I read an article today about the impending reality that China’s economy will eclipse our own in terms of total size (they say it will happen somewhere around the $19 trillion mark, and that could be in as little as five years). Lots of implications, to be sure, and certainly smart people around the world should consider them, hypothesize about them, plan for them, live in fear of them if they’re inclined to do so.
But not me. No, this article talks about our nation’s strength, about our hegemony – that is, our dominance in the world – with the unquestionable assumption that the loss of this power is bad for America and, therefore, bad for the world. Maybe.
But what if that very dominance is what’s wrong with America? What if the very fact that we have been the commanding superpower for the last 60 years is the precise thing upon which the greed and corruption and misaligned values that are so evident in the world today are predicated?
Does dominance lead to good personal relationships?
Does dominance in industry typically result in fair practices?
Does dominance in religion tend to engender greater tolerance?
Does a dominant political party generally practice humility and respect?
Dominance doesn’t equal strength
Just as how much money you have is an irrelevant measure of your true worth as a human being, dominance over others has very little to do with strength. Brute force, sure, but not strength. Not real strength.
Thomas Jefferson believed that strength emanated from union. From the ability to call upon the people and have them act, in unity, against tyranny, in favor of freedom.
America may well lose it’s economic and political dominance around the world, and whether that’s good or bad is for each of us to decide. But as it concerns strength, I think we lost that battle long ago. And I think it’s a shame.
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what matters most to me in these topics is our view of one another…how we see our own selves and each other…b/c our choices day in day out impact the overall global scene so much. i strive consistently to be one with everyone and anyone…no one having more power status or strength than another…ever…no one lesser or greater…all equal. surely it’s a perpetual effort…but one worth striving for…to my sense of building harmony.
I couldn’t agree more Tre. Makes it all the more goofy to see how quick we are to draw lines between and amongst us. As individuals, socio-economic classes, religions, governments, you name it. Part of the learning process I guess. But we need those to carry the torch until such time as we’ve evolved beyond these distinctions. So keep it up…