The End of Empire
Diana Hochman, March 2023
How I wished it would rain. Then yesterday, it happened. It finally rained.
Are capitalism and democracy diametrically opposed? For the past 30 years, this lingering question has hovered over me like a nimbostratus cloud on the verge of showering me with an epiphany. Then yesterday, it happened. It finally rained. Indeed, capitalism and democracy are diametrically opposed. Capitalism is about making a profit, at any human being's expense. Democracy is about the will of the people and what is in their best interest. Capitalism, in unbridled form, is antagonistic to democracy.
In today’s Washington Post—owned by one of the greediest men alive, the consummate capitalist Jeff Bezos—there is an article titled, World's richest 1% has gained 33.9 trillion since 2015, enough to end poverty 22 times over, as reported by the charity Oxfam. The content is now available in multiple publications. For the record, I, too, support exacting fines on the excess of the elite, which is also called a Wealth Tax.
Not only are people with exorbitant amounts of wealth not paying their fair share in taxes, but they double-dip by default since they make their fortune off the sweat of cheap labor, as well as from the pockets of the middle class (and poor) who purchase their products. Moreover, in America, funds are diverted from education and health care and the arts and sciences in order to give the wealthy a tax cut. This is a criminal assault on society and a violation of the will of the people. Though big and slated to increase the national debt to the tune of trillions, there is nothing beautiful about Trump’s bill.
Another problem is that corporate greed is one major factor for the epidemic of illegal immigration in America. Corporations calculated how cheap labor would increase their bottom line, and so American politicians looked the other way when people came to America illegally. And this was okay, until it was not. And why is that? Sustainability.
Every human society (nation) benefits from immigration. In fact, all of us are everywhere.
A just society would not punish people for its own mistakes, but would own its failures. In this case, the only viable means to resolving the monumental number of illegal migrants in one’s country is to give the working class migrants a pathway to citizenship. And this starts with a work visa.
Sending illegal immigrants to war-torn and impoverished countries like South Sudan—where they did not even come from in the first place—is a crime against humanity. It’s like dumping your (treating human beings like) trash in someone else’s yard. This is so far beyond the pale, it defies every basic human norm. The decision to approve this is truly a blight on the United States Supreme Court. What brand of justice would ever authorize such a heinous act.
It is easy to criticize the current US president as the worst human being on the planet, and to be utterly dismayed by how truly grotesque a human being he in fact really is. He is appalling, even by the lowest standard. Who among us behaves with such tactless, lawless, impunity. His behavior goes against the very notion of what it means to be human. He acts like something other than human. He, like the Hitler’s and Stalin’s of the world, serve as the pure model of all that is wrong with humanity. The more uncomfortable truth, however, is that Trump is a mirror, reflecting back to us just how hideous and ugly we really are in America. And we revolt and recoil and cringe because the face we see is a monstrosity. But this is us, America—without makeup and wigs and good lighting and photo editing—a greedy, immoral, godless society, and a terrible value system with no regard for the law or for our fellow human beings.
Trump is the sum total of the worst of American Society
As the walls crumble around us, we must accept collective responsibility for creating this Frankenstein (Trump). Trump is not the only, or first, American president or American politician who cheated on his wife, or was accused of rape, or who cheated on his taxes, or who enriched himself off of America and other poor people around the world, or who was close friends with Epstein, or who lied to the American people about the need for a preemptive attack against a foreign nation. He is just one more failed American leader on a nearly inexhaustible list.
The American government is full of lawmakers whose side gig is insider trading. They know exactly when to buy on the dip. Congress is owned by lobbyists, judges are prone to bribes, presidents make war for the sake of war profits, and yes, American Presidents sell America down the river for private gain and airplanes.
The only difference between Trump and every person that came before him is that he does in broad daylight what every other person did in secret. He has no compunction to hide his grift, or lies, or theft. He doesn’t care that he spits lies like a gushing fountain on an open tap on his ironically, if not satirically, named Truth Social platform. He governs American (and foreign) policy on social media, thereby making a mockery of diplomatic norms.
This is not only shocking and embarrassing, it is unacceptable. But Trump is just doing things the American way. He is a reality TV show guy. It’s all about ratings that keep everyone talking about him, and thus keep him relevant. Or so he thinks. He is truly fast and furious. Before anyone in America (or the world) can discuss his violation of the UN Charter for bombing Iran’s nuclear facilities without justification, and demand that he is held accountable for this egregious violation of international law, whether through sanctions, or exclusion, or other punitive damages, he makes false claims for a conclusive win and is doing his damnedest to get the media to fall in line with his false narrative. To top that off, he makes the not so subtle move for a long coveted trophy, just to add another notch on his belt so that he can boast to his dying day that he is a peacemaker. To this end, he tasked his shills (including Pakistan [who knew?]) with nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Trump is, hands down, no questions asked, the most hateful person in the world and the least peaceful human being on the planet. He takes toxic to a whole different level. And what we the people must deal with day in and day out, is the aftermath of the disaster that is Trump. His propaganda spigot is turned on full blast as he floods the airwaves with lies, as if the whole world is not seeing everything unfold before our eyes.
The culture of celebrity is the engine that drives the worst human impulses in America, and it is this morally bankrupt culture that has both downgraded and degraded America since 2006. The mask is off now. Polite Society everywhere in America is being revealed for the vulgar and immoral and decadent and debauched society it really is. In reality, celebrity (America) is an ugly monster that makes people shirk at the mere sight of it.
To him who is given much, much will be required
Greed is the engine that drives Capitalism. At some point, when the limits of excess have been transgressed, the system begins to decay. Poverty is exacerbated, war, crime, every social disease is amplified to its fullest extent, to the point of autophagy, when the society essentially eats itself and thus metastasizes into a cancer before it dies. The 1% would not be the 1% without the 99% and if the 99% ceased to exist, the 1% will not have a base to sustain it. Greed is not sustainable.
Capitalism and colonialism are offshoots of imperialism, where a small portion of society controls and feeds off the rest of society, who are subjected to a condition of serfdom (poverty). This has happened throughout human history. Greedy people want to preserve their interest (s) at the expense of all others. They have no regard for the well-being of others, nor do they care about how their actions impact others. They are arrogant, inconsiderate, full of themselves, smug, prideful, and uncivilized human beings.
An empire is a hierarchical structure that is defined by stratification. Its sole purpose is to rule through conquest and colonization and other forms of oppression. The West, as an empire, maintains its framework by controlling for the outcome. The greatest Made in the USA product that the United States of America produces is to manufacture generational poverty, both at home and abroad. The result of this is that both poverty and wealth remain concentrated in the same spheres of influence from generation to generation.
Upward mobility remains an elusive promise, a pot of gold at the end of a never-ending rainbow. People are relegated to the status of tools, born and bred to serve the cog. And thus condemned to lives of despair. As soon as the 1% can replace the 99% with Bots and AI, the cheapest and most efficient slave labor force the greedy capitalist has concocted thus far, it will gladly exterminate the 99%. The rise of the clones is the greatest existential threat, second only to nuclear warfare. We are already far along on this path.
Many people worldwide have been displaced due to war, crime, poverty, famine and disease. Most cities in America have been gentrified such that the middle class are now the working poor. In many cases, these people can no longer afford to buy or rent a place, and some, like teachers and other working professionals, live in their cars. Of course, the politically correct way to call this new brand of homeless is unhoused citizen or urban camper. Drugs and alcohol and weapons, a toxic and lethal combination, saturate our streets. The divide between rich and poor has never been more stark.
Occasionally, there are outliers who rise through the ranks in (American) society, who climb the ladder of poverty to wealth. When this happens, such a person is suddenly visible and has a voice. Until then, one is merely hidden in plain sight. Invisible and unheard. Disenfranchised. Marginalized. While a problem in its own right, it is understandable why marginalized people play the victim card. This gives them political clout and this political clout then provides the authority to silence dissent and debate. And thus, group dynamics fall prey to the same vice, the oppressed becomes the oppressor. And so the cycle is continued but in a different, though still virulent, form. Example: Israel in Gaza.
In America, intrinsic worth is measured extrinsically, that is, by the amount of money in your bank account. This has been taught from the earliest ages. Kids compare brands in school, and if one kid's brand doesn’t measure up to the status quo of the popular crowd, they will be made fun of, shunned, bullied and/or excluded. From the earliest ages then, people learn where they fit into American society. And most people in America feel left out. The feeling of being left out makes great prey for people like Trump. Many disenfranchised and vulnerable people in America joined the MAGA cult.
No one in America cares how one amasses their wealth. The question is never whether one became wealthy in an honest way. Perhaps wealth and honesty are diametrically opposed. One could be a rapist, a liar, a thief, a cheat, a pedophile, a human trafficker, or all of the above and more. As long as you don't get caught, Americans will celebrate you, invite you to their freak offs, or pedo island, and put you on a pedestal. That is, assuming being invited to in-crowd parties in the pit of hell to play with all the devils is your highest ambition and the hallmark of success for you.
The only thing that matters in America is that you have money. Because absent wealth, you are considered a nobody in this country. You are merely a servant born and bred to grease the wheels of the cog.
As the cycle of poverty and inequality is perpetuated in every place, it is no small wonder then that many people grow up cynical and angry, and that crime is pervasive. Colonialism and capitalism sustain the myth of the ruling class, but if humanity is to endure, then it is time to dispel the myth. We have tried imperialism, communism, socialism and capitalism, and none of these work in isolation. They all lead to oppression and authoritarianism, and in the case of capitalism, in its most malignant form, as is the case now, totalitarianism. So what will work, one must ask? Multipolarity and a mixed economy answer the problems that plague humankind in the 21st century.
One can write all the books or read all the books about what constitutes a just society. But ultimately, the matter is truly straightforward. Respect for oneself and respect for the boundaries of one's neighbor are the key requisites for mutually beneficial living conditions. This is true for all people in all places. It always starts with person number one. If I do not respect myself, my own well-being, and the proper care of my own home, then I clearly will not respect anyone else around me. This is true, whether for an individual or an entire nation. The only difference is scale. Therefore, just as one individual must keep a clean home so as not to bring filth and vermin to one's neighbor, so, too, must one nation care for its well-being so that it does not negatively impact its neighbors in the global village.
One nation, or people, must not impose their views or religious beliefs about God onto any other. [Radical) Islamic nations must not act as if it is their divine right to impose their beliefs on the world and claim the rest of the world is an infidel for not being a radical Muslim. If one finds sanctity in Islam, God bless, enjoy your culture and beliefs. Share them warmly, not oppressively. To attempt to impose this belief onto others is to trespass upon their humanity. And the same goes for every religion. Religious ideologues must stop believing their view of the world is the only right view. It may be the right view for one individual or group, but we share a world with many other people. We must act accordingly and know our place. Respect boundaries. The same holds true for neocolonialism. The Western Bloc (notably America) must stop trampling on the rights of other nations, just to steal their resources and impoverish their people, and thus condemning them to conditioned slavery.
The second social safeguard is personal and communal responsibility. We must take full responsibility for our actions. From the moment we reach adulthood we are solely responsible for our actions. Our choices are what we must take 100% ownership of. We must not blame our choices on anyone. On a communal level, we must all be bound by the law, so that we are held accountable to society if we trespass upon the rights or boundaries of others.
For example, at the individual level, one neighbor must not park in another neighbor's parking space or allow their dog to defecate in their neighbor's yard (without even bothering to clean it up, mind you). This is a flagrant trespass on one's neighbor, and it fosters bad neighborly relations. At the global level (of nation-state), one US President must not contravene international law (UN Charter) and bomb another nation's nuclear facilities (Iran), thereby instigating WWIII, in the absence of indisputable evidence of an imminent threat to one's nation. As of this writing, not a single shred of evidence has been produced that proves Iran was imminently set to bomb America (or Israel). Iran was in negotiations with America when Trump attacked. Of course, he was quick to deflect away from his error in judgment by focusing (transferring) his colossal failure onto Israel and Iran. As if wishful thinking will just erase his egregious decision. It will not.
When people transgress us in some way, it riles our instinct for justice. Of course, we want to punch back and rightfully so. But this is when we must dig deep within for a measured and diplomatic response that promotes conflict resolution. We have a right to self-defense, but our actions must always be proportional. We must take humane and legal steps to manage a hateful neighbor. If we do not, then we are just like them. In this, Iran did win. For it submitted its retaliatory response to the constraints of international law. Iran distinguished between combatants and civilians. Iran warned Qatar of its actions in advance to give civilians a chance to run for cover. This is the humane and legal way to engage in warfare. By contrast, neither Israel (in Gaza) nor America (in Iran) are behaving according to the rules of international law.
On that note, Russia's special military operation—which, in the absence of diplomacy on the part of Ukraine and its benefactors in the West—has tragically morphed into the undeclared War in Ukraine, but cannot be compared to the conflict in the Middle East. This is like attempting to compare and contrast an apple and orange simply because both are fruit. One is not like the other. The war in Eastern Europe bears no resemblance to the war between the US, Israel and Iran. This is not that. A marked failure to grasp history and understand nuance conflates and confuses issues, whether through ignorance or intent. Sometimes, both, as is the present case in America.
Democracy is about human rights. The common denominator of our pursuits in the global village must be about what is in the best interest of sustaining human beings on this planet. This is the primary question. Safeguarding the interests of all human beings must be the lamppost and guiding force that measures the actions we take as a society. Capitalism, in its current iteration, will not only be the end of America, but also the end of humankind. The current trajectory America is on is simply not sustainable, for America or the planet. At this rate, we will implode sooner rather than later. Thus, we must exact limitations on excess (unchecked capitalism). One way to do this is through regulations (and taxes and fines).
Many capitalists rail against regulations because regulations constrain the greedy behavior that impacts their bottom line. Regulations must be implemented in a way that does not inhibit innovation but rather, that promotes it. The hallmark of true innovation is that great ideas are promoted and products are created, but not at the expense of humanity. Producers motivated solely by greed will balk at this, but that’s okay. The collective will of the people is to not only survive but to thrive. Thus, we must honor the will of the people.
Society will benefit from regulations that stipulate producers must fulfill a mandate that guarantees their product does not harm people or the planet while still making a (though not excessive) profit. We might call this new brand of capitalism conscious capitalism. What would you call it? The 1% of people who use the most resources must be fined if they reach a limit of usage that exceeds what the average citizen consumes. In other words, celebrities and the wealthy, who use planes the way the average person uses a car and then virtue signals how much they support the environment by buying an electrical vehicle, no longer get a free pass. They are fined for excess use. By the way, carbon neutrality offsets do not count—at all. The Filthy Rich must be responsible to society for their actions. If people make a lot of money, not only must they pay their fair share in taxes, but any excess beyond that must be invested into their employees and other social funds that contribute toward poverty alleviation programs that uplift society. In this way, we are ethically redistributing wealth for the future generations.
By this same metric, as the world is rapidly transitioning away from the neocolonialism of corporate America and its military industrial complex, I reiterate, the world must disallow the neocolonialism of religious fanaticism. There is no place for colonialism, whether political or religious, in a multipolar world. History provides ample evidence of precisely how violence underwrites political and religious life. A multipolar world moves past the mind-prisons of ideology that have been the sole sponsors of state terrorism for all of recorded history thus far, and for which countless human souls have perished in the world. In fact, violence is the doctrine of the politics of religion as expressed in Radical Islam (Jihad) or Christian Nationalism (Zionism/Pogroms/Crusades) or Ultra Orthodox Judaism (Oppression of Israeli society/Palestinians). However, violence is also the doctrine of the religion of politics, which is the neoconservative capitalist creed of unipolar hegemony best expressed through regime change and endless wars, also known as (neo)colonialism.
In summation, respect for ourselves and one another, limits on excess, taking responsibility for our behavior, seeking a right and moral life, not moral superiority (the world is already full of hypocrites claiming the moral high ground while committing every brand of evil), and submitting to the rule of law (international and human rights laws), are what will sustain humanity in a mixed economic framework. Interestingly enough, Russia has a bit of a head start in this regard, as it is a mixed economy country. Every country has a lot of room for improvement, some (like America) much more than others.
In a multipolar world, there is a decentralized convergence of united nations, guided by respect for sovereign borders and mutually beneficent relations, where private enterprise coexists with the interests of the public good in a mixed economic framework. Absent this, not only will we see the end of empire, but also, the end of humanity.
Saturday, June 28, 2025 0755 - Final Edit.
