Don't Stop Believin', America!
Query: You grew up in an England that had become a minor power--a little England--but that remained, in important ways, wealthy and vibrant, at least for those who made their livings in finance and the few other sectors in which England remained competitive. Yet you surely heard from members of your parents' and grandparents' generations about the pleasures and burdens of life in England when the UK remained Number One Country.
Which is to be preferred? If Paul Johnson is right--if America is indeed entering a period of irreversible decline--would our diminishing role in the world really prove all that bad?
Peter Robinson asked me some questions. What they boil down to, I think, is: "Is America ready to play Norma Desmond?"
And the answer is a definite "No."
The thing you have to remember is that, despite our many similarities, there are also certain irreconcilable differences between our two fair nations. One has to do with our attitude towards failure.
Here in Britain, we tend to fetishize it; celebrate it, even. We feel almost as proud of our heroic defeats (The Charge of the Light Brigade, Dunkirk, Scott of the Antarctic) as we are of our numerous victories (most of them over the French, though, of course, we never like to remind of this). This has served us well in the 50 or so years since we lost all but a few tiny corners of our Empire. We don't mind how fallen we are now because, like Satan in Paradise Lost we remain all too conscious of the place we came from - and still feel in our hearts (and heads) that that's where we deserve to be and kind of still are ...
In the US, you have phrases like "Only losers quit; only quitters lose." This is why you beat us at every sport going. (Apart from golf: tee hee hee). It's why you did the bulk of the fighting for us in Northwest Europe and the Pacific in the Second World War.
Failure just doesn't suit you, America - and it's one of the reasons I so love you. So don't even THINK about accepting your decline. Rage, rage, rage against the dying of the light. (Though I agree that the recent presidential election result may have felt like the final nail in the coffin).
Oh - and if you still need reminding who you are and what you stand for, relish for a moment the greatest four minutes in the history of television. (Made by Americans for Americans, natch)
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Apr '11
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Nothing is irreversible. People always point to examples of mighty nations that lost power, but infrequently look at the numerous examples of countries that raised themselves from peasant-hood to prosperity. We don't have to settle for an economy that just limps along.
Jul '12
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
I love Delingpole, he is easily my favorite Ricochet contributor.
Mar '11
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Indeed the last election shook my faith in America to the core - the (slim) majority voted for a failure (aka Mr Obama), and seems to have chosen the decline of America - as Dr Krauthammer reminds us, decline is a choice.
I'm maybe a little more pessimistic than Mr Delingpole as I spend a lot more time in America (I am in the UK at the moment for Christmas) and have seen the decline from the 1980's first hand.
The only glimmer of hope is that things are looking a little better in the UK, with the growth of UKIP and increasing clamor to leave the EU (and Scotland may leave the UK - woohoo). In the US we have another four more years of certain decline to look forward to. After that, who knows?
And there is fracking, which is developing in spite of Mr Obama's desire for windmills and solar power. As Mr Biden might say, this a big, umm, deal.
Another way of looking at it is that the US is now going through it's Blair years - is the best that can be hoped for afterwards a Brown or a Cameron?
Edited on December 18, 2012 at 6:14pmJul '11
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
There is a huge difference between the trajectory of UK vs. US. So why would they follow the same trajectory in the future?
Similarly, it is annoying to hear people comparing the US to Granada of Nicaragua.
Are wee moving in the right direction? No! Can we adjust our trajectory? Yes!
When it happens is another thing entirely. However, I believe that the way to fix it is to keep the long term goal in mind.
The short term will be helped by advances in technology, if they keep happening. However we need to focus on education if we want long term goals.
This is why I support organizations like Young Americans for Liberty, FIRE, etc.
Jul '10
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
I most certainly agree with Mr. Delingpole that we must continue to return the United States to the level of success she has enjoyed in the past. The US is founded on an idea that human beings can govern themselves and, being able to do so, are then free to achieve success in many other aspects of life. To allow a decline in this society's ability to manage itself, without -crats of any stripe, is to admit that the human spirit is, ultimately, unable to exist outside of the control of another. That Orwell's vision of "a boot stamping on a human face - forever" is the only destiny we have.
"A government of the people, by the people and for the people shall not perish from the face of the earth" is still an open question; it must always be reaffirmed in each generation. That is what we must do to reverse the current tide.
Oct '11
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Do victories over the French really count?
Mar '11
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Mr Steyn reminds us that the US is following the same trajectory as the UK - just delayed by a decade or few, and without the US having had an Empire (other than Starbucks). This has also been my personal observation, having worked and lived through the decline of both countries.
Paradoxically, this is what gives me a glimmer of hope for the US, when I see some improvement in the UK, though I may be clutching at straws.
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
And you, Matt, have just become my Favorite Person of the Day!
Jun '12
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Excellent point.
May '10
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
I look to my favorite American-British hybrid for hope on this subject:
--- Winston Churchill
Americans like to wait to the last minute for the cavalry to arrive. The problem is it will be SOOO expensive by then. Fortunately, we will pay it with fracked gas/oil from North (Arabia) Dakota.
Edited on December 18, 2012 at 6:28pmApr '11
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
James Delingpole
It isn't a question of belief. It's a question of acknowledging the reality of our situation and coming up with a plan to address it. The fact is that the conservative movement doesn't have a plan and I fear that wishful thinking like "You can always count on Americans to do the right thing after they've tried everything else" isn't going to cut it this time. Americans are not genetically immune from the problems that have befallen other countries.
Edited on December 18, 2012 at 6:35pmMay '10
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Ah, there's my friend James, doing his best to cheer me up. I hope you are right. It's up to the generation between me (50) and my daughter (17). Somehow we must find the balance between responding to negative, dishonest attacks, and not lowering ourselves to that level. The libs are adept at nastiness. They try to keep us so busy defending ourselves, responding to their lies, that we can't get our message out in a way that the average American can hear and, more importantly, believe. Are most people so wrapped up in their own lives they are unwilling to take the time to investigate?
Apr '11
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
How do we measure greatness though? Is it through the size of ones army, the number of wars won. Is it through wealth, science, literature.
It would seem to me that from the stand point of the individual, a nation that can provide peace and prosperity is probably the best nation. So by that standard Switzerland beats out everyone. When was the last time the Swiss had to send their men to war, when they were not affluent? Being a small, industrious nation that can hide in the crowd is the key.
Being large and involved just makes you a target.
Aug '10
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
James Delingpole
(Apart from golf: tee hee hee).
James, you are bad.
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Put shorter: The success of humanity is dependent in large part on the success of the United States.
Tripedis Canis: I most certainly agree with Mr. Delingpole that we must continue to return the United States to the level of success she has enjoyed in the past. The US is founded on an idea that human beings can govern themselves and, being able to do so, are then free to achieve success in many other aspects of life. To allow a decline in this society's ability to manage itself, without -crats of any stripe, is to admit that the human spirit is, ultimately, unable to exist outside of the control of another. That Orwell's vision of "a boot stamping on a human face - forever" is the only destiny we have.
"A government of the people, by the people and for the people shall not perish from the face of the earth" is still an open question; it must always be reaffirmed in each generation. That is what we must do to reverse the current tide. · 1 hour ago
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Ah, James, I could kiss you.
(Only on the forehead, and entirely man-to-man like, the way Tony Soprano would have. But still.)
Nov '12
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Let's give the English that. They've been smarting since the Battle of Hastings. Besides as the second most-famous English valet Blackadder says, "Did all those men die in vain on the field of Agincourt? Was the man who burned Joan of Arc simply wasting good matches?"
Jul '11
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
David Williamson
Paradoxically, this is what gives me a glimmer of hope for the US, when I see some improvement in the UK, though I may be clutching at straws. · 2 hours agoMr Steyn reminds us that the US is following the same trajectory as the UK - just delayed by a decade or few, and without the US having had an Empire (other than Starbucks). This has also been my personal observation, having worked and lived through the decline of both countries.
What technical advances in UK ten years ago changed the world? How about 20, 30, 40, 50 years ago?
The few times we've recovered has been because of advances in technology pushed by innovation in the US, whether it be the invention of the Cotton Gin, sir flight spurred by the Lindberg flight computers and the internet.
UK follows, but it has not led for a very long time.
I think that US still has advantages, even though I do believe they can be squandered.
Because Mr. Styen sees parallels between the two countries is not enough evidence for - will all due respect to the very witty Mr. Styen.
Apr '11
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Barkha Herman
The few times we've recovered has been because of advances in technology pushed by innovation in the US, whether it be the invention of the Cotton Gin, sir flight spurred by the Lindberg flight computers and the internet.
I think that US still has advantages, even though I do believe they can be squandered.
The technical advantages that the US has is mainly due to its ability to attract gifted foreign scientists, engineers and students. As America becomes less and less attractive (e.g. higher taxes, more bureaucracy etc.), so will its technological advantage wane---it's already happening.
Edited on December 18, 2012 at 11:06pmNov '10
Re: Don't Stop Believin', America!
Count me as a reluctant pessimist. Outsiders may see qualities that we natives can't, but I suspect there's a bit of misplaced idealism there. Inertia itself will keep up our appearances for awhile and allow Mr. Delingpole his rosy opinion. I hope to God he's right and I'm wrong, but reality is telling me something else that can't be denied... my solace is in knowing that somehow, somewhere on earth, freedom will always survive.
Edited on December 18, 2012 at 11:07pm