The first phase of the 21^st century has proven itself to be anything but stable and prosperous for the American Union. The Empire of Liberty may appear to be doing fine at the current moment, albeit at tremendous cost to the Union in terms of manpower, resources, and Kapital. It remains to be seen whether the Empire of Liberty will continue its protracted decline as the world order becomes increasingly less Unipolar and more Multipolar with each passing year. The possibility of the Empire of Liberty meeting its own demise due to the onset of a new World War remaining elusive and will continue to be the case for the foreseeable future.  

One should never base any conclusions on the Quantity of Kapital. Although mere Kapital Accumulation on its own could indicate signs of economic growth under Neoliberalism, it does not provide enough reliable evidence on exactly what is driving that economic growth. The Kapital Accumulation from the economic activities of manufactories, farms and mines is distinguishable from the Kapital Accumulation of Speculation at the Financial Markets. What has happened in America since the Death of Bretton Woods, as is well-known by now, is an ongoing definition of what constitutes as Kapital Accumulation. Instead of Kapital being generated by the Natural and Manufacturing Sectors, the Services and Digital Sectors have become the most lucrative sources.

Unfortunately for the average American, not everyone in the American Totality is going to benefit from the loss of manufactories or the newfound overemphasis on the tertiary educational level. The rise of what can only be described as a Jeffersonian Technocracy had been set into motion long ago, as far back as the Wilson Presidency. The Death of Bretton Woods has forced this Technocracy to assert itself as a pervasive force whose influence can be felt both inside and outside the Federal Government. Thus, the Jeffersonian ideal of a “yeoman farmer” had been replaced by a “certified expert,” a technocrat. Rather than tilling the soil of an unclaimed wilderness, the certified expert gathers information from a Digital Realm which, in its current form, is also an unclaimed wilderness embodied by the World Wide Web (WWW).

The Jeffersonian Market Economy of the 21^st century has had to contend with the fact that its Liberal Capitalist Technologies (LCTs) no longer provide widespread prosperity for all Americans. Despite increasing the overall rate of Kapital Accumulation vis-à-vis the WWW and Financial Technology (Fintech) at the Financial Markets, its economic activities are no longer renown for the sort of mass production that was characteristic of the last year. Not only has this left so many Americans behind, it has also placed so much pressure on trying to secure positions in the Technocracy insofar as it continues to be only true source of prosperity left. Neither America and the rest of the world recover from the Death of Bretton Woods nor did they recover from the Great Recession. The effects of the Great Recession can be discerned from the seemingly dysfunctional political-economic climate that characteristics contemporary politics.   

The effects of the State of Total Mobilization remain a constant force that not even the Liberal Capitalist State of Natural Rights could possibly overcome. The pivot toward Kapital Accumulation has already contributed to environmental degradation and resource depletion. A major ecological disaster, capable of causing widespread population transfers, could inflict significant devastation on the Empire of Liberty. The technologies currently being developed in contemporary times may not be enough to stave off the effects of Climate Change.           

Even by Neoliberal standards, in an economic system that does not require large populations, it is inevitable that there would be sustained demographic decline the likes of which will create unfathomable effects on the stability of the Empire of Liberty. Its effects are on display within the Western world as well as without. While other countries either accept the demographic decline or employ Welfare Capitalist policies to address it, the Jeffersonians exploited America’s past reputation turned as a nation that welcomed immigration out of economic expediency, fueling centuries-old tensions between the different races and people’s communities that constitute as members of the American Totality. The only problem is that the Jeffersonian Market Economy of the 21^st century has little need for unskilled immigration like it did in the last century. Instead, it requires skilled immigration, which the Jeffersonians will never truly attain without impoverishing other countries within the Empire of Liberty. The tensions that it creates in the Empire of Liberty will be reflected in the Union.

The demographic decline of the Union will no doubt contribute to the identity politics that define much of the unending Culture Wars. The race question will become an all-consuming issue, creating the need to define the concept of race as something that goes beyond mere biological and genetic characteristics. Put another way, America was never defined by one “ethnic majority” presiding over a multiplicity of “ethnic minorities.” Rather, it has always been defined by a multitude of ethnic minorities bound to their people’s communities and whose allegiances are tied to the Union under the aegis of a shared Worldview. The British Americans, in spite of their small size compared to the rest of the Union, are only prevalent because they continue to wield enormous clout over the American National Culture. But what cannot be ignored, even as the world continues to enter the next phase of the 21^st century, is that the Union appears to be going in countless different directions. The Culture Wars are demonstrative of the fact that America never had a genuine American National Culture whose origins go farther than the Constitution.

This lack of a genuine American National Culture is self-evident in the ongoing loss of direction, purpose, community and belong that is so endemic of contemporary America. It demonstrates that Americans are not born into the Union as Americans, but as individuals first and foremost. The disintegration of people’s communities and religious congregation, the diminished influence of organized institutions, and the collapse of the family. The loss of community has coincided with the overall decline of entire towns, cities and even regions. As a result, States have seen uncontrolled population migrations, creating frictions between the States. There are whole swathes of the Union where land and buildings are cheap, except there is nobody to build a lasting community. There is no future to be found in these locations, however.

The perceived decline of the American Union to bolster the Empire of Liberty, as stated elsewhere, is going to be a protracted one. It will not happen overnight as the effects are gradual and more systemic in nature. The Union is not going to continue existing in its current form as these aforementioned are simply unsustainable for building a nation. Exactly what sort of future awaits the Union if present trends continue remains forthcoming, however.      

In any case, a new Ideology deserves to be brought into existence, one that draws directly from the American Essence, is relevant for contemporary times, and can provide guidance in a world order where the Empire of Liberty is ceasing to become relevant. An important question that continues to remain pervasive in contemporary America has been the issue of what Ideology would replace Jeffersonianism. Recent historical events have shown a mere absence of alternative Ideologies insofar as the known Ideologies that one finds on display in contemporary American political-economic discourse are in final analysis extensions of the Jeffersonian Worldview. It is more difficult to envisage the building of a non-Jeffersonian America than the destruction of Jeffersonian America. One finds these sentiments in the apathy, discontentment, and dire conditions of American life that is not driven by economic considerations.   

Categories: Compendium

Tags: Economics, Federalist Party, Finance, Hamiltonianism, Philosophy, Politics, Psychology, Socialist Finance, Third Place, Work-Standard