All great things must come to an end. The United States of America has humble beginnings, similar to Rome’s origin story. The United States started off as an underdog, working against Great Britain. The idea the Romans had of their origin was that twins Romulus and Remus were raised by a she-wolf. The change from starting off animalistic then becoming a civilization in itself is a difficult task. USA is following the same collapse as Rome formerly did. Some of the issues they have in common are the economic issues, the need for constant vigilance, and all the power being shifted to the Executive Branch. America and Rome, both have a non-existent middle class. This means America is “worsening an already invidious class divide.” When Rome …show more content…
Both of the countries were “overwhelmed by the consequences of its own growing size and might, and by its perceived national-security needs.” Rome always had to be two steps ahead of their opponents. They needed to keep their plans a secret and hide the distress they may have with any battle. America also deals with problems of security. They are constantly fighting a “War on Terror.” At every moment they are worried about a possible terrorist threat. If someone were to forget a book bag at the airport, everyone would go on high alert. A lot of extra money is being wasted on something benign. There is also the fact that everyone is always being observed. The Romans had curiosi. They were people who would try to find out if someone was against Rome by disguising themselves. There is the similar idea of the National Security Agency, the NSA, constantly being on watch. Edward Snowden, a whistle-blower, exposed the NSA for keeping records on millions of Americans. They were looking for terrorist threats, but broke people’s right to privacy. America has to be on high alert at all times, which may lead to their downfall because of the similar circumstances Rome dealt …show more content…
The American government has three branches, Judicial, Legislative, and Executive branches. Every branch is supposed to check on each other so that one does not gain more power over the other, however that is not the case. The Executive Branch is continuing to gain more and more power. This occurred in Rome when the emperor was solely in charge of war and foreign policies. In the USA the president cannot do that, but none of them has ever “sought a true declaration of war.” Instead the presidents just sent American troops to combat zones without a true declaration. The presidents are in fact getting over excited with the power they have. George W. Bush, a former president, once stated, “I’m the commander – see, I don’t need to explain …. I don’t feel like I owe anybody an explanation.” He should be expected to have to explain himself to both the Judicial and Legislative Branch. The weight of certain decisions are to great for one person to make, there needs to be multiple viewpoints considered. If one person is calling the shots it can lead to corruption. People will begin to do things that will only benefit themselves and not the country as a whole. People may believe in the idea of check and balance, but the president is gaining more and more