The Case for Goliath

Is the United States a Modern Empire?

Some critics contend that the U.S.A. is the modern world’s empire. Certain statistics imply that these voices could be correct. For example, at the beginning of the twenty-first century, the U.S. economy was larger than those of Germany, Japan and Great Britain combined. The U.S. defense budget remains greater than those of the next 15 nations combined, which may also explain how and why U.S. forces are deployed in 150 nations.

But the term "empire" is a misnomer when applied to the U.S. "Empire" implies political control, coercion and a dictatorship that divides its subject populations along racial, ethnic or religious lines. These criteria do not describe how the U.S. operates in the world today. A better description would be to say that the U.S. provides governmental services worldwide. This list of services includes assuring security, providing a stable business environment, fostering respect for intellectual property, protecting the health of citizens, and creating consumer demand for goods and services. Empires do not provide services, but as the purveyor of the world’s government, the U.S. has assumed this role because that...