Conversations with Great Minds with Morris Berman, Part 2. Why America Failed

Morris Berman, author Why America Failed: The Roots of Imperial Decline. "Why America Failed" is the third volume of his trilogy on the decline of the American empire. In it - Morris Berman examines America's commitment to economic liberalism and free enterprise going as far back as the late sixteenth century, and concludes that this ideology, combined with technological progress, was an inevitable recipe for creating the demise of the American empire as we are experiencing today. He served on the faculty of a number of universities in the United States, Canada and Europe and he currently resides in Mexico where he writes for a number of publications worldwide.

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News & Politics

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• Thom Hartmann
• Big Picture
• theBigPictureRT
• RTAmerica
• RT America
• RTTV
• Morris Berman
• Why America Failed
• The Roots of Imperial Decline
• economic liberalism
• Mexico

[anarchosyndiclist]

the TEA PARTY wasn't Libertarian, sorry it wasn't, did have a fascination with Ron Paul, because he was anti "BIG GOVERNMENT" the buga boo they were told was responsible for all their woes...go to a TEA PARTY, ask them about the Wars, the over Policing, The Drug War, Homosexuality, abortion and other hard right social nonsense and you'll quickly find they have no tolerance for LIBERTARIANS

[trajan74]

I was reading Cicero's "Against Verres" last night and one of the things Verres argued was that he might be corrupt, a thief of the most heinous kind but he wins battles and the Republic needs him. This sounds like "Well you can't punish the job creators." And just like "job creators" don't create jobs, "battle winner" Verres never won any battles. This was 40 years before the end of the Republic. For this and other reasons i think the roman republic fell for the same reason we will.

[supernakfa]

The guy who conducted the interview was very very annoying i can even say typical close minded Amerikan. On the other hand Mr. Berman was fantastic.

[EdM021]

Well it certainly looks like the demise of the US is inevitable. The question is, how long? It could go on for a hundred years until finally the flesh and blood humans are so oppressed by the corporate "rpersons" that they'll just collectively give up and let the Mexicans take over jjust like the Romans let the Vandals and the Goths. Or it could thrash about over the next 20 years until it launches nukes in the insane idea that it's better the whole biosphere perish than America lose a war.

[TheGoldMandala]

@Regenmacher175 I actually agree that the infinite growth cycle modern capitalism inherently depends on is destined by the laws of physics to burn out. However, any system requires constant fodder to maintain itself. Yes, I jumped the U.S. ship over five years ago and have been living in a post-communist/socialist country since then - and well aware of the ultimate fate of socialism as well. Although I have personally benefited from the social security system in America I doesn't work. *Peace*.

[Regenmacher175]

@TheGoldMandala nope. capitalism needs to grow to stay in place ecause if it does not fulfill that promise people will take it apart based on its disadvantages. You can also leave the US and start a new life somehwere else where you're not labelled a socialist or a communist if you call out for more fairness and a financial and social security net for the common man. the US is finished. It will eventually implode based on the fact that ALL politicians advocate less regulation.

[techdudester]

Wake up... this guy is so entirely on the money regarding every single thing he talks about. If you don't see the abyss he's referring to, it's going to be your funeral and I won't be there to cry, I promise.

[clockworkscott]

@baalisgod666 dude isn't even american, he's slovenian according to his channel...so he doesn't even have the excuse that he's blindly following his rulers as they ruin his nation.

it's hard to get socialist ideas into america, because people always think of the ussr (which wasn't even socialism), and not denmark (which isn't really, but closer).

[baalisgod666]

@brscic really dickhead? Perhaps he visited your friends and allies Australia. A socialist country who is stuck cleaning up your mess in Iraq and Afghanistan. I cant wait till we tear up our treaty with you cunts. I bet you suck zionist cock too.

PS The USSR would have been better without the arms race which it lost. Cuba has better medical care than your shit hole.

Your turn to fail and go hungry. Hahahahahahahaha

[baalisgod666]

@MrGnarus the political model may not gel, but the similarities are many. The Romans were cunts with too much money and power who pissed of the world and collapsed due to their inferior debauched politicians who ran it into the ground. The borders were too big and the mexicans, sorry, the Goths and vandals just swamped them. In the end, the Italians were much better off without their leaders. So was the world. Good riddance U$A.

[MrGnarus]

there are no similarities to the roman model of collapse because the world was a geographically different world. Take the soviet union as an example. They didn't disappear off the map. They just split into different countries which were being held together by the power of the core. Venezuela and Zimbabwe are other examples.