Iraq II: Will we be THAT stupid again?

Maybe some of you are down there.

 

You don't think our leaders would rush into a ...

Yeah, nevermind.

 

1. Ideally, there would be a world organization that oversaw these things.
2. The U.N. will never be that world organization.
3. The only way this world organization will exist is if our empire falls.
4. Our empire, one day, will fall. They all do.
5. That's not a bad thing.

 

That's the scariest post I've ever read on here. Wow.

 

Not arguing with (4) . . . it's the way of the world . . .though I'm glad I won't be around
to see it. Heartily disagree with (5), because from the revolution through the early
'70's, the US's beautiful, redoubtable principles have served so very well. Now, it's
in the hands of the electorate, and the leaders derived therefrom . . . and given
the viruses on the loose (most notably senators and reps for sale, and associated
special-interest legislation that puts the people last) . . . of course, there's cause for concern.

 

It's really not that scary. Look at history.

We will survive when America is no longer a superpower. The world will not end.

Hell, Spain vs. England was once the USSR vs. USA of its day. C'mon now.

 

No, I haven't been avoiding the question. Just got home, actually. (So take that, Doc, especially since you said you aren't participating in political threads anyomre. Fucking liar. Sorry for having more of a life than you have, since I can't be posting here 24/7. Hope you enjoyed beating off to Miss July 1984 again.)

I don't agree with your premise. It's idiotic, much like its perpertrator. Therefore, so as far as I'm concerned, the question is illegitimate. And your arguments carry absolutely no weight with me whatsoever.

If I said to you, "Well, it's pretty much proven you're a homosexual. What do you think about that?" My guess is that you'd react the same way I'm reacting to your bullshit. And that's exactly what it is -- bullshit. Of the highest order.

Listen to this, dog, and listen good: Stick your cock in your ear, and pull it until it comes out your ass. Considering the lack of development you apparently have, that shouldn't be too difficult.

That's exactly what I think about your leading questions, and your juvenile horsecrap, and your self-righteousness that is almost too much for a normal human being to bear. I can get along with people I don't like, but you are far beyond even that.

So, in a burst of originality that nonetheless is heartfelt but accurate, I beseech you: Go fuck yourself. Can I make this a little more emphatic? OK, try this:

GO FUCK YOURSELF.

Get it?

Flame away, which I know you would no matter what I said ...

 

You're right. I don't think any of us will be around to see (4). Then again, the way of the world cycles much quicker now than it used to. It wouldn't shock me if it happened in my lifetime ... but then, I'm a young'un.

As far as (5), indulge me for a second:

In a sporting analogy, you can compare the current state of the world to baseball in the early '90s. The USA is Bud Selig, acting commish of the game because no one else will do the job, but with his own personal stake (Brewers = USA's best interests) invested in what happens.

The longer the world stays in this untenable situation, with only one superpower trying to hold the world together amidst great tension and jealousy and uneven distribution of wealth and power ... the more we are inevitably headed toward the 1994 strike.

After the strike, we'll have a chance to rebuild the game, and an independent overseer (a la Bart Giamatti) -- a world organization that has the political, financial and military backing of ALL the teams, especially the powerful Yankees and Red Sox (unlike the U.N. of today) -- is better suited to run the game than bumbling Bud. [/idealistic lefty political rant over]

 

Do you believe this shit, palliser? Lotsa morons operating without a brain license, apparently.

 

You're right, Junkie. Imagine the Boss trying to run the world his way, though. The Red Sox would cease to exist.

***

We became an empire when we started involving ourselves in other countries' conflicts without provocation, when we started invading territories (not just Iraq, but also things like the Span-Am War) without provocation, when we started stationing our troops around the world, when we took charge as the world's authority in "nation-building" (a flawed concept) and forcefully spreading U.S.-style democracy (another flawed concept -- the forcefully spreading, not the U.S.-style democracy), when we took charge as the world's authority in atomic then nuclear armament, when our companies spread U.S. culture throughout the world to make it effectively the world's culture ...

I'm not arguing that these are bad things. I love living in these times, living in this country, and wouldn't change a thing about my life for the world.

I am arguing, however, that this makes us no different than any such so-called "empire" in the past: Greece or Egypt in ancient times, Rome through the first millenium, colonial England from the Middle Ages through the 19th century, and the USA from the end of WWI to the present.

We don't have the colonies. We do have the power. ... It is what it is.

But all those empires have fallen. Ours won't be any different. The world will go on. It always does.

 

Problem is, if/when we do go, North America will likely be the flunkies of the Chinese, our creditors. Screw that.

 

Sometimes a bit of the old school is just what you need. I've always been a big fan of the Penthouse Pet for August 1986.