On May 4, 2021
© By John Arkelian
During its first 200 years, the Roman Empire presided over a period of unprecedented (for its time) stability and prosperity throughout the Mediterranean world – a period known as the ‘Pax Romana’ (or ‘Roman Peace’). While that order was largely established by force of arms, what gave it durability, purpose, and value was the force of civilization that it embodied. In the wake of the Second World War, a modern-day equivalent arose in the form of a Pax Americana. America’s leadership of the Free World, and its standing as a global superpower, brought with it many good things, like an international rules-based order, the rebuilding of post-war Europe and Japan, increased prosperity and well-being for many, a network of alliances that kept aggressive powers contained, and remarkable advances in science and technology. True, that period of American ascendancy was marred by its support for noxious proxies in the Third World; by a failure to adhere consistently to its own core values; by ill-considered violence in Vietnam and elsewhere; and by a failure to adequately resolve internal problems like racial injustice. Notwithstanding those failings (however egregious), the world was better for American leadership. It can be again.
See “The Case of a New, Improved Pax Americana” at: https://artsforum.ca/ideas/the-wide-world