Decline and Fall

The End of Empire and the Future of Democracy in 21st Century America

Things fall apart; the center cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.

Although writing nearly a century ago, William Butler Yeats could easily be describing the United States today. The central feature of today’s geopolitical landscape is the imminent decline and fall of America’s global empire, and our response to it will determine much of our future, with implications reaching far beyond the limits of the United States’ borders.

Decline and Fall: The End of Empire and the Future of Democracy in 21st Century America challenges the conventional wisdom of empire. John Michael Greer uses a wealth of historical examples combined with groundbreaking original analysis to show how, in the pursuit of political and economic power, the United States has backed itself into a corner, explores the inevitable consequences of imperial collapse, and argues that the only constructive way forward is a renewal of democratic institutions.