Is America going to collapse?

[Plurralbles]

figure out how to profit form its collapse. It's the only thing any of us can do. It's possible. People bet on markets failing all the time and make billions. They're sneaky dirty scumbag, but they're rich dirty scumbags.

 

[LittleChone]

Not sure, but if the USA is going to fall into a chaotic wasteland of waring city-states hellbent on killing one another for resources and religious practice, I'll be ready.

And I owe it ALL to video games!

 

[The Long Road]

The United States is today's equivalent of the Roman Empire. The real power in the world rests in Washington, D.C. Nobody can compete, economically, agriculturally, or militarily. The rest of the world, even pseudo-nations like the EU, simply don't have the resources or coordination to out-do the US. Nobody outside the country likes to admit it, but the world marches the the beat of American drums.

However, just like the Roman Empire, if the US 'collapses', it will lead to another Dark Age. The power vacuum left by the absence of the American President will lead to massive wars to control the planet's resources, probably culminating in a nuclear exchange. Some up-and-coming military power (China, India, N. Korea) will see a chance to flex their muscles, and what started as a war of greed turns into an all-out planetary battle of attrition. Regional warlords will come out of the woodworks without the fear of US reprisal to keep them bottled up.

It's in the world's best interest to keep the United States alive, even if it looks like it might fail. The global economy has a buyer for its goods, symmetrical warfare hasn't broken out since the Korean War (by which I mean the UN peacekeeping operation in the early 50's), and the scientific community is second to none. Everybody with civilized aims can benefit from the existence of the US, and the US business strategy capitalizes on that. If anything, the US will emerge as the power center for a more united world, eventually leading to one united planet. With technology at the level it is now, and increasing at the pace it is, the age of nations 'falling' catastrophically might be gone.

I'm sorry but I can't take you seriously. No offence to you and your views. I'm just kind of drunk atm and that sounds hilarious to me.

quick note - If the USA runs the world economically, why does nearly everything say "made in china" as opposed to "made in the USA"
I also find it kind of silly that the "US business strategy" is one to be idolised. But still just wanna point out this is just the opinion of one drunk UK resident. ANd nothing to take to heed or get too pissed over.

Seriously, dude? You're drunk, and this is how you spend your time?

YOU HAVE NOT YET CONSUMED ENOUGH ALCOHOL. GO OUT AND MAKE BAD CHOICES. THIS IS WHY WE MADE BOOZE.

The early civilizations of the world accept your heartfelt thanks for distilling the first alcoholic beverages.

quick rebuttal - If the US wasn't buying, the Chinese industrial sector would die

 

[dan-bri]

The United States is today's equivalent of the Roman Empire. The real power in the world rests in Washington, D.C. Nobody can compete, economically, agriculturally, or militarily. The rest of the world, even pseudo-nations like the EU, simply don't have the resources or coordination to out-do the US. Nobody outside the country likes to admit it, but the world marches the the beat of American drums.

However, just like the Roman Empire, if the US 'collapses', it will lead to another Dark Age. The power vacuum left by the absence of the American President will lead to massive wars to control the planet's resources, probably culminating in a nuclear exchange. Some up-and-coming military power (China, India, N. Korea) will see a chance to flex their muscles, and what started as a war of greed turns into an all-out planetary battle of attrition. Regional warlords will come out of the woodworks without the fear of US reprisal to keep them bottled up.

It's in the world's best interest to keep the United States alive, even if it looks like it might fail. The global economy has a buyer for its goods, symmetrical warfare hasn't broken out since the Korean War (by which I mean the UN peacekeeping operation in the early 50's), and the scientific community is second to none. Everybody with civilized aims can benefit from the existence of the US, and the US business strategy capitalizes on that. If anything, the US will emerge as the power center for a more united world, eventually leading to one united planet. With technology at the level it is now, and increasing at the pace it is, the age of nations 'falling' catastrophically might be gone.

I'm sorry but I can't take you seriously. No offence to you and your views. I'm just kind of drunk atm and that sounds hilarious to me.

quick note - If the USA runs the world economically, why does nearly everything say "made in china" as opposed to "made in the USA"
I also find it kind of silly that the "US business strategy" is one to be idolised. But still just wanna point out this is just the opinion of one drunk UK resident. ANd nothing to take to heed or get too pissed over.

Seriously, dude? You're drunk, and this is how you spend your time?

YOU HAVE NOT YET CONSUMED ENOUGH ALCOHOL. GO OUT AND MAKE BAD CHOICES. THIS IS WHY WE MADE BOOZE.

The early civilizations of the world accept your heartfelt thanks for distilling the first alcoholic beverages.

quick rebuttal - If the US wasn't buying, the Chinese industrial sector would die

Nah mate, I've been out to 2 or 3 bars tonight, stopped off for a burger and been sitting in my room unable to sleep. I blame the Jager-bombs, the booze wears off but the energy drink keeps me awake. I honestly have no serious issues with your views, it's just theres nothing new on my regular sites. Except for here.

Oh and I made plenty bad choices this week. For example I'm now meant to be fighting a mate of mine for the lol's in his living room on wednesday....my friends are already placing bets.

Quick rebuttal also: If the US didn't buy then it would die first. I remember reading sommit somewhere about the US only having a 3 day food supply, imports not counting

 

[JWAN]

Gas is going higher because we can no longer drill (even in shallow water and extract oil out of shale).

Inflation is on the rise but everyone knew that after the dems decided to print money to test the max printing capabilities of our system, and since the banks were shitty they still haven't been able to disburse the money meaning that its going to get worse before it gets better. I cite that 6 months before the stimulus package we had a .78 to 1 exchange rate with the Euro and now were down to .72 to 1, not a large change but big enough that it shows we aren't out of the woods yet. Everyone who said the recession is over was getting paid to say that.

Should you pick up Chinese, yea, not a bad plan, learn every language you can, become flexible, remain flexible.

 

[Supp]

The United States is today's equivalent of the Roman Empire. The real power in the world rests in Washington, D.C. Nobody can compete, economically, agriculturally, or militarily. The rest of the world, even pseudo-nations like the EU, simply don't have the resources or coordination to out-do the US. Nobody outside the country likes to admit it, but the world marches the the beat of American drums.

However, just like the Roman Empire, if the US 'collapses', it will lead to another Dark Age. The power vacuum left by the absence of the American President will lead to massive wars to control the planet's resources, probably culminating in a nuclear exchange. Some up-and-coming military power (China, India, N. Korea) will see a chance to flex their muscles, and what started as a war of greed turns into an all-out planetary battle of attrition. Regional warlords will come out of the woodworks without the fear of US reprisal to keep them bottled up.

It's in the world's best interest to keep the United States alive, even if it looks like it might fail. The global economy has a buyer for its goods, symmetrical warfare hasn't broken out since the Korean War (by which I mean the UN peacekeeping operation in the early 50's), and the scientific community is second to none. Everybody with civilized aims can benefit from the existence of the US, and the US business strategy capitalizes on that. If anything, the US will emerge as the power center for a more united world, eventually leading to one united planet. With technology at the level it is now, and increasing at the pace it is, the age of nations 'falling' catastrophically might be gone.

I'm sorry but I can't take you seriously. No offence to you and your views. I'm just kind of drunk atm and that sounds hilarious to me.

quick note - If the USA runs the world economically, why does nearly everything say "made in china" as opposed to "made in the USA"
I also find it kind of silly that the "US business strategy" is one to be idolised. But still just wanna point out this is just the opinion of one drunk UK resident. ANd nothing to take to heed or get too pissed over.

Everything is made in China...by US companies. The fact is that the United States economy is currently three times the size of the second largest economy (China) a country with four times the population. The fact is, China has the GDP per capita of a third world country. They are no where near as powerful as the United States on a global scale right now. Granted in 50-100 years that'll probably change but hey, that's 50-100 years. And we'll still probably be number 2 or 3.

 

[Korolev]

America's not going to collapse. It's still a very rich nation. America has problems yes, sure, but ALL nations have problems. India and China, despite doing quite well, have problems too (namely, India has DIRE water shortages and religious problems, and China's One-Child Policy, which is going to be reversed soon, has created a shortage of young people).

Make no mistake, India and China are rising. Will they eclipse the USA? Who knows! No one can tell the future. But the US will still continue on, at least for the conceivable future.

The Americans always go through with this angst. First it was fear of the Russians, then fear of the West Germans, then fear of the Japanese, now it's fear of China and India. This is what happens when you become a super-power - you're consumed with fear over losing your position in the world.

The US is a strong country with some of the best technology in the world. Will the US have to, one day, live in a world where it ISN'T the only powerful nation? Yes. But does that spell doom and gloom for the US? No!

If the US survived the Great Depression, it can survive this. Yes, in the future, the US might become one powerful nation amongst many, but it will still have clout. It will just have to learn to live alongside others and realize that it might not always get its way. But that's nothing to fear.

As for gas prices - they've been higher. Plus, there is more than one way of generating energy. If Gas/Oil prices climb too high, you're going to have to build Nuclear Power Plants. Or Solar Power Plants. Or more hydroelectric dams.

The US deficit IS very large - but it can be overcome. Tough times are going to come about in the US, but again, that doesn't spell destruction.

If the US invests in Technology and Science, they will survive. And the US does invest in tech and science, quite heavily as well.

The real big problem with the US, one that is manageable, is your horrendously bad public education system. Make no mistake - US Universities are, for the most part, pretty damn awesome. You guys have Harvard, John Hopkins, Yale and a whole bunch of others, and they are all excellent universities. The problem is that your public education sector, your high schools and primary schools and elementary schools..... suck. They're awful. And your kids don't have any appreciation for knowledge, science or mathematics. Now, there are enough naturally talented kids in your nation to counter this - you've got kids so bright that they'll succeed no matter HOW screwed up your education system is. But the awful education system you guys have is creating a generation of ignorant adults, and those ignorant adults VOTE. Which can cause a hell of a lot of problems.

Take for instance - the Nuclear Power Issue. Current generation Nuclear Power plants are safe. Very safe. Japan and France have been using them for decades, and no accidents have occurred. Current nuclear power plants can reuse spent-fuel rods, over and over again, generating virtually NO waste at all. Compared to the environmental/human cost of Coal and Oil and Gas burning power plants, Nuclear Power Plants have killed less and created less of an environmental impact. If you truly wanted to lower the cost of living, improve the environment, and reduce the threat of Climate Change, then the US should be building Nuclear Power Plants like CRAZY. But you don't - because your population knows nothing of physics, and they all think that Nuclear Power involves Toxic Green Goo (thanks, Simpsons). Or what about Stem cell Technology? You lost years of research because ignorant Americans assumed that Embryo = Baby, despite the fact that an Embryo is microscopically small and HAS NO BRAIN. They didn't care to educate themselves on the science.

If anything brings down the US, it won't be gas prices or the economy, both of which are fixable. It will be the complete and utter disdain most Americans have for science and mathematics - the idea that "we done haf to listin' to them Ee-LEETs in their Iv-o-rey Towers! What, theys thinks theys better thans me just cause theys git themselves an Ed-u-ca-shun? Ta hell wit them! I learned everything ah done need to know on mah papa's knee! What do them scientists know? Nuthin!"

 

[bz316]

Times are hard. They've often been hard for many people. In the US, we're often not used to things being so hard, even during times of recession. It is conceivable that the US will no longer be able to claim a position as leading economic or military power. However, that does not mean the US will collapse. It is not an all or nothing situation, the US does not need to be either the most powerful in the world or collapse and splinter. Many of the powers in Europe were once the strongest in the world, but quickly decreased in military and economic clout following the mid-20th century. They did not, however, collapse into broken heaps and remain in that state for the rest of time.

 

[dan-bri]

The United States is today's equivalent of the Roman Empire. The real power in the world rests in Washington, D.C. Nobody can compete, economically, agriculturally, or militarily. The rest of the world, even pseudo-nations like the EU, simply don't have the resources or coordination to out-do the US. Nobody outside the country likes to admit it, but the world marches the the beat of American drums.

However, just like the Roman Empire, if the US 'collapses', it will lead to another Dark Age. The power vacuum left by the absence of the American President will lead to massive wars to control the planet's resources, probably culminating in a nuclear exchange. Some up-and-coming military power (China, India, N. Korea) will see a chance to flex their muscles, and what started as a war of greed turns into an all-out planetary battle of attrition. Regional warlords will come out of the woodworks without the fear of US reprisal to keep them bottled up.

It's in the world's best interest to keep the United States alive, even if it looks like it might fail. The global economy has a buyer for its goods, symmetrical warfare hasn't broken out since the Korean War (by which I mean the UN peacekeeping operation in the early 50's), and the scientific community is second to none. Everybody with civilized aims can benefit from the existence of the US, and the US business strategy capitalizes on that. If anything, the US will emerge as the power center for a more united world, eventually leading to one united planet. With technology at the level it is now, and increasing at the pace it is, the age of nations 'falling' catastrophically might be gone.

I'm sorry but I can't take you seriously. No offence to you and your views. I'm just kind of drunk atm and that sounds hilarious to me.

quick note - If the USA runs the world economically, why does nearly everything say "made in china" as opposed to "made in the USA"
I also find it kind of silly that the "US business strategy" is one to be idolised. But still just wanna point out this is just the opinion of one drunk UK resident. ANd nothing to take to heed or get too pissed over.

Everything is made in China...by US companies. The fact is that the United States economy is currently three times the size of the second largest economy (China) a country with four times the population. The fact is, China has the GDP per capita of a third world country. They are no where near as powerful as the United States on a global scale right now. Granted in 50-100 years that'll probably change but hey, that's 50-100 years. And we'll still probably be number 2 or 3.

Fair enough, you've got more facts and figures than me. I'm gonna shut up and sleep now so I don't get hungover.

 

[Plazmatic]

Because I'm getting worried. I can't find a job anywhere, I'm trying my best. Gas prices are going so insanely high my parents are having a hard time getting to work in the morning, and I know there are family way worse off than mine. I heard prices are going to be $5.00 later this year.

How much longer can this last? I want to finish college and get a career but I fear there won't even be a job market when I get out. I have this overwhelming sense of doom crushing down on me. (Mind you I do live with a dad that is the biggest prophet of doom you've ever seen.)
I know history is full of depressions, but the world is a much different place, population growth no longer bolsters an economy like it did back in the day.
What do you think? Are we going to survive or should I start speaking Indian/Chinese?

ZEITGEIST MOTHER FUCKER, THE TIME IS NOW TO RISE, RESOURCE ECONOMY FTW!!!

 

[Siuki]

Your avatar is strangely fitting for this topic.

I know. What would you do if your workplace got blown up twice by some insurgents? It used to be the ultimate power in the galaxy, but now its nothing.

OT: The gas prices are just crazy, but people are bound to complain and we should find a solution. As for the languages, we're outsourcing, not insourcing. You should be fine.

 

[DudeistBelieve]

Because I'm getting worried. I can't find a job anywhere, I'm trying my best. Gas prices are going so insanely high my parents are having a hard time getting to work in the morning, and I know there are family way worse off than mine. I heard prices are going to be $5.00 later this year.

How much longer can this last? I want to finish college and get a career but I fear there won't even be a job market when I get out. I have this overwhelming sense of doom crushing down on me. (Mind you I do live with a dad that is the biggest prophet of doom you've ever seen.)
I know history is full of depressions, but the world is a much different place, population growth no longer bolsters an economy like it did back in the day.
What do you think? Are we going to survive or should I start speaking Indian/Chinese?

Chinese wouldn't hurt...

I kid. Dude, relax. As bad as things are right now, people still can afford to buy XBoxes and rush out to get a new Iphone. So long as you see Americans with plenty of pointless crap, I wouldn't worry. We're in a bad spot right now, but thats because the world is changing.

And change is neither bad nor good my friend. It's just change.

 

[WorldCritic]

Meh, I doubt it'll be soon. Eventually yes because as some have said before, no country lasts forever. I'm not really all that concerned about it though.

 

[Drago-Morph]

Collapse in the near future? I doubt it. Not be the #1 superpower? Likely. Perhaps the world will shift into a balance of multiple superpowers. What does it matter? Even assuming the worst, Europe decimated itself in two world wars, yet it is an important and influential force in the world today.

I think that's exactly what many Americans are afraid of; not being "top dog". Personally, I don't mind some healthy competition from the EU and China, as long as we're still a superpower and have influence. Call me a little too patriotic, but I quite like America's global status right now.

 

[Buccura]

It will take a beating economically no doubt but collapse I personally doubt. It will take a lot for a country to truly collapse, more than just economic strife.

Just remember, time is the beat healer. The healing will be slow in this case, no doubt, but time will heal. Best we can do is be smart and endure.

 

[thevillageidiot13]

Honestly, as somebody born and raised in America, I will say that it's always been a horrible, fucked-up place to live.

If I didn't have such an attachment to my hometown and the friends I grew up with there (it being the place I was born and raised), I wouldn't hesitate to move to England or something.

By the way, I'm sorry if I make it sound like I still live at home. I live about 400 miles away from home, because I go to college. However, I intend to move back to my hometown and get my own house when I finish college.

 

[Smooth Operator]

Well the people are pretty fat, and the numbers are going up at a staggering pace...

But even with that I doubt they will be able to collapse America.

 

[Corkydog]

Yes.. all empire eventually collapse... but probably not due to the current financial crisis, but because China bailed america out to the tune of 1.4 Trillion dollars it might be worth your while to learn Mandarin one day everyone in america may be required to speak it by the most high worthy double happiness empire overloads.. ie:the Chinese government .. lol... does anyone else find it funny that for 40 years america fought Communism on every front just to loan trillions of dollars from the communists to keep the county afloat

This all being speculation obviously, but I rather think the US would go down fighting. It became obvious to me a while ago that only two things here can happen: America goes to war with China, wins, and all is forgiven, or America goes to war with China, loses, and America as a whole ceases to exist. But I'm pretty sure both sides have big ass missiles, so we could end up taking each other out.

The point being that it would be impossible to call in that debt. It can't be paid off.

 

[BonsaiK]

Because I'm getting worried. I can't find a job anywhere, I'm trying my best. Gas prices are going so insanely high my parents are having a hard time getting to work in the morning, and I know there are family way worse off than mine. I heard prices are going to be $5.00 later this year.

How much longer can this last? I want to finish college and get a career but I fear there won't even be a job market when I get out. I have this overwhelming sense of doom crushing down on me. (Mind you I do live with a dad that is the biggest prophet of doom you've ever seen.)
I know history is full of depressions, but the world is a much different place, population growth no longer bolsters an economy like it did back in the day.
What do you think? Are we going to survive or should I start speaking Indian/Chinese?

America has been in slow decline for a while now, but don't worry, that's the natural order of things and it is as it should be, and it doesn't mean that there are no opportunites. Conversely, economies move in cycles and a decline represents a golden opportunity to move forward. Did you know that the Great Depression of the 1930s created more millionaires in America than any other period in human history? That's because smart people saw a lot of other people out of work, had some ideas, and utilised the dormant workforce in new endeavours. Don't be too concerned with the big picture, you can't control that. Just worry about being the best educated, most employable person you can be. If you've got some semblance of a work ethic that alone will carry you through all sorts of crises.