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The Financial Crisis: Will It Lead to America's Decline?

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US: The Next USSR? Ferguson Says Economy on Edge of Chaos

02 min 06 sec

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Harvard University history professor Niall Ferguson compares the United States economy to complex systems in nature. The U.S. financial system may appear from the outside to be in equilibrium, says Ferguson, but it is actually "quite close to the edge of chaos."
Niall Ferguson Likens Post-American World to Dark Ages

02 min 39 sec

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Historian Niall Ferguson fears a post-American world would bear close resemblance to the Dark Ages that followed the decline of the Roman Empire. He foresees chaos across the Middle East and the rise of China as the next superpower. "A world without a strong America is a dangerous world," he exclaims.
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58 min 48 sec

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Previous FORAtv comments:

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Sioraf as Na Cillini

Posted: 06.09.11, 10:48 PM

Both are contrarians? Niall is a capitalist and a democrat*! *Small d obivously.

phiscal

Posted: 04.07.11, 01:08 PM

There is an unusual consistency of opinion in the comments above. It must be a narrow, perhaps even insular, audience watching this. I'd characterize the central theme as that of people "biting the hand that feeds them".

Desmosabie

Posted: 02.07.11, 12:38 AM

can you imagine if we just pulled out of all these countries, just said "fine, we'll stick to our own continent", and leave.

jimnn

Posted: 02.03.11, 06:49 PM

Guys, there is a philosopher who wrote in 1916 about the predicament we are in now. Who ever wants to learn about it Google for “Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism”

Arthur McKenzie

Posted: 01.26.11, 05:10 PM

Seems to be a gross over-reaction to a single sentence comment. Chomsky doesn't need a spokesman unless he's got a guilty conscience. With all the rest of your disjointed grizzling why not say something constructive instead of paranoid whining. The finite universe argument is just waffle.

Caz Loth

Posted: 01.26.11, 06:32 AM

A world without a strong US is a peaceful world. I think a country that is constantly at war, has attacked, invaded or occupied over 70 countries since 1800 and who maintains 800 military bases around the world IS THE POISON PILL.

CE Sheridan

Posted: 01.19.11, 05:42 PM

Other than some aspects of Ferguson's thesis, the rest is the rote groupthink of the elite which created, and which is expanding, the crisis. Same for the audience questions . An excellent document for those who will later try to explain the intellectual failure at the center of the crisis.

ramous

Posted: 01.19.11, 09:58 AM

This is the same old rhetoric by dinosaurs of the last century, They haven't the capacity to look at the big picture and take all into account. We need to get away from this small mindedness of the past if we are going to survive the future.

Bill liu

Posted: 01.19.11, 09:35 AM

This is where exactly American's problems came from. The decency of the private and public employer defines the decency of the public and the moral standard of the society. If an employer can abuse the rights of it's employee, it could of course abuse the rights of its client/commission. The corruption of the private company is the reflection of the corrupted political system.

in2peace

Posted: 01.19.11, 07:28 AM

The premise that the current model of one super power is what causes stability in the world, ie the US, is erroneous. This is what is causing the instability in the world today. Private business unchecked is what caused this problem to begin with. Every since Reagan's attack on government regulation of businesses the environment was created that allowed the perverted financial and corporate system we have today. A shared power system through the United Nations using International Law, which the US only prescribes to when it is in their interest, will provide balance. In the US having a system where a group is calling for government through tax cuts for the ultra wealthy, cut social/education benefits and continue a policy of obscene military spending that is NOT making us any more secure, these policies are destroying us. They are talking about trying to fix the system with the tools that broke it.

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