# What Will "Post-Imperial" America Be Like? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 5, 2012, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513 "2012-01-05T15:25:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2012, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/1 "2012-01-05T15:25:21Z")
Picture a time, when all the US bases in Asia are closed, Ramstein AFB is a memory, and the US Army has shrunk to 100,000 men. The US Navy still has a few nuclear subs, but the carriers are gone.The Chinese now patrol the East , South China Seas, and Indian forces patrol the Persian Gulf. The US has finally achieved energy independence-we drive millions of electric cars-recharged by hundreds of thorium fueled nclear reactors. Will the USA have a better standard of living than today? Also, will there be more or fewer wars and conflicts? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2012, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/2 "2012-01-05T16:37:43Z")
Voting for Dr. Paul, are you? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2012, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/3 "2012-01-05T17:13:41Z")
If you want to see post imperial America, check out 1950s-1960s Great Britain. We spend a lot on our imperialism, but net, net it’s profitable. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2012, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/4 "2012-01-05T21:03:58Z")
You’ve already got a pretty low standard of living now, I would think that post power the U.S. would become mostly agrarian. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2012, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/5 "2012-01-05T23:28:45Z")
We’d all be broke, & probably hated more than we are now. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2012, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/6 "2012-01-06T01:25:39Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > We’d all be broke, & probably hated more than we are now. If we gave up our over-seas military bases and achieved energy independence? I don’t see why we’d be broke, I think we’d have a lot more money to spend. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2012, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/7 "2012-01-06T03:07:27Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > If we gave up our over-seas military bases and achieved energy independence? I don’t see why we’d be broke, I think we’d have a lot more money to spend. Of course the most of the leftist neo-isolationists are also opposed to exploiting domestic coal and oil and nuclear power. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2012, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/8 "2012-01-06T04:00:41Z")
> [@Lust4Life](#): > > You’ve already got a pretty low standard of living now, I would think that post power the U.S. would become mostly agrarian. This makes no sense. Why in the world would you think this? Does post-imperial Britain have a lower standard of living than Imperial Britain? Did Britain and France revert to agricultural backwaters after they gave up their empires? No, of course not. The French and British empires weren’t money-makers. Giving up the empire left Britain richer and stronger. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2012, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/9 "2012-01-06T04:06:32Z")
> [@Lust4Life](#): > > You’ve already got a pretty low standard of living now, I would think that post power the U.S. would become mostly agrarian. What universe are you from? ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2012, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/10 "2012-01-06T13:57:57Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > What universe are you from? The universe where I have travelled to the U.S. often, and moved around widely there, and have seen that generally you have a lower standard of living then most of Western Europe. Next question ? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2012, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/11 "2012-01-06T14:07:49Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > We’d all be broke, & probably hated more than we are now. I doubt that; we are generally hated because of what we’ve been doing. Stop doing it, and people will move on to other issues. And our quasi-empire is a money pig that gives us very little in return; I’d expect us to be better off financially. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2012, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/12 "2012-01-06T20:27:11Z")
> [@Lust4Life](#): > > The universe where I have travelled to the U.S. often, and moved around widely there, and have seen that generally you have a lower standard of living then most of Western Europe. Our country is far larger and contains more historically poor ethnic groups than any European countries. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2012, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/13 "2012-01-07T01:09:34Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > I doubt that; we are generally hated because of what we’ve been doing. Stop doing it, and people will move on to other issues. And our quasi-empire is a money pig that gives us very little in return; I’d expect us to be better off financially. Well, when we pulled out, there would be about 50 new wars, including at least 2 in Europe. How about that? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2012, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/14 "2012-01-07T01:29:15Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Well, when we pulled out, there would be about 50 new wars, including at least 2 in Europe. > > How about that? I simply don’t buy it; we have a habit of starting wars. Both directly, and by proxy. We are peacekeepers in our fantasies, but not in reality. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2012, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/15 "2012-01-07T03:01:36Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Our country is far larger and contains more historically poor ethnic groups than any European countries. So, that’s the reason America has a lower standard of living than Europe? ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2012, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/16 "2012-01-08T02:53:40Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Well, when we pulled out, there would be about 50 new wars, including at least 2 in Europe. > > How about that? Which wars are these? Who in Europe is going to attack who? Is Russia going to attack Germany any time soon? The only reason we have troops in Germany is because we were afraid the Soviet Union was going to attack Western Europe. Well, that’s not likely to happen any time soon is it? And if in a few decades Russia recovers and starts to threaten Europe again, how about we help them out if and when that happens? ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2012, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/17 "2012-01-08T02:57:29Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > So, that’s the reason America has a lower standard of living than Europe? Partially yes. > [@Lemur866](#): > > Which wars are these? Who in Europe is going to attack who? Is Russia going to attack Germany any time soon? The only reason we have troops in Germany is because we were afraid the Soviet Union was going to attack Western Europe. Well, that’s not likely to happen any time soon is it? And if in a few decades Russia recovers and starts to threaten Europe again, how about we help them out if and when that happens? It also serves as a base of operations for places like the Middle East. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2012, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/18 "2012-01-08T03:07:00Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Partially yes. That doesn’t speak very well for capitalism and the free market. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2012, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/19 "2012-01-08T03:07:26Z")
I think a post Imperial America wouldn’t be much different. Blue Bonnet and Country Crock shares might increase, or maybe more people would turn to actual butter and we’d have fewer deaths related to trans-fats induced cancers. The latter is cost prohibitive, though, considering butter costs 3x what margine does. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2012, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513/20 "2012-01-08T03:08:32Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > That doesn’t speak very well for capitalism and the free market. Another factor I was going to note is that the high-tax, Scandinavian Valhallan socialist paradieses are tiny countries, not world powers. Other countries such as Canada actually have lower corporate taxes than America. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-post-imperial-america-be-like/608513.md?page=2)