Greatest Empire Ever

[Bilton101]

I think by definition there can only be one hyperpower at a time. If there's more than one, they go back to being superpowers. But that's semantics.

You really think the EU will be a superpower? I find that extraordinarily doubtful. Until the EU can field an army (which it won't be able to for a loooong time) it doesn't really represent a force to be dealt with. Keep in mind that the reason economic size is so important in terms of international power is exclusively because of its ability to be translated into military power. This is because any state's first goal is survival. If it feels it is at risk of destruction, it will resort to violence to survive. Fortunately we are arriving in a day and age when other means are often tried first, but in the end, states that see their futures in the balance will fight combative war.

As for the argument of "investment vs. domination" aren't they the same in many respects? After all, China has invested in US debt and it's your argument that because of this, China effectively rules the US economy. America rose to be the greatest empire in this very same way. We only militarily dominated at first, then we won hearts and minds and wallets (and cast down the USSR, so econo-military might certainly played its part.)

 

[darkbeaver]

It defaulted on it's debt once already in the seventys when it went off the gold standard. The Vietnam War was very expensive.

 

[Bilton101]

...That's just not true. The last time the USA defaulted on its debt was in 1935 when the Supreme Court upheld the default on T-bonds.

When the USA went off the gold standard it just allowed its currency to float. It had literally nothing to do with a default on debt.

 

[Lester]

The EU as an entity is in it's infancy but it already consists of 27 first world Nations with each having it's own military, so really in fact ther EU has the military might, It is comprised of 500 million people with wads of EUROs 16.7 trillion I think was the GDP of the EU, so it has the cash- you have to look at it in relation to the US model -does the state of NY have more money than the State of England, Does Ohio have More than Germany. Every year they take on a new member absorb it, stabilize it and start the process again- there is a line up of Nations waiting to get in.

 

[Bilton101]

This is true, but the EU model of multiple militaries is fundamentally inefficient and could not possibly produce a military powerful enough to go up against the US military or even the Chinese military after say a decade. The EU is still too nationally fractured to form a united army: Poles will not fight alongside Germans, will not fight alongside Frenchmen, will not fight alongside Spaniards. Also, the EU spends a tiny percentage of its GDP on the military. In 2003, the EU spent 1.7 percent of its GDP on military costs. It was 169 billion euro. Meanwhile, the US spent about 500 billion dollars.

It is clear that the EU is far away from the necessary level of unity for effective military operation to form. The EU Constitution was resoundingly voted down showing popular nationalism. There have been grumbles in Germany, France, and Italy against ECB. Britain, Europe's second largest economy, refuses to accept the Euro and has always been very nationalistically independent minded about Europe

PS- California, at $1.7t has a larger economy than Germany, Britain, France, and Italy.

 

[Lester]

that's why i didn't mention them lol - I'm not saying today mind you but down the road the way they are going, to me it looks like they will be a force to be reckoned with- Empires do not last foreever sometime they sow the seeds of their owm demise as Rome did in it's last days-

 

[Bilton101]

Haha, fair enough. And it looks like the USA is working on figuring out how to not sow the seeds of its destruction... we'll see how it turns out. :-/

 

[McCaulley]

okay i just wanna say that i personally believe that the British empire was the greatest Empire ever. First off the British military though small was one of the bravest and most devoted armies in the history of the world, also they had the bravery and brute strenght of the Scottish highlanders going for them. I just want to know whay you guys are calling each other empires and acting as if it were an insult, to become an Empire requires the ability to maintain what you have while at the same time conquering more.

Oh and another thing, i am a mixture of English, Scottish, Irish, Welsh, and German and i am very proud of every aspect of my heritage though i have to say it makes me the proudest to be English because of all they have accomplished, though i am also proud of the way the Irish stood up to the English in the 1920's and also of William Wallace, and i am proud of the fact the the Germans were brave enough to take on the entire worl twice in the early 1900s, although i don't agree with some of their practices

 

[Colpy]

the Germans were brave enough to take on the entire worl twice in the early 1900s,

There is bravery.....

then there is stupidity......

Being drawn into the First World War and starting the Second are fine examples of the latter.........

 

[McCaulley]

Okay ill give you that it was stupid

but still there is an concept of bravery there too that we can take pride in, they did fight many of the most advanced nations in the world for six years during world war II before collapsing and also, in World War one they fought the French, British, Americans, and Russian with little help from their Austrian and Ottoman allies

 

[zoofer]

I guess the Brits top the American "Empire" cuz the Americans do not have one. For all the lands they conquered they always gave them back after civilizing them.

The British get it over the Roman Empire too because the Romans didn't have the British Commonwealth's men who screwed some good DNA into the British women.

 

[MikeyDB]

When Ghandi was asked what he thought of western civilization, he said he believed it would be a good idea.....

 

[McCaulley]

The Mongolian empire had the most land mass under its control at any one time but the British citizens were treated better and i believe this makes the British empire the greatest ever

 

[YoungJoonKim]

British.
Wealthiest, most fluent, and controlled landmasses of FOUR* corners of the world.
if THAT'S not the greatest, I don't know what is.

 

[petro23]

Wow

You know what I find pretty hilarious? Foreign countries, especially Brits, love to say how much they hate America. We are all so fat, stupid, rude and basically that we use the term "free" very loosely because we have common wealths and what is comparable to an empire. Well you know what, this Empire has saved not only the Brits asses, but the French's, the Russians and countless other countries. Who came into the war and started the war path that essentially ends WWII? The U.S., sure you Brits contributed but not very much. You know what, who supplied you with all the war materials under the Lend-Lease act? Who never made you fully compensate for the full cost of these war materials? Oh, thats right, that was THE UNITED STATES! In most every war we have been involved in, and been allied with the Brits, we were the ones who had to step up to the ****ing plate and save your asses from total destruction! So you can say whatever you would like to about The United States, but when you go down to the roots, sure you guys colonized us but have you ever heard of the pupil exceeding the master? Well, we took that to the next level; not only have we exceeded you guys technologically, architecturally, economically, educationally and in military power, we have saved your asses on several occasions. Also, take a bite off this, THE USA IS THE ONLY SUPER POWER LEFT! Sure people argue China and India are on the path to be superpowers, too bad they can't get their **** together. Sure they have prosperous cities, everyone does but when your country is so overpopulated and so poor, I'm sorry but you will never be a superpower.There is one other thing that I find funny, if you asked anybody that claims to "hate" America to move here, what do you think their response would be? They would pack their **** up, leave their poor European country and **** on the cultural toilet thatS essentially their country right before they boarded their plane to what to them is paradise! Jealousy can cause hatred, WELL YOU ALL CAN BE AS JEALOUS AS YOU WANT! WELCOME TO AMERICA BITCH!!!

 

[Lester]

China did in twenty years what the states took 100 years to do.. they have their sh*t together- look at their disaster response they make fema look sick.

 

[petro23]

China did in twenty years what the states took 100 years to do.. they have their sh*t together- look at their disaster response they make fema look sick.

Okay so if China's sh*t is together than how come there are still 5 million + people who are either homeless or living in tents after the recent earthquake? Oh, wait, is it because it is so densely overpoppulated that the government can't meet the needs of the people? Or is just because their disaster response is so good that there are still people buried alive.I can't decide which factor makes their country have their sh*t together.

 

[karrie]

Okay so if China's sh*t is together than how come there are still 5 million + people who are either homeless or living in tents after the recent earthquake? Oh, wait, is it because it is so densely overpoppulated that the government can't meet the needs of the people? Or is just because their disaster response is so good that there are still people buried alive.I can't decide which factor makes their country have their sh*t together.

Are you seriously judging whether or not a country has it's poop in a group solely on its disaster relief capabilities? Because, um, hate to point it out to you but the US fell flat on its face in that arena too. Let's see where they're at in a month compared to where the US was one month after Katrina, compare sheer numbers, and see who comes out on top shall we?

 

[petro23]

Are you seriously judging whether or not a country has it's poop in a group solely on its disaster relief capabilities? Because, um, hate to point it out to you but the US fell flat on its face in that arena too. Let's see where they're at in a month compared to where the US was one month after Katrina, compare sheer numbers, and see who comes out on top shall we?

No I am not basing if they have their sh*t together based upon their disaster relief program, because you are right, the U.S. did fall flat on its face after Katrina, but the statement was made to build upon the overlying theme, that a nation that has such a dense population, so dense that due to lack of materials most people live in absolute poverty dwelling in the streets, so overpopulated that families are actually penialized for having multiple children and girls, this is just a recipe for disaster, just look at their population growth, it has doubled since 1950. This whole argument about their disaster relief stems back to the earlier discussion as China becoming a superpower. Although this could happen, there is little chance it will because they have a lack of energy, a lack of jobs, a lack of water, a lack of food, a lack of shelters, and a population whose majority is dirt poor. Sorry I just don't see it happening in the next century.

 

[Lester]

If they didn't have that one child per family policy I wonder what their population would be.Theyv'e got scads of money I think the states owes them 1.3 trillion dollars or thereabout. they called out their army for disaster relief 50000 of them, did you know that China also builds twenty new cities per year and will continue doing that for 20 years- sounds like a lot of housing to me. as for the majority being dirt poor, they sure buy a lot of cars, tvs, etc. Thev'e got jobs where do you think walmart(70%) gets its stuff from? like it or not when you buy from walmart you buy from China. Don't take my word for it I googled it all sitting right here.