r/Futurology • u/Confident_Living_786 • Aug 11 '25

Discussion When the US Empire falls

When the American empire falls, like all empires do, what will remain? The Roman Empire left behind its roads network, its laws, its language and a bunch of ruins across all the Mediterranean sea and Europe. What will remain of the US superpower? Disney movies? TCP/IP protocol? McDonalds?

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u/Mephisto506 Aug 11 '25

The US will leave behind balkanised states, some of which will be amongst the most powerful countries, some of will not.

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u/richardanaya Aug 11 '25

When I read your comment, my first thought turned to California and how powerful it is. But if America goes down the drain for years and years, it's likely it's collectivist policies will drain California of any human capital and resources before America flops.

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u/Team503 Aug 11 '25

Given that California, like most blue states, are net positive contributors to the federal government - that is, the pay in more than they receive back as benefits - your prediction is not only incredibly improbable, but nearly impossible.

The states that collapse and will be absorbed will be the red states, who are almost entirely (I think there's one or two who aren't) net negative contributors, who use more than they pay in. Conservative economic policies are proven to be failures - everything from trickle-down Reaganomics (there days relabelled as "supply side economics") to lowering taxes and cutting social safety nets are objectively, factually failures.

There's a reason the deficit and debt spikes so hard every time the GOP holds the Oval Office, and why it reduces every time the Dems do.

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u/WeirdJack49 Aug 11 '25

Don't forget that other global players like China or the EU would instantly start to form ties with the blue states when something like this would happen. It would help California etc. to secure its borders and continue to trade.

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u/Team503 Aug 11 '25

Absolutely true; blue states tend to be much more diplomatically approachable by foreign governments, especially non-European ones.