I don't know how this author wrote this with a straight face.
"Rising nationalism will only accelerate this decline and disappoint public expectations, the economist argues in his column."
Nationalists are exactly what you need for a country to do better in any sector. They foster national unity, ensuring a cohesive society that works toward common goals. They prioritize economic protectionism, strengthening domestic industries and reducing reliance on foreign markets. They bring political stability, allowing for decisive leadership and effective governance. They invest in military strength, ensuring national security and strategic independence. They preserve cultural identity, reinforcing national pride and resilience. They promote civic engagement, leading to stronger governance and a more involved public.
This isn't decline. It is the foundation of a nation's success.
This may have been true in 1700 but not in 2025. We live in a global economy where countries and companies have taken advantage of comparative advantages. Juche does not work for North Korea and it won’t work for the U.S.
I can speak about europe, but I don't think that that the US started on a serious downward trend until nationalism started rising.
But let's say that the US was really on a downward trend -- it's still a big logical leap to say that it's because of some sort of lack of nationalism, especially because whatever downward trend there was has been sped up a lot with the rise of nationalism.
Nationalism of the sort we're seeing now is correlated with the collapse of nations, not with healthy ones.
> This isn't decline. It is the foundation of a nation's success.
The foundation of the US's success was how it managed to unitd the world in general and the US in particular under it's influence, which was only possible due to its spirit of cooperation and spread of unifying values.
The Trump administration is single-handedly dismantling the very foundation of US's success and hegemony for the past century. It's attacking staunch allies and turning them into at best sceptic neutral parties, and it's excluding itself from international trade and forcing the world to reconsider using the dollar.
Each of these issues individually would be disastrous to the US. The Trump administration is speed running through them all in record time. It would be impossible for a bad actor who captured the US administration to undermine the US at the same rate.
This marks the US decline and path towards irrelevance, with terrifying consequences to the world.
"Rising nationalism will only accelerate this decline and disappoint public expectations, the economist argues in his column."
Nationalists are exactly what you need for a country to do better in any sector. They foster national unity, ensuring a cohesive society that works toward common goals. They prioritize economic protectionism, strengthening domestic industries and reducing reliance on foreign markets. They bring political stability, allowing for decisive leadership and effective governance. They invest in military strength, ensuring national security and strategic independence. They preserve cultural identity, reinforcing national pride and resilience. They promote civic engagement, leading to stronger governance and a more involved public.
This isn't decline. It is the foundation of a nation's success.