Decline and Fall: The End of Empire and the Future of Democracy in 21st Century America

306 Pages·2014·1.65 MB·English

by  John Michael Greer

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US/CAN $19.95 POLITICAL SCIENCE
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John Michael Greer writes with unsurpassed clarity about the E
predicaments of energy and economy mankind faces. And he does it

with a wonderfully kind, genial, and wise spirit. A
JAMES HOWARD KUNSTLER, author, The Long Emergency and the World Made by Hand novels N
D
Greer’s work is nothing short of brilliant.

RICHARD HEINBERG, Senior Fellow, Post-Carbon Institute, and author, The Party’s Over F
and The End of Growth
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THE FATE OF America’s global empire is the central feature of today’s L
geopolitical landscape. Our response to its imminent failure will determine the
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trajectory of our shared global future. Using a wealth of historical examples

combined with groundbreaking original analysis, Decline and Fall:
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• Sheds new light on the misunderstood idea of empire NHH
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• Maps the road back to democracy in the wake of imperial collapse. ENUR O
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By shifting the conversation from whether today’s American empire should U O E
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to the body of speculative post-industrial literature. This book is a must-read for ERO A
anyone who believes that the time has come to reinvent the American Dream. ICN
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Greer… offers us a view on our deindustrial future that is both Y

carefully reasoned and grounded in spirituality.
DMITRY ORLOV, author, Reinventing Collapse and The Five Stages of Collapse
J
O
The enormous virtue of John Michael Greer’s work is that his wisdom H
is never conventional, but profound and imaginative. N

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SHARON ASTYK, author, Depletion and Abundance and Independence Days
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JOHN MICHAEL GREER is a scholar of ecological history and an internationally A
renowned peak oil theorist, and the author of more than 30 books, including Green E
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Wizardry and The Long Descent.
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www.newsociety.com
Praise for John Michael Greer
John Michael Greer writes with unsurpassed clarity about the pre-
dicaments of energy and economy mankind faces. And he does it
with a wonderfully kind, genial, and wise spirit.
—James Howard Kunstler, author, The Long Emergency
and the World Made by Hand novels
The enormous virtue of John Michael Greer’s work is that his wis-
dom is never conventional, but profound and imaginative.
—Sharon Astyk, author, Depletion and Abundance and
Independence Days, www.SharonAstyk.com
When we find ourselves falling off the lofty peak of infinite prog-
ress, our civilization’s mythology predisposes our imaginations to
bypass reality altogether, and to roll straight for the equally pro-
found abyss of the Apocalypse. Greer breaks this spell, and instead
offers us a view on our deindustrial future that is both carefully
reasoned and grounded in spirituality.
—Dmitry Orlov, author, Reinventing Collapse and
The Five Stages of Collapse
Greer’s work is nothing short of brilliant.
—Richard Heinberg,Senior Fellow, Post-Carbon Institute,
and author, The Party’s Over and The End of Growth
Greer … offers us not only an excellent read, but tangible tools for
navigating the transition.
—Carolyn Baker, author, Speaking Truth to Power,
www.CarolynBaker.net
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This ebook sold by New Society Publishers. All Rights reserved. No part of this ebook may be copied or sold.
DECLINE AND FALL
This ebook sold by New Society Publishers. All Rights reserved. No part of this ebook may be copied or sold.
This ebook sold by New Society Publishers. All Rights reserved. No part of this ebook may be copied or sold.
DECLINE
FALL
AND
THE END OF EMPIRE
AND THE FUTURE
OF DEMOCRACY IN
21ST CENTURY AMERICA
JOHN MICHAEL GREER
This ebook sold by New Society Publishers. All Rights reserved. No part of this ebook may be copied or sold.
Copyright © 2014 by John Michael Greer. All rights reserved.
Cover design by Diane McIntosh.
Cover image © Fotolia (brueckenweb)
Printed in Canada. First printing March 2014.
New Society Publishers acknowledges the financial support of
the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund (CBF)
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Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Greer, John Michael, author
Decline and fall : the end of empire and the future of
democracy in 21st century America / John Michael Greer.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Issued in print and electronic formats.
isbn 978-0-86571-764-0 (pbk.).— isbn 978-1-55092-557-9 (ebook)
1. United States — Politics and government — 21st century —
Forecasting. 2. United States — Economic conditions — 21st century —
Forecasting. 3. United States — Social conditions — 21st century —
Forecasting. 4. United States — Civilization — 21st century — Forecasting.
5. Democracy — United States — Forecasting. I. Title.
E893.G74 2014 973.93 C2013-907381-7
C2013-907409-0
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Contents
Prologue: Understanding Empire. . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Part One: The Course Of Empire
1. Origins of American Empire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2. The Struggle Over Empire. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
3. America at Zenith. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Part Two: The Widening Gyre
4. The Failure of Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
5. The Economic Unraveling. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
6. The Specter of Defeat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
7. The Consequences of Collapse . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Part Three: A Republic, If You Can Keep It
8. The Future of Democracy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
9. Reinventing Society. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
10. Facing a Hard Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
Afterword: A Choice of Tomorrows . . . . . . . . . . 267
Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
Bibliography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295
vii
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PROLOGUE:
UNDERSTANDING EMPIRE
The decline and imminent fall of America’s global empire
is the most important geopolitical fact in today’s world. It is
also the least discussed. Politicians, generals, diplomats, and intel-
ligence analysts around the world are already wrestling with the
immense challenges posed by America’s accelerating downfall, and
trying to position themselves and their countries to prosper — or
at least to survive — in the impending chaos of a post-American
world. Outside the corridors of power, by contrast, few people
anywhere seem to be aware of the tsunami of change that is about
to break over their heads.
That needs to change. This book is an attempt to start a conver-
sation that needs to happen, especially, but not only, in America — a
conversation about the end of American empire and what will
come after it.
In order to make sense of the impact that the fall of America’s
empire is going to have on all our lives in the decades ahead, it is
crucial to understand what empires are, what makes them tick, and
what makes them collapse. To do that, however, it will be neces-
sary to bundle up an assortment of unhelpful assumptions and
misunderstandings of history and chuck them into the compost.
1
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