Wars end when the aggressor runs out of immediately needed resources. No more bullets, no more bombs, no more gasoline, no more food.
Aggressive empires end when the war machine runs out of human resources and popular support. No more usable soldiers, no fighting spirit.
We’ve reached that point. We no longer build anything except weapons, and our weapons depend heavily on Chinese engineers and Chinese factories. In the era of software control this dependence is fatal. There’s no way to be sure the software will work FOR us.
The military can’t recruit because nobody wants to join. Even if it resumed the draft, there wouldn’t be enough physically or mentally suitable human bullets.
I think the loss of willing joiners is narrower than the general loss of trust in all institutions. When the Army switched to volunteers in 1975, it primarily relied on Southerners with their long tradition of honor and soldierly virtue. At that time the South had been treated fairly by Yankees for a couple of generations. In the ’30s and ’40s, media tried hard to empathize with southern concerns, and FDR made a BIG point of serving Dixie with WPA and TVA and other programs.
Everything changed in the ’70s when the bankers and stockbrokers took over the media and ruling class. Since 1970 the media and government HATE everything associated with the South, and spend huge amounts of time bashing hillbillies and crackers. This comes naturally to city folks, who are always ready to beat and bash and steal from hicks and peasants.
Why did NYC hold its fire in the 30s and 40s? Why did FDR try hard to help Dixie? Because Southern politicians were the core of the Democrat Party.
Now, after 50 years of beatings and 50 years of super-rich NYC bankers in full control of the D party and thus the government and media, morale shockingly didn’t improve. NOBODY wants to help the Yankee monsters, and Dixie is especially unwilling to sacrifice its young men.
Polistra's Mill 