First of all, I believe it is important to assert that there is no recommendation that can be made that will preserve the integrity of the so-called American Empire. If we are truly being realistic and conscious of historical evidence, then we cannot reasonably assert that the American Empire can continue on indefinitely. After all, over the course of a long enough stretch of time, the survival rate of everything drops to zero. We cannot expect the American Empire to behave any differently. However, there is a very large difference between a sudden, catastrophic collapse of complexity and a more managed, gradual scaling back of imperial activity. This essay, then, will examine five possible recommendations that can be made to U.S. policymakers that could help them manage the inevitable decline of the American Empire. These recommendations will be drawn from historical evidence-an examination of civilizations such as Harappa civilization, the Han Dynasty, the Mycenaean civilization, and the Roman Empire. This evidence should make my recommendations all the more pressing and pertinent should the U.S. be interested in avoiding catastrophic collapse.

             One of the first and most important lessons that US policymakers should consider is that it is important to strike a rough balance between the competing national interests of military investment, economic investment, and national consumption (Bernasek, 2005). Despite the US's current unrivaled political, economic, and military might a failure to do so would ultimately undermine any strength of Pax Americana. For example, it is unwise to focus too many resources on military expansion and development. The Roman Empire was fully built on military expansion and survived by conquering a swath of territory 2700 miles from east to west and 2500 miles from north to south (Spodek, 1998). The Mycenaean civilization of ancient Greece was in a similar situation.