Rome and the US.

[A dude named Vince]

Do you think that the US will follow the same path as the Roman empire and collapse? I had to write a paper on the subject, and it makes me wonder myself. If you want to read my essay, here it is. Remember, I'm still only 14, don't expect anything jaw-dropping. (I'll put a brief synopsis at the end if you don't feel like reading the entire thing.)

The Roman Empire and the United States of America are not two things that make you think of the other in an everyday sentence. However, many people know of the many similarities between the two civilizations. If this is true, it brings up a very interesting question. Is the United States doomed to collapse? Will we fall to some foreign nation, or be ripped apart from the inside? Only time can give us answers to these questions. However, we can examine the similarities between the Roman Empire and the United States respective governments, the people of the two civilizations, and how we used new technologies as they became available to us. The United States is a democratic country. It is made up of many different people, descended from all over the world. Citizens vote for a leader and have a say on new laws and the like. The United States meets all of the qualifications for a modern civilization. We have a strong standing army dedicated to protecting the country, and a strong military presence in other countries. We don’t stereotype people based on skin color or ethnicity nearly as much as we used to in the past (of course, stereotyping can’t be completely stopped). Education is offered to everyone regardless of background, and it will only be taken away if that person does something very bad. Our doctors, while not the greatest, are still very competent. Our technology is extremely advanced, and second to almost none. The Roman Empire was very advanced for it’s time. Unlike the US, leaders were not elected by a popular vote and ruled until they died. Many died due to treachery by usurpers and some just regular enemies. Their religion changed many times as different emperors came to power. At one time they were Pagans, and other times Christians. They had a very strong army, and had many successful military campaigns. Their population was very diverse, with people from all the surrounding regions. Since this empire existed many years ago, there was still a lot of stereotyping and prejudice around. The government was strong when it started it out, but time a long series of consecutive “bad” emperors eventually led to the collapse. At the time, the Roman Empire was at the fore front of technology. Their culture was very interesting, and holds some of the most notable events in the world (gladiator games, etc.). There are many similarities between these seemingly very different civilizations despite the large time gap. For instance, we control a large piece of the world as the Roman Empire did (proportionately) when it was the dominant force in the world. This is due primarily to the United States vast military presence in many places all over the world. The Roman Empire was very much the same at its peak, but on a smaller scale. The Roman Empire was also ahead of practically everyone else when it came to technology, and the same currently goes for the United States. The Roman Empire did a lot of conquering and expanding in its time, and the same goes for the United States. When the colonists first arrived on the islands off the coast of North Carolina, it wasn’t long before they came and settled. Slowly, the early Americans pushed westward driving many Native Americans from their homeland. Probably a commonly overlooked similarity is the propaganda that both civilizations use (or used) to spread fear. The Roman Empire’s gladiator games were evidence enough that this countries soldiers were tough, and not to be fooled with. Its common knowledge that the United States (of course, so could some other countries) could read a license plate from outer space with a satellite if they so wished it. If they wanted to, the US has weapons capable of hitting a dime on a table if the need called for it. That, and even Hollywood action movies may look intimidating to some slightly uneducated foreigner who doesn’t know better.Another similarity is how both civilizations make/made use of trading all over the world. Of course, the United States doesn’t do nearly as much exporting as importing, unlike the Romans did. Both civilizations were part of many wars as well. The Romans fought the Ottoman Turks; they fought the country Carthage, and so on. The United States was involved in World War one, World War two, Vietnam, and others. Rome won most of their wars (until they started to decline), and the United States hasn’t lost many wars at all; they helped win both world wars.
The citizens of the United States are extremely diverse. The population involves people from all over the world, some even from the opposite end of the world. Their cultures are as varied as their native lands. The United States is primarily made up of Christians, but it also holds Methodists, Baptists, Jews, Muslims, Mormons, Satanists, and atheists to name a few. There are even some Buddhists. Granted, not many of them, but they’re still there. People of all colors live in America as well. Hispanics and African Americans make up a sizable piece of the United State’s population. The distribution of wealth varies a great deal as well. Very rich make up a fair bit, the middle class is the largest, and the poor are in great numbers as well. The Roman Empire was diverse as well, but not as much as the United States. Economically, there were a few rich and many poor people. The slums were also very dangerous due to a lack of protection. Crime in the poor sectors was a very common occurrence and not thought of much by higher members of society. Rome gave home to people from places surrounding Italy. Their main religion changed many times depending on the emperor. At first they were polytheistic, and when they met with the Greeks they merged their gods together. Christianity became the main religion later on. The United States is home to some of the finest technology in the world. People can instantly communicate over the internet through the use of IRC (internet relay chat) and cell phones. The television can inform people of events happening all over the world or entertain them with comedy shows. Firearms have greatly advanced as well, and are much more deadly than any sword (never bring a knife to a gun fight). Cars allow for extremely fast travel, and planes are even quicker. In terms of technological achievements, the United States is almost second to none. Rome, at the time, was also at the fore front of all technology. The abacus is the earliest known portable calculator. While Rome itself did not invent much, they took ideas from other civilizations and added upon them. The idea of inventors and scientists were not around them, and stealing intellectual property was not thought of as an offense to whoever actually invented it. Architecture was also very advanced as well; for example, the Pont du Gard aqueduct. They even had a crane that could lift at least six tons. Romans were very ahead of their time when it came to things like this. So the question remains, is the United States on an inevitable path to anarchy or takeover? That question cannot be answered with one-hundred percent certainty. What caused the Roman Empire to fall was a very long succession of poor emperors and even poorer decisions made by them. Lately, United States presidents have been criticized more and more. Nixon, Bill Clinton, and the world never seems to run out of George W. Bush jokes. The economy isn’t that great either. The United States is in a huge debt because of how much greater the import level is over the export level. If you were to stop a random student and check their clothes tags, it is most likely that most of their clothes were made in another country. Gas prices are also rising at a steady and disturbing rate. Energy alternatives are not being put to as much use as they should, and car pooling is growing more often. And during this time, many concern themselves with global warming, or the Iraq war. How can we even think about things like this when we are inches away from economic collapse? The United States is also infamous for some ridiculous law suits, such as the old woman spilling hot coffee in her lap and suing because it burned. It seems that America is slowly becoming more and more distracted. However, this is not a completely impossible situation. There’s still time left, and how we put that time to use will dictate the fate of the world. Will America collapse under the weight of its debts, or in our inevitable weakened state will it be taken over? As stated in the beginning, only time will tell.

Long story short, like the Roman Empire, the US is very advanced and such. The main question is, if the US follows the path of Rome as it is currently, will it collapse as well? And very importantly, I'm hoping that nobody will interpret this as me asking for help on something I should be doing on my own, I just want your opinions. Feel free to poke any holes in my logic if they exist. And if you vote for "horrible," or "poor," give a reason why. The same goes for "decent," "good," and "great."

[Baconsticks]

I'll be nice and vote "good", however, I disagree with the points raised.

You are overlaying the Roman Empire's fall and the USA's current problems against the same background. The world is not the same as it was 2000 years ago: You are forgetting the major role that technology plays here. Technology is not some static thing that has no real bearing against geopolitics. Think about it: Things would of gone much differently for the Roman Empire if they where able to track barbarians using satellites, conduct trade deals with other nations in a matter of minutes, and if everybody in Rome was able to watch Jesus's crucification over Youtube.



Also, you sound like the Unibomber. (kind of)

[CameronCN]

It's an interesting subject (and one which I've often expounded upon myself), but the problem is you spend most of the time reciting off different comparisons without really saying why they matter. What does diversity have to do with social stability? Quite a bit, but you don't really say. In order to support a theory like this, you need to have well-structured arguments. I'll give it a "good," though, because I happen to agree with your point, at least partially.

[rabid_fox]

Holy long paragraphs, Batman!

Here's a trick for you. A paragraph should be discussing a single idea. Follow the formula:

Point
Evidence
Explain

to help you better structure your essays. I found that this one, whilst it raised a lot of interesting points, was discursive rather than explanatory and never really provided much evidence to justify your stance other than vague references.

[nickspoon]

Point
Evidence
Explain

You really are an English teacher!

I read through until I died from lack of paragraph breaks. I also glanced at the end, and I think you ought to come up with a better conclusion than "only time will tell". Summarise the comparisons you've drawn in the body of the essay and make a general statement on how likely you think it is that the US' 'empire' (I disagree with the assertion that the US controls as much of the world as the Romans did) will collapse.

The economy isn’t that great either.

Avoid writing sentences like that in formal essays. It completely wrecks your tone. Don't use contractions, and don't use a casual "is not that great". A better substitute would perhaps be "The economy is not as strong as it once was."

[A dude named Vince]

Thanks for all the tips, I'll remember them when I have to write something like this again.

[Burning Sheep Productions]

I thought it was PEER with a "relate" on the end.
Though obviously PEE is going to be much easier to remember.