The Rise and Decline of the American "Empire" explores the rapidly growing literature on the rise and fall of the United States. The author argues that after 1945 the US has definitely been the most dominant power the world has seen and that it has successfully met the challenges from, first, the Soviet Union and, then, Japan, and the European Union. Now, however, the United States is in decline: its vast military power is being challenged by asymmetrical wars, its economic growth is slow and its debt is rising rapidly, the political system is proving unable to meet these challenges in a satisfactory way. While the US is still likely to remain the world's leading power for the foreseeable future, it is being challenged by China, particularly economically, and also by several other regional Great Powers. The book also addresses the more theoretical question of what recent superpowers have been able to achieve and what they have not achieved. How could the United States be both the dominant power and at the same time suffer significant defeats? And how could the Soviet Union suddenly collapse? No power has ever been omnipotent. It cannot control events all around the world. The Soviet Union suffered from imperial overstretch; the traditional colonial empires suffered from a growing lack of legitimacy at the international, national, and local levels. The United States has been able to maintain its alliance system, but only in a much reformed way. If a small power simply insists on pursuing its own very different policies, there is normally little the United States and other Great Powers will do. Military intervention is an option that can be used only rarely and most often with strikingly limited results.

Looks at the debates amongst critical theorists about the decline of US power.

"The Fall of the American Empire" not only asks thought-provoking questions about the state of the nation, but also proposes solutions to make the country prosper in the 21st century.

Like a phoenix rising from Roman ashes, America has had more than two hundred years to flourish on the world stage. In that time, it became a shining example of participatory democracy. Like Rome, however, America has become fat, lazy and an arrogant international bully - imposing its self-righteous views of right and wrong, good and evil on humankind. All is not right with this self-titled superpower. America finds itself rife with corporate and political corruption. It finds itself becoming increasingly despised and isolated from other nations. How soon before America joins the pantheon of civilizations that, like Rome, burned brightly into oblivion.

The situation in the US has changed. This is my final warning about what is coming in this country. So, I hope you can prepare yourself physically and spiritually for what things may come here in the US.

American grew from thirteen independent colonies to become one of history's great empires. However, history shows that all great empires decline and eventually collapse. This topical book will explore whether America is on that same downward path and if so, what consequences will there be. Based on the intractable political and economic climate in America today, can anything be done to avoid such an ominous future?