our empire will slowly wither away, our control over and exploitation of the rest of the world likewise. At best we will eventually continue living, but with much reduced circumstances, and probably with millions either on some sort of modest government assistance (like some European countries) or simply abandoned. The problem posed by having hundreds of thousands out of work and having exhausted their unemployment benefits is confronting us right now. Every day I see people who literally cannot afford the food in the supermarket. Our national debt is beginning to reach its upper limits. We cannot continue on as we have in the past. I do not believe this is just another bump in the road from which we will eventually recover as we previously have managed to do. Our standard of living is going to decline and no political party is going to save us from this inevitability. I have not even mentioned global warming and environmental degradation. To expect Obama or anyone else to rescue us is simply wishful thinking, although Obama might do better for a time than Republicans would. Be prepared for an increasingly declining share of the world’s limited resources and hope for the best.

LKBIQ:
Many people would sooner die than think; In fact, they do so.
Bertrand Russell

TILT:
Raccoons can both pant and sweat to regulate their body temperature.