Is the U.S. the Next Roman Empire?

Been hearing much discussions about the United States of the America(s) being the next Roman Empire because of it's failures to control it's borders, losing out to foreign competition, failing schools, racial divisions and lack of unity politically to solve complex problems. What strikes me the most was a discussion I heard this morning on a local talk show was that our own financial future may be in question like what is taking place in Greece due to the huge debt we owe to other countries like China, and Japan. I was watching a segment of a man and woman on the street questioning if they understood how serious this debt crisis could be for the nation. Only one person out of a random of nine people knew anything about or could care less. I wonder if the citizens of ancient Rome were also so clueless about the fate of their empire at the time? Perhaps ignorance is bliss as the old saying use to be giving to those who would rather not think about it. My question to you, is the United States going to survive as a nation by 2099?

 

Most of our federal debt is owned by American citizens, but talk show hosts who are trying to scare their audiences won't tell you that.

Why not use a more relevant example like the British empire???

Did the UK disappear from world history recently??
No they aren't the global power they were in the early part of the 20th century, but they're still one of the leading industrialized countries in the world.

Our military is still one of the strongest in the world. We're still the world's favorite market to sell goods.

Rome fell in no small part because their empire became too vast and they didn't have the resources to maintain it. They didn't have a big enough army to secure territory that stretched across all of Western and Central Europe, North Africa, including parts of Asia and Eastern Europe.

Every decade Americans it seems are sold the lie that China/Japan/Russia/India, etc., will surpass the United States economically or militarily in the near future.

Wake me up when it happens.artyman:

 

This

 

Yep.

As of January 2011, foreigners owned $4.45 trillion of U.S. debt, or approximately 47 percent of the debt held by the public of $9.49 trillion and 32 percent of the total debt of $14.1 trillion.

The largest holders were the central banks of China, Japan, the United Kingdom and Brazil.

The share held by foreign governments has grown over time, rising from 13 percent of the public debt in 1988 to 25 percent in 2007.

SOURCE: Treasury Department

From: http://member.aarp.org/politics-soc...w-much-us-debt-is-owned-by-foreign-countries/

And then this:

Owners of U.S. Debt
The largest owner of U.S. debt is Social Security. Since the Social Security system is a government entity, how can the government own its own debt? Good question. This is where the “house of cards” theory resides. Some believe the federal government is merely moving the IOUs from one shell to another, hoping to escape the watchful eye of its citizens. In any event, Social Security owns about 16% of the debt followed by other federal government entities (13%), and the Federal Reserve (12%). How much is owned by foreign governments? The following chart contains the answer.

According to the U.S. Treasury Department, at the end of August 2014, more than a third of the debt was owned by foreign countries (34.4%). The largest foreign holders of U.S. debt were Mainland China (7.2%) and Japan (7.0%). What is the consequence of having such a large percentage of debt held by foreign nations? It depends. It depends on the relationship between the U.S. and the specific foreign country. It also depends on the global interest rate environment. Finally, it depends on the geo-political climate and the degree of fear around the globe. This is the case because when fear rises money flows into U.S. Treasuries which is viewed as a safe place to invest. The percentage of debt owned by countries that are less friendly to America is about 10%. This includes China, several oil exporters (Ecuador, Venezuela, Iran, Iraq, Libya, etc.), and a few others. The worst case would materialize if the largest holders decided to sell their Treasury securities at the same time. This could potentially decrease demand which would push yields higher. If yields rose, the federal government would find it more difficult to service the debt, pushing the deficit higher. If the deficit rose, the total debt burden would accelerate and, unless demand for U.S. debt were to increase, it could get ugly. Will this transpire? It’s not too likely. At least not for the foreseeable future anyway.

From: http://www.forbes.com/sites/mikepatton/2014/10/28/who-owns-the-most-u-s-debt/

To answer BT's question, whilst I think we aren't going the way of the Roman Empire just yet, the way this country is so polarized right now, I wouldn't be surprised if we have another civil war.

I doubt it would happen, but it wouldn't surprise me if it did.

 

This.

 

Blacktiger and Andreaboba and Bookworm and Beasty and Morning Star have all done an excellent and thorough job covering and analyzing the comparison from the physical aspect…….
I will offer a last remaining point of view from a spiritual aspect:……..

The scripture states:
“the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land……..By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood………..Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish……”

In other words, at some point, we will decline and fall precipitously because we have become a country, for the most part ignorant of God, paganistic and spiraling downward in moral decadence……..In the physical world, were are analogous to the historical Roman Empire…….In the spiritual world we are analogous to the future mystery Babylon…….

 

Excellent points given by all who responded. You all have my respect. The time has come for us as citizens of these United States which is part of the AMERICAS to realize that we need a different approach collectively in dealing with an incredibly complex and dangerous world. The time is NOW to rid ourselves of being victims and expect others to think for us to control us, and be in the mindset of ever improving oneself, embrace life-long learning and be the best of the best. We must be the best again. Life is a bitch, it can be even more a bitch if you are stupid. A new movement in a "self revolution" of the individual is needed to compete with a world that cares not a damn for you is more important now than anytime in the history of this country. I see a revolution in cultural and social constructs from having taking in record numbers of immigrants that will change the country in many ways, technological revolutions that will change the nature of work and jobs that demand changes in education and skills, and global competition that will define us and our place in this world. If blacks in particular, and others in this country do not grasp these huge changes coming then they should just throw up their hands and admit to be failures that need to be at the mercy of others to be taken care of and be felt sorry for as being too weak to care for themselves. I be damned if I allow my sons to fall into that trap.