The American elite's unbounded, unquestioned, indeed unconscious sense of imperial entitlement and dominance -- based ultimately on war, the threat of war and the profit from war -- is one of the defining characteristics of our age. And if you would like to see a glaring example of this attitude in action, look no further than the front page of Tuesday's New York Times, where one David Sanger gives us his penetrating "news analysis" of the Administration's just-announced $3.8 trillion budget.

Sanger focuses on the huge, continuing deficits that the budget forecasts over the next decade. Completely ignoring the plain truth that his own expert source tell him later in the story -- that "forecasts 10 years out have no credibility" -- Sanger boldly plunges forward to tell us just what it all means. You will not be surprised to hear that the upshot of these big deficits is that neither Obama nor his successors will be able to spend any money on "new domestic initiatives" for years to come. But let's let Sanger, savant and seer, tell it in his own words:

In a federal budget filled with mind-boggling statistics, two numbers stand out as particularly stunning, for the way they may change American politics and American power.

The first is the projected deficit in the coming year, nearly 11 percent of the country’s entire economic output. That is not unprecedented: During the Civil War, World War I and World War II, the United States ran soaring deficits, but usually with the expectation that they would come back down once peace was restored and war spending abated.

But the second number, buried deeper in the budget’s projections, is the one that really commands attention: By President Obama’s own optimistic projections, American deficits will not return to what are widely considered sustainable levels over the next 10 years. ...

For Mr. Obama and his successors, the effect of those projections is clear: Unless miraculous growth, or miraculous political compromises, creates some unforeseen change over the next decade, there is virtually no room for new domestic initiatives for Mr. Obama or his successors. Beyond that lies the possibility that the United States could begin to suffer the same disease that has afflicted Japan over the past decade. As debt grew more rapidly than income, that country’s influence around the world eroded.

What is most interesting here, of course, is not Sanger's noodle-scratching over imaginary numbers projected into an unknowable future, but his total and apparently completely unconscious adoption of the mindset of militarist empire. For as he puzzles and puzzles till his puzzler is sore on how in God's name the United States can possibly find any money at all to spend on bettering the lives of its citizens over the next 10 years, it becomes clear that Sanger -- like the rest of our political and media elite -- literally cannot conceive of an end to empire. Our elites and their courtiers literally cannot imagine life without a permanent war for global dominance, fueled by a gargantuan war machine spread across hundreds and hundreds of bases implanted in more than 100 countries.

And so this consideration, this possible outcome, does not figure in Sanger's "analysis" because it cannot: it lies far outside the scope of his consciousness. The only possible alternative he can conceive to the empire's bloody and bankrupting business as usual is some kind of divine intervention, "miraculous growth" or some "miraculous political compromise."

And make no mistake: the "miraculous political compromise" he is talking about has nothing to do with ending or even trimming the empire. A "compromise" on this issue could only be posited if there was some present conflict over it. But both parties are deeply committed to increasing spending on the wars and the war machine.

No, by "compromise" Sanger means some sort of "Grand Bargain" between the parties to cut Social Security and Medicare, along the lines of the "blue-ribbon panel" of entitlement cutters now being pushed by the Obama Administration. An effort to impose this kind of elitist, unaccountable commission failed in the Senate a few weeks ago -- although the Republicans have proposed such panels before, they didn't like this one because Obama proposed it -- but the idea will keep coming back.  Sanger and the elite will doubtless get their "miracle" of slashing the remaining bits of the safety net to shreds in due time.

For these are the only possibilities for deficit-cutting that Sanger can even remotely contemplate: some whiz-bang new techno gizmo -- or maybe some hot new "financial instruments" cooked up by Wall Street -- that will goose the economy with a bright new bubble ... or else finally telling our old, sick, vulnerable and unfortunate to just crawl off and die already. That's it. That's all that our elite can envision.

Yet the ending of the imperial wars and the dismantling of America's global military empire -- and its global gulag -- would save trillions of dollars in the coming years. Not only from direct military spending, but also from the vastly reduced need for "Homeland security" funding in a world where the United States was no longer invading foreign lands, killing their people, supporting their tyrants -- and inciting revenge and resistance.

This would release a flood of money for any number of "new domestic initiatives," while also giving scope for deep tax cuts across the board. Working people would thrive, the poor, the sick and the vulnerable would be bettered, businesses would grow, opportunity would expand, the care and education of our children would be greatly enhanced, our infrastructure could be repaired and strengthened, our environment better cleansed and cared for. In short, people could keep more of their own money while government spending could be directed toward improving the quality of life of all the nation's citizens.

This is no utopian vision. Many problems, much suffering would remain. But it would be a better society -- more humane, more just, more secure, more peaceful, more prosperous than it is now. Such an alternative is entirely achievable, by ordinary humans; it would require no divine miracles, no god-like heroes to bring it about.

But such a society is precisely what our elites cannot -- or, to be more accurate, will not -- imagine. Because, yes, it would "erode" their "influence" around the world to some extent. Although they would still be comfortable, coddled and privileged, they could no longer merge their individual psyches with the larger entity of a globe-spanning, death-dealing empire -- a connection which, although itself a projection of their own brains, gives them a forever-inflated sense of worth and importance.

And on a more prosaic level, the end of empire would mean an end to the horrendous economic distortion wrought by our war-profiteering industries. Other businesses would inevitably come to the fore, economic activity would be spread more evenly across more sectors. And so, yes, those who have feasted so gluttonously for so long on blood money would not be quite as rich as they are now.

A better world -- again, not perfect, by no means perfect, but much better -- is entirely possible. We could easily dismantle the empire -- carefully, safely, with deliberation -- over the next ten years. It is a reasonable, moderate, serious option. It would not require violent revolution or vast social upheaval. But our elites do not want this. They can no longer fathom life without the exercise -- and worship -- of unrestricted power that empire entails. They will not accept -- or even contemplate -- any alternative to it.

And thus every option and policy we are offered -- whether from right-wing Republicans or "progressive" Democrats, or from "serious" news analysts on "serious" papers -- must fall within these pathetically cramped, constricted mental horizons. Empire -- the imposition of dominion by violence and threat of violence, and the financial and moral corruption this breeds, the malevolent example it sets at every level of society -- is the canker in the body politic. Until it is dealt with, there will be no healing, no hope, no change -- just more degradation and disaster all down the line.

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Bill Jones said:

	What's happening in the US Is the imposition of the "austerity" programs that the IMF has used to loot so many countries around the world. As the premier mechanisms for concentrating wealth in the hands of the elite are Wall st and the MIC, they, and they alone, will be spared the savaging to come.
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February 02, 2010
Votes: +7

Tiny Montgomery said:

... I've been trying to advance this same perspective for months on Common Dreams, under another name. Some there get it, some don't. Your understanding of all this is usually the very best I ever run across, so I'm very indebted to all the insight you provide, Chris. You're doing important work, and if any kind of movement ever should develop (I'm doubting it), well to the left of Obamaism, it will need your input big time.

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February 02, 2010
Votes: +15

john kelley said:

... Far too many Americans are lethargically digesting (forget for the moment those who are still gorging) the feast of mammon. The ignorance, divisiveness, and jingoistic exceptionalism run too deep and preclude (at least for now and the foreseeable future) the possibility of any sensible, coalescent, imaginative alternative. Personally, I think that it will take death by hanging to clear the lower intestine. I do remain, however, always positive and will continue my regular reconnaissance here on the vanguard at Empire Burlesque.

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February 02, 2010
Votes: +7

martin luther blissett said:

ANNUIT COEPTIS perhaps it is only when the bottom 99% of the pyramid realize that it is their collective gaze that is the only miraculous magic levitating the pinnacle of the elite will the All Seeing Eyes be forced to finally down look upon the waste they have left in their wake. to john: actually there are 3 other less drastic alternatives known to loosen up the bowels quite a bit: a near-death experience, a parasite cleanse and what Terence McKenna called a "heroic dose". take your pick.

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February 03, 2010
Votes: +6

gordon burns said:

	Death by hanging to john kelly: and this is you in positive mode? Please don't ever get depressed.
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February 03, 2010
Votes: +2

john kelley said:

Too Drastic I read a little article this morning about how 'debarking' dogs is STARTING to fall out of favor with YOUNGER veterinarians (emphasis for positivity). Yes, 'debarking' is what you think it is. The removal of the vocal cords. The excess of manipulative diagnosis, prescription, severing, implanting, extracting, suturing,etc...well, it sure gives me the creeps. It's little wonder that recent polls suggest that a majority of Americans support the use of torture. Martin: perhaps I exaggerated...for sure an "heroic dose" could be much more productive. Gordon: many things upset me, but I don't get depressed. Depression is an unnatural disorder...a weak constitution.

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February 03, 2010
Votes: +3

Jimmy Montague said:

	depression is -- Depression has been called "an industrial disease." I don't think that's entirely inaccurate. I do think that to call it "an unnatural disorder" and then blame it on "a weak constitution" is a contradiction.
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February 03, 2010
Votes: +2

john kelley said:

... "I do think that to call it "an unnatural disorder" and then blame it on "a weak constitution" is a contradiction." OK. Fair enough. Lousy construction, though I wasn't precisely blaming the one on the other. I don't want to seem insensitive. Clearly depression comes in many shapes and sizes and, judging by the PHENOMENAL quantities of heavy-duty pharmaceuticals prescribed, afflicts many millions of people. But a cleaner and healthier constitution (mental and physical) should be good preventative medicine for such disorders. As Nancy Reagan said, "Just say no".

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February 03, 2010
Votes: +1

William M. Head said:

... Fear And Caesar Laugh and cry while you can, fool Americans Gorge yourselves upon folly And its manifold fevered pleasures While time remains A mighty whirlwind of change is welling And a terrible power arises to cast its shadow Inspiring great trembling and fascination As it writes its name in legend across the land Until now you've been so very proud, Americans Daily have you declared yourselves sovereign Though in low thrall to every sort of vice Through embrace of foul corruption in every form You have prostituted the Republic And now the spirit of ruthless scheming Caesar Finds its cruel rebirth in a modern breast A diamond hand reaches forth To grasp the rein of authority Your weakness has forsaken Hidden well within its satin glove The crush of dictatorship's whim Begins its brutal reign Now, all ye scions of soft self-indulgent decadence You'll learn well who your master is And craven at the feet of a stern imperator Ever guard your tears and mirth with equal fear I believe the greatest blow ever dealt at liberty's head shall be dealt by this nation in the ultimate failure of its example to the earth. - Charles Dickens

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February 03, 2010
Votes: +3

William M. Head said:

... Crimson Storm There's fire in the streets tonight As the tempest gathers force And the hour of public outburst Casts its shade upon the shores Soon the wrath of decades shall unsheathe Its thirsting sword And upon a scene of vile decadence Unleash the crimson storm The air is thick with passions As the hour of Cain draws near The mask is torn from Zeus's face To unveil its store of fear And in every eye one notes There is the glint of a primal urge As the ravening chorus of chaos blares A violent fateful dirge Within the ranks of power There are meetings through the night The princes and all their ministers Perceive the end in sight In a panic they seek to escape The crimson verdict of the mob Yet pause amidst such hectic flight Their harlots' jewels to rob Then the storm sweeps across the land From one channel to the next Drowning all caught In its torrents of blood en route To its gory crest O'er every bridge and in the public squares Death's tokens may be seen Courtesy of the Revolution And its adjutant Guillotine None are spared the cruel blade's kiss Amidst the maddened flood And daily the creaking tumbrils convey The doomed to bear its cut The fevered crowd then cheers loudly As the mortal steel descends And to heights of undreamt Terror The bleeding storm in rage ascends God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion! I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just. - Thomas Jefferson

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February 03, 2010
Votes: +3

scott douglas said:

	... Per Seymour Drescher, 'A History of Slavery and Antislavery' -- there are, in fact, historical examples of a dedicated conscious social minority over-riding the central project of the Imperial elite. It has been done. Let's do it, again. Bring your Armies and your Fleets Home. Scott
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February 03, 2010
Votes: +1

Richard Martin Oxman said:

Proposal for action to address issues in the article A new paradigm for action to address the issues in the article is called for. I would like readers to provide feedback on what's delineated at http://oxtogrind.org/archive/483, and consider joining hands in solidarity. The late Howard Zinn and many others listed at http://oxtogrind.org/archive/336 have given imprimaturs for this project. Blessings in solidarity, Richard P.S. I would love to have the author added to that list, btw.

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February 04, 2010 | url
Votes: +1

Michael Hureaux Perez said:

... I think one of the more succinct statements I've seen in recent weeks as regards our host of barbarians is something Glen Ford of Black Agenda Report brought to the table this morning in connection with Arne Duncan's offhand comment about how Hurricane Katrina was "the best thing to happen to education in New Orleans". Having noted the essential ghoulish quality of the so-called Secretary of Education's comment, Glen summed up the spirit of the moment with: "When the very existence of the poor is deemed the essence of the problem, then the ultimate logic is genocide". From the indiscriminate killing and dislocation of hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq, it is only a short step to the idea that the destruction and dislocation of people due to a natural disaster is a stroke of luck. It is small wonder that the relief effort in Haiti has been such a pig's ear, there was never any real commitment to it from the pigs to begin with. Shortly after the ruination of New Orleans, there was some major flooding out here in Washington State near Chehalis that actually shut down a section of the Interstate freeway for a brief period. Homes and businesses were under water for days. While nowhere near the scope of th indifference New Orleans encouontered, people in Chehalis absorbed their disaster fairly even temperedly. And so it goes, from now on. The purpose of the social contract is solely to enrich the richest, the rest of us will kindly eat dirt. The Imperium knows best, both at home and abroad. And by god,if it takes the deaths of tens of thousands to jump start the economy and the fortunes of this country, well then, that's what it takes. Arbeit macht frei.

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February 04, 2010
Votes: +2

Richard Martin Oxman said:

	In case readers have difficulty with the links just provided for the proposal, etc. http://oxtogrind.org/archive/483 http://oxtogrind.org/archive/336 Hopefully, that will work now. Contact at tosca.2010[atatat]yahoo.com
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February 04, 2010 | url
Votes: +1

john kelley said:

Just say no From, 'Why Are Americans Passive as Millions Lose Their Homes, Jobs, Families and the American Dream?', by Harriet Fraad 5. The Drugging of America The fifth tributary that helped to create our deluge of disaster is both a cause and an effect of America's social breakdown. This is the numbing of Americans with psychotropic drugs. In 2006, Americans, who make up approximately 6 percent of the world's population, consumed 66 percent of the world's supply of antidepressants. In 2002, more than 13 percent of Americans were taking Prozac alone. Prozac is one of thirty available antidepressants. Anti-anxiety drugs, such as Zoloft, are so widely prescribed that in the year 2005, the $3.1 billion sales of Zoloft exceeded the sales for Tide detergent. Many of these drugs, which are also called "cosmetic drugs" or "life-enhancing drugs," are diagnosed for loneliness, sadness, life transitions, or concentration on task performance. They have been "normalized" through extensive direct-to-consumer advertising and marketing to doctors who are financially rewarded for recommending them to colleagues. Regulations that once restrained the widespread promotion and sales of these powerful drugs have been relaxed to the point of near nonexistence. The United States is the only Western nation that permits direct-to-consumer drug advertising. We are also the only nation without price controls on drugs. Psychiatric drugs are so ubiquitous that the pharmaceutical industry is the most profitable industry in America, and antidepressants are their most profitable products.

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February 04, 2010
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Alan MacDonald said:

... Empire is a cancerous pathology of elitism accomplished through the perversion of the economy, only abusing politics and military as a surface disguise. Unfortunately, we can not dismantle empire if its name is not even whispered. Obama will not even level with himself or the American people about the hidden 'empire problem' in our kitchen of burned democracy. However, the empire's solution, and the elite's final solution, is already well formulated, and it is "beyond the dark fields of the Republic that roll on under the night". The empire is no longer an American Empire, a term so passe that it is now allowed to be voiced even on "This Week", not just by Chomsky, Kolko, or Johnson, and which is leveraged only to fuel the American rubes' final xenophobia. The real empire has already metastasized to a Global corporate/financial/militarist Empire that only used us (the U.S.) as its temporary HQ and has now, like Elvis, "left the building". This is why there is no crying from the ethereal global elite, no wisp in the eye for a patriotic homeland, but only the relief that the higher social costs of doing bidness from a U.S. headquarters can be avoided like Halliburton avoided taxes in its new global HQ. Obama is merely the doorman for this graceful move by the American Empire to enter the new elite clubhouse of Global Empire that it has built with treasure and blood that we thought was our American ‘commonwealth’. Alan MacDonald Sanford, Maine

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February 04, 2010
Votes: +5