Behind these revelations, one must recall, lie the shambles of the U.S. physical economy, which has been systematically looted by the "free trade" and "globalization" regime of the past 37 years, and which is now taking down one corporate giant--GM, General Electric, Marconi, Philip Holzman--after another.

The other aspect of the "feet of clay" of the would-be Anglo-American monolith is the lightning-like spread of terrorism, and other forms of social unrest and disintegration, around the globe. As in the case of the Roman Empire, an imperial system does not create "order," but rather rules over a pandemonium of disorder, which is most conducive to its continued hegemony. Indeed, the acceleration of this disorder leads to the imposition of greater and greater dictatorial means from the top.

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An Empire with Feet of Clay

The bombast of imperial ultimatums filled the air this week, as spokesmen for the Anglo-American heirs of H.G. Wells, and President George W. Bush himself, brandished one threat after another against nations around the world, if they don't kowtow to the "war on terrorism." But no assessment of the strategic situation is possible without looking as well at the weak and dirty underside of this drive for an "American imperium," which also made itself dramatically visible.

Most notable was the testimony of the chiefs of the U.S. Pacific and European Commands before the House Armed Services Committee on March 21, in which they made clear that they don't have the capability of carrying out the missions they've already been committed to, much less the planned military action against Iraq. These military leaders were seconded later in the week by others.