Posted by
Tim Blessing on Monday, June 23, 2008 8:07:10 PM
EMPIRE OR REPUBLIC.
This is an article in the same issue of The Nation.
Is the United States a Empire or Republic?
We have tendencies of both.
We currently have tens of thousands of military personnel in Asia and Europe. Yet, if those countries asked us to leave most likely we would do it.
We currently have tens of thousands of military personnel in the Middle East. If those countries asked us to leave I do not think we would listen to them.
We have good economic relations with Europe and most of East Asia.
In Eisenhower's time, the defense budget consumed 13% of Gross National Product.
Today, the defense budget look's big at somewhere around $400 Billion, but in terms of percentage of Gross National Product it stands at
roughly 4%.
So, yes, it looks big, but in a roundabout way it is not as dramatic a problem as the Nation points out..
It might be said we are spending too much money in Iraq and not enough in Afghanistan.
An empire or a republic.
A Republic in some sense of the word that the voters reelected Bush in 2004 and rejected the Republican Congress in 2006.
An Empire in that Congress continues the funding the war through appropriations against the popular will.
An Empire of Liberty as Jefferson once called it.
A better concept may be an American Imperium.