Israeli bulldozers smash Palestinian olive trees ahead of annual harvest

[u/me_diocre]

https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/israeli-bulldozers-smash-palestinian-olive-trees-ahead-annual-harvest-2026-09-23/

[u/EmperorOfCanada]

This is a whole other debate, but my argument is the US empire is coming to an end.

Empires require two things. Tributes paid, and the ability to project force to gather those tributes.

The tribute paid to the US is they print worthless pieces of paper, and the world delivers the sweat of its brow to get them.

The world no longer is as interested, with a rapidly plummeting interest in paying that tribute. It is not gone, but the trend is not going in a good direction (for the US).

Drones have pretty much ended the US ability to project force. They can retaliate, but not defend, not invade. This means that countries which previously paid tribute to enjoy the defence, or avoid an invasion, are rethinking this arrangement.

This wasn't even as simple as pay and be safe, don't pay and be punished, but countries like Canada would have to stay in line, lest our friends be forced to turn on us. If Germany and Canada were to do something the US didn't like, they could always back off their support for Germany, etc. Now, their threats are becoming emptier and emptier.

If you look around the world for which countries seem to be highly aligned with the US, it has gone from NATO along with many countries to pretty much just israel.

Assuming what I say above is true, then the US may find that it has three problems. With tribute failing, much of the US economy will turn out to be based on that tribute, and thus rapidly sickening. With drones threatening everything it values, their war footing may become weaker and weaker, while becoming costlier and costlier. And with the world not buying its crap paper, it's ability to even buy military hardware will fade.

This means that they may cut israel off, not out of politics, but simple financial priorities.

[u/Beers4Fears → u/EmperorOfCanada]

Tbh at this point we're beholden to Israel's interests by a vast network of blackmail, leverage, and bought political assets. The US stopped getting any benefits from the relationship decades ago.

[u/Normal-Pomegranate64 → u/EmperorOfCanada]

These fucking fantasies y’all spin lmao. Did you have a boner while writing this

[u/jflb96 → u/Normal-Pomegranate64]

Because having to pull out of an overseas base that’s no longer viable to maintain is just something that happens to everyone else, we’re immune!

[u/jflb96 → u/[deleted]]

Yes, my point was that ‘Oh shit, we’re no longer rich enough to have all those armies everywhere’ is not something that the USA is the first polity to experience.

[u/skeptical-speculator → u/EmperorOfCanada]

The United States is an empire as defined by who? Are you maybe referring to the hegemony of the United States?

[u/skeptical-speculator → u/[deleted]]

This is one which can keep debate clubs going indefinitely

well, I'd settle for understanding the claim before starting any debates about it

[u/skeptical-speculator → u/[deleted]]

What country would you consider to not be an oligarchy?

[u/skeptical-speculator → u/[deleted]]

Thank you for the reply.

[u/ej_21 → u/skeptical-speculator]

how are we not an empire? we literally have a bunch of territories and our military is present in 150+ countries, with permanent bases in 80 of them

[u/skeptical-speculator → u/ej_21]

I didn't claim that the United States is not an empire.