Things Fall Apart: China and the Decline of US Imperialism
When historians of the future look back, they may very well conclude that 2007 marked the time when the crisis of US imperialism became so obvious that even the dimmest bulb could detect it. For it is evident that imperialism is about to suffer a staggering and transformative defeat in Iraq as this illegal and criminal invasion has stretched the military to the breaking point, alienated allies and emboldened the lengthening list of foes of US imperialism.
At the same time, China, still ruled by a Communist Party, has accumulated an eye-popping $1 trillion in foreign currencies, a figure never before attained by any nation. This sum is so formidable, so huge, that there is a palpable fear in Washington that Beijing may develop a version of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, rendering both of these imperialist dominated vehicles irrelevant. In the so-called “backyard” of Washington, socialist Cuba has not been slowed down by the hospitalization of President Fidel Castro and continues to move from strength to strength. Cuba and China in turn serve as anchors for Africa, Asia and Latin America in their ongoing attempt to break the chains of imperialist bondage. All this suggests that the crisis of US imperialism continues unabated.
The declining prestige of Washington was no better revealed than when the human rights watchdog of the United Nations rebuked the US for violations of international law at home and abroad, especially in connection with its so-called “war on terror.” Adding to a growing cascade of criticism, singled out were the secret detention facilities where torture is the norm and the failure to provide prisoners at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba with due process of law. But what really captured attention were the sharp criticisms of US domestic policy. Washington’s draconian asylum and immigration policies, the promiscuous deployment of the death penalty and life imprisonment and police brutality, were all condemned in no uncertain terms.
This international body of experts seconded by the UN oversees implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and chose 2006 to examine US compliance with this document for the first time since 1995. Predictably Washington reacted angrily to this rebuke. Ironically, the nation that has taken it upon itself to evaluate nations near and far and the extent to which they have complied with Washington’s version of “democracy” and “freedom,” now cries foul when the “script is flipped.”
US imperialism finds it hard to ignore this complaint from the UN for George W. Bush recognizes that it is precisely his malfeasance in the global arena that may very well jeopardize not only his legacy but his freedom of movement as well. For as the noted University of Virginia law professor, Rosa Brooks, put it recently, the US Supreme Court ruling in the case of Hamdan vs. Rumsfeld, concerning a so-called “enemy combatant,” suggests that Common Article Three of the Geneva Convention applies to the conflict with al Qaeda. But more than this, the high court holding makes high-ranking Bush administration officials – including the president -– potentially subject to prosecution under the federal War Crimes Act.
What this suggests is that US imperialism cannot escape the grasp of global forces, no matter how well it is able to bludgeon domestic opposition. More than this, even sectors of the US ruling elite have come to recognize that conservatism, which has served this class so well to this point, may be very well incapable of protecting its interests as the 21st century unfolds. For example, how can one expect the US right wing to subdue the rudimentarily conservative force that is so-called Islamic fundamentalism when historically they have been in the same trench, e.g. during the war in the 1980’s in Afghanistan that turbo-charged religiosity?
The bold posture of the UN is emblematic of how the international community has come to recognize that US imperialism is a primary threat to international peace and security. Similarly, this is suggestive of how the erosion of the strength of US imperialism has made Washington more susceptible to being influenced by global trends. In the first place, the tax cutting mania of the Republican right – without the concomitant muscle to slash social programs proportionately – has made this nation more dependent on capital flows from Asia in particular to curb escalating deficits. As foreign nations have grabbed a larger stake in the US government and economy, understandably they have become more concerned about their investments here – which provides more incentive for them to rein in Washington.
http://www.politicalaffairs.net/index.php/article/view/5044/1/250/
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