• crime [she/her, any]
    ·
    4 years ago

    Those are all fair points, but imo the inevitable collapse of the US petrodollar will make it happen. Idk how old you are but that's something I definitely think will happen in my lifetime as oil extraction slows and becomes more expensive and other energy sources move to the forefront.

    • zifnab25 [he/him, any]
      ·
      edit-2
      4 years ago

      The petrodollar only became a thing because fossil fuels powered the armies of the world. As we migrate to other resource constraints, the power balance will shift. But control of those resources will continue to fix the value of fiat currencies.

      The US military is the real currency of the realm. And that's as bloated and globe-spanning as ever.

      Let me know when we've lost our first aircraft carrier. That's what will really spell the beginning of the end.

      • Leon_Grotsky [comrade/them]
        ·
        edit-2
        4 years ago

        To be precise, we've lost 16 aircraft carriers.

        One was scuttled after being used for a target

        One was scuttled "after being used for a target" (Note: This one (Saratoga iirc) was parked in Bikini Atoll for a hint at what the test was)

        One was scuttled to make an artificial reef

        ...and 13 were destroyed in WWII, the most recent in 1946. Once by a German U-boat, and every other instance was either by the Japanese or other American ships (scuttling after crippled by Japanese so they could claim it wasn't destroyed in combat.)