Always love reading your articles. 😊 It is worth remembering that The Fate of Empires was written in 1975 in the 'Age of Decadence' and it seems like Glubb was just describing what he saw around him. As a lifelong soldier and imperial administrator, he valued discipline, duty, and martial virtue above all and seeing 'decadence' and the lack of 'soldierly' values all around him, it wouldn't be surprising if he retrofitted historical cycles to fit that narrative (Confirmation Bias). I remember The Fate of Empires from years ago, not as a book but as a topic of conversation. One thing stuck in my mind, the Fate of Empires is like the 'Heroes journey'.
The Hero reaches manhood and is determined to make his mark on the world.
The Hero undertakes quests and adventures overcoming many trials and hardships
The hero is acclaimed by the people and achieves wealth and status
The hero becomes lazy, arrogant, uncaring and corrupt
He is eventually overthrown by a younger more energetic rival
Hard times make strong men, strong men make good times. good times make weak men, weak men make hard times.
Valuable context there for Glubb, Andy. Agree that the rise and fall of a nation models the hero's journey. Question is, will the younger and more energetic rival come from within or from somewhere else?
Great article, Sam. Thought-provoking and also very readable. Many of us have been feeling that we're in "The End of Days" recently with regards Western civilization. But to see that several analysts already mapped out this path fairly accurately is something else entirely.
Thanks Roland. An informal poll of people around me has always shown people feel something big is coming. This has been going on for a few years now – the collective consciousness is on high alert. In ~15 years or so we'll be through this period but it's gonna get bumpy
Always love reading your articles. 😊 It is worth remembering that The Fate of Empires was written in 1975 in the 'Age of Decadence' and it seems like Glubb was just describing what he saw around him. As a lifelong soldier and imperial administrator, he valued discipline, duty, and martial virtue above all and seeing 'decadence' and the lack of 'soldierly' values all around him, it wouldn't be surprising if he retrofitted historical cycles to fit that narrative (Confirmation Bias). I remember The Fate of Empires from years ago, not as a book but as a topic of conversation. One thing stuck in my mind, the Fate of Empires is like the 'Heroes journey'.
The Hero reaches manhood and is determined to make his mark on the world.
The Hero undertakes quests and adventures overcoming many trials and hardships
The hero is acclaimed by the people and achieves wealth and status
The hero becomes lazy, arrogant, uncaring and corrupt
He is eventually overthrown by a younger more energetic rival
Hard times make strong men, strong men make good times. good times make weak men, weak men make hard times.
Valuable context there for Glubb, Andy. Agree that the rise and fall of a nation models the hero's journey. Question is, will the younger and more energetic rival come from within or from somewhere else?
The old world is dying and the new world is struggling to be born. We live in the rubber of monsters
*time. 🤦
I kinda like "the rubber of monsters." Sounds like a Japanese punk band
😂😂😂
This article deserves much more recognition. Well done. I look forward to reading the next few.
Thank you!
Great article, Sam. Thought-provoking and also very readable. Many of us have been feeling that we're in "The End of Days" recently with regards Western civilization. But to see that several analysts already mapped out this path fairly accurately is something else entirely.
Thanks Roland. An informal poll of people around me has always shown people feel something big is coming. This has been going on for a few years now – the collective consciousness is on high alert. In ~15 years or so we'll be through this period but it's gonna get bumpy