Is America immune to history repeating itself?

[cloudsailor]

Throughout history it seems that people are following ridiculous orders, such as people getting there heads chopped off at the kings order, the Salem witch trails, the holocaust. After all the dust has settled people always look back and say, how could those people believe what they believed back then and do what they did. My question is when will this end? I don’t think America is immune to history repeating itself. Back when slavery was around so many people thought that is the true way, and they laughed at the people who tried to invent electricity. 200 years from now what will people think of what is going on in America today? Is there anything were overlooking? I guess there’s no way of knowing none of us born here have an outside perspective. But I would like to hear what other people’s opinions of this question are.

I guess my opinion is that America is just too good to be true, and it won’t last forever. When it ends though I hope it’s not in my time!

[Didymos Thomas]

People will always think of other societies as strange.

Historically, America has been indulging in imperialistic campaigns for some two hundred years. Hopefully future generations will look back and wonder why it took so long for us to overcome our apathy to violence.

[richrf]

Originally Posted by cloudsailor

I don’t think America is immune to history repeating itself.

I agree. American has had it share. The annihilation of the Indian population might be one example. Some claim that the dropping of the Atomic Bomb, was unnecessary. If you look at the number of people killed/capita in the U.S. vs. other countries, it is quite astounding how much we kill each other.

So, each culture has its own peculiarities. The demographic mix (diversity) within our culture is pretty unusual compared to maybe other countries, and this certainly adds to the dynamics. For example, a large percentage of the Caucasian population wanted to deport 10 million Hispanics. So in the last election the Hispanic population voted in large numbers to express their view of things.

So, it comes and it goes, as we evolve. Who knows what lies ahead?

Rich

[Aedes]

History doesn't ever repeat itself. Each barbaric mistake we make is unique. It is the constancy of humanity that prevents us from avoiding new mistakes, because one thing we're bad at is seeing how fast we're speeding towards a cliff.

[Dearhtead]

Originally Posted by cloudsailor

I don’t think America is immune to history repeating itself.

I don't think so. The history is linear, whatever the country, with a beginning and an end.

[RDRDRD1]

Read Kevin Phillips' excellent book, "American Theocracy." In it, this former Republican insider, analyzes how precisely the United States is following the course of earlier economic superpowers including the Netherlands, Spain and Britain. Agrarian society rapidly evolves into industrial and military dominance, reverts to religious fixations while it abandons its manufacturing base in favour of using its fiscal strength to grow its rival's economy (outsourcing) until, at last, its self-made fragility of a financialized economy ("FIRE" - finance, insurance, real estate) paves the way for the ascendancy of another dominant (manufacturing) economy. In your nation's case, that would be China.

[Didymos Thomas]

Except that China cannot keep up the necessary GDP growth to subdue internal unrest.

When the US spends over a trillion dollars each year on defense, it is easy to over-estimate the financial doom. Imagine cutting defense spending in half, still out pacing everyone else in the world's defense spending by at least ten, and having over half a trillion dollars to reinvest in our own economy.

If we keep following the Nixon-Reagan-Bush-Clinton-Bush and quite possible Obama policy toward the military industrial complex, then, yes, we are probably doomed (though Russia is more likely to be the ascendant power). However, if we can manage to elect officials who will heed the advice of Presidents from Washington to Eisenhower, the US will be able to easily avoid this often predicted disaster.

[urangutan]

Didymos Thomas, that is the point. You don't keep following, you keep electing. Convince your nation that the way it develops and embraces itself is incorrect and there may be an awareness to what the next step should be. Cutting defence, just means you don't believe spending in the area will develop dividends. It cannot possibly be expected that cutting that will weaken the forces against the advesary.

I by no means claim any other nation including my own is any smarter but there is a blind faith in your perception of governance and you drink it like blood from a sacrificial lamb. Let the imagery, depict your understanding, because I should not put it into human terms.

[Didymos Thomas]

No, my argument for cutting defense is purely pragmatic. We cannot afford to spend close to one and a half trillion dollars on guns every year. It's insanity.

Cutting the defense budget opens up those funds to be spent elsewhere. Infrastructure and education would be two great ways to spend the money. Healthcare, too.

I'm not sure what sort of blind faith you detect in my view of my nation.

[urangutan]

I think it came across different to how I was intending. Though the points were not blunt, simply put, I would say, America is no different to the fields that were catergorized in the opening threads as being condemned to follow suit. The defense buget will not be cut, as long as the fanatacism to which you (you being the US of A) endow upon the politics and political processes, drags that cultish following along with it. I could well imagine the great things that could be done with the finances, if spent wisely.

I was never directing my comments at you personally, rather at the US of A in the general sense. From the outside looking in, your political madness is goulish. Once again I refrain from putting that human inferance on my comment. I hope you can see what I mean.