By 2010, the U.S. WillCease to Exist as a Nation

The economic crisis is only the top layer of problems facing the world today.

The financial system is not the only thing failing, so too is the hegemonic world order. The American ideology of consumer culture is collapsing. What awaits us in the near future, what the vision of the new world should be and how to build it, are the topics being discussed by participants of the largest international forum, “Dialogue of Civilizations,” which is currently taking place on the island of Rhodes (Greece).

All experts at the forum agree that the crisis is growing. But there is no such unanimity regarding the questions of how and when it will end. Mikhail Hazin, president of the expert-consulting company Neokon, believes that the decline will continue until American GDP decreases by 30%, and consumer demand drops 20%. Other experts have predicted that by 2010, the U.S. as a unified nation could collapse altogether.

The European Union’s prospects don’t look good either. Perhaps, its days are numbered. “It’s too late for the EU to coordinate action to prevent a crisis,” said Jacques Sapir, a professor of economics at the High School of Social Sciences. “It [coordination] is accomplished much quicker and more effectively by the government of the countries that make up the EU.” After recovering from putting out financial fires, Europeans are very likely to wonder why they even need such an incompetent association.

In a situation where the US and other developed countries end up completely demoralized by the crisis, which flared up due to their direct involvement, the hopes of creating a new world order lie with the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China).

“These countries have gold reserves, but the main thing is that the world has confidence in them,” explained Jagdish Chandra Kapur, the co-chairman and co-founder of the World Public Forum “Dialogue of Civilizations.” He continued, “One specific task that this order must solve is the fight against poverty. Today, 70% of the world population experiences a shortage of various goods or services.”

Apart from the material challenge of feeding the planet, the coordinators of a new world order have a spiritual challenge: finding a new ideal of social development. The ideology of the consumer culture is outdated.

“What started this crisis?” asked Professor Yuri Yakutin, who holds a doctorate in economics, “It was overproduction. The U.S. built so many houses that, as it turned out, there was no one left to buy them. The housing market declined. Today, throughout the world, banks are being nationalized, and money is being poured into the economy. But this only lowers the patient’s fever, while the source of the sickness [ideological collapse] is not being treated.”