Letter to the editor: Lessons for America as we approach 250 years

The concept of entropy refers to the tendency toward increasing disorder over time in the dispersal of energy. Entropy applies to political entities, such as empires, as well as to the physical world. Although Americans may not think of our country as an empire, much of the world does.

According to a specialist on the subject, Sir John Bagot Glubb, the average survival rate of empires is 250 years, during which it slowly dies, primarily from overreaching — that is, dispersal of energy — in the quest for power.

Have we been overreaching? Not just recently — with wanting to annex Greenland, Canada and Panama — but for decades? What have we accomplished? We certainly have annoyed other countries and even antagonized the whole resource-rich continent of Africa.

While China has been building roads, railroads and trade relationships throughout Africa, Latin America and the Middle East, we have squandered our resources on a bloated military thinly spread over 750 military bases in 80 countries. While China has a zero tolerance approach to corruption within all levels of government as well as in private companies and foreign multinationals, we allow a convicted felon to run our government and authorize a businessman holding government contracts to make personnel and budget cuts to the very government agencies mandated to investigate his companies.

With the approach of 250 years of American independence, I believe there are some lessons here for a young nation from a country that has survived and thrived for over five millennia.

Kathleen Acklin

Highland Park