Still time to save the golden age of America

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We in the media are obsessed with America's problems.

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But we must admit that life in America today is better than it has ever been anywhere.

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For most of history, hunger, disease, illiteracy, slavery and war were the norm.

There were a few exceptions (to some of these problems) – the so-called golden ages, Ancient Athens, Rome, the Renaissance, etc.

In our new video, historian Johan Norberg, author of the new book Peak Man, looks at the wonder of the Roman Empire, which once spanned much of Europe, as well as parts of Africa and Asia.

Ancient Rome inspired our form of government – a republic with a system of checks and balances.

“There’s a reason we have a Senate, and they meet in the Capitol,” Norberg explains. “We borrowed these ideas from the Romans.”

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The Romans were fierce warriors, as were many at the time. The Romans were able to create an empire because they tried something new:

“They gave people among the victims the opportunity to have a second career in Rome,” Norberg says. “They made them citizens and allowed them to do business, have a career in the army. Some of the subordinates could even become emperors!”

“The vanquished—some became emperors?” – I ask.

“The son of a freed slave ended up on the throne of Rome. That tells you something about the power of meritocracy and openness. You'll have better brains if you're open to more people.”

Rome prospered because the Romans drew ideas and talent from all over the world.

They didn't do it with good intentions.

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“Tolerance was a weapon, often a literal weapon,” explains Norberg. “They got their swords from the Spanish, their ships from Carthage, new business models from other groups. Because Rome was such a huge integrated free trade zone, you could get the best materials, the best technology from any part of the empire. So they could become masters of the world.”

Of course, Rome eventually fell.

There were many reasons. Disease, barbarian invaders, and one of the things modern society should be wary of: social spending.

Norberg says Rome collapsed because of “bread and circuses. Emperors wanted to become popular by giving people free things. Initially it all started small. You were simply giving away very meager means of subsistence. But it was popular, so the group, which lived at the expense of society, grew all the time. The emperors complained about this. Everyone from Caesar onwards said, “We must reform this system because it means we have fewer people working and more people consuming.” But no one succeeded.”

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This reminds me of the broken promises we see today: Social Security and Medicare in the US, absurd pension promises in other countries, and failing Social Security plans.

“Once you have an ever-expanding benefit system that you can't afford,” Norberg says, “that's often the beginning of decline and fall… The Romans may have conquered the world, but they couldn't get benefits reform.”

Instead, the Roman emperors did what modern governments do and printed more money.

In fact, because they used coins rather than paper money, they devalued their currency by putting less gold and silver into each coin.

“The inflation was much worse than that of the barbarian invaders,” says Norberg. “The Emperor blamed greedy businessmen – what we hear today. He imposed price controls on 1,000 goods. But obviously it all failed. Prices continued to rise and completely undermined the Roman Empire.”

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Today America is one of the richest and most inventive countries in the world. Will our “golden age” continue?

“One of the most alarming signs in history is that you begin to take wealth and comfort for granted,” Norberg says. “You're forgetting what got you started. I'm seeing a lot of warning signs right now. We have a backlash against the things that support innovation in our society, like trade, migration, unsustainable debt… But that doesn't mean we're doomed… This phase of decline and fall doesn't happen automatically. You can unleash new waves of innovation and progress. There's still time. We can still salvage this golden age.”

Every Tuesday on JohnStossel.com, Stossel posts a new video about the battle between government and freedom.

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