Are the age of Empires over?

[Guled Orwell]

With the European Union become more real and other organization become more unified.... are the age of empires over?

By the way the United States of America is not an empire just a union between 50 states at share a common goal.

European Union

African Union

Asian Union?

 

[farting bob]

The golden age of empires is long over, at at least rather dormant.
The EU isnt suddenly becoming more unified, if anything less so, just with more members. same as the UN.

 

[h4ppy]

European states have almost all dropped the empire thing years ago.

(I predict that this thread will get to atleast three pages even though we've already had the E.U. debate thousands of times. Its just that fun!!)

 

[Guled Orwell]

Yes but History repeats itself maybe we are having a polite empire?

 

[Tank_Guy#3]

I would say probably not. It's just in a lull right now.

 

[Stefan Haertel]

By the way the United States of America is not an empire just a union between 50 states at share a common goal.

The only other American I ever heard of saying that has been dead for 150 years...

 

[Bozo Erectus]

Empires are alive and well. The only thing thats changed is how we define 'empire'.

 

[DAv2003]

We'll probably have to have a nuclear war before having official Empires again.

 

[Hotpoint]

The days of the various European Empires are long gone... the Days of the European Empire are yet to come!

Pax Europa... you know it makes sense



Hotpoint goes off to polish his Lorica Segmentata for when he needs it

 

[~Corsair#01~]

Empires are obsolete.

 

[Princeps]

Empires are obsolete.

Nah.

Empire is human nature.

 

[Gelion]

Empires don't have to have a name saying "Empire of X". Age of Empires is still there....

 

[Wolfe Tone]

No, I think the third one is due to be released sometime soon

 

[~Corsair#01~]

Nah.

Empire is human nature.

Human nature is the path of least effort. Empire is being abandoned in favour of semi-autonomous governments that can be relied upon to act as you want them to and don't require largescale military interference...

 

[farting bob]

No, I think the third one is due to be released sometime soon

Finally someone mentioned it. I thought a bunch of gaming addicts would have brought it up sooner....
The problem with expanding an empire now is that the odds are if one of the new countries on the block (china as an example) decides to take over X country, or Xregion, you end up with world wars. nicht gut, as the germans would say.

 

[vbraun]

Yes but History repeats itself maybe we are having a polite empire?

"History doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme."
-Mark Twain

Even if History were to repeat itself, why would an empire have to exsist? There have been time where there were no empires.

 

[Knight-Dragon]

The Empires of China and Russia are still well and existent.

Japan still has an emperor.

 

[Civlord]

Yeah, there will surely have a lot more AoE games.

The US are an empire. That "United States" name is nothing but a formal thing. The Civil War showed that. And soon EU will become like that.

 

[admiral-bell]

The sun never sets on the american empire. There are US military bases all over the world.

 

[Irish Caesar]

Depends on the definition of "empire," of course. And USA, EU, Russia, and China are all large landmasses with huge populations and huge influences on global politics and society in general. Each attempts to bend other nations to its will (Iran's nuclear situation becomes a huge political showdown between USA, EU, and Russia as to deal with the ?problem best). Far from libertarian, some of these "empires" hold overseas territories and occupy other nations (USA is in Iraq, Korea, etc., many of EU's members have foreign "holdings") or have horrendous human rights records (China's treatment of Falun Gong members and dissidents?).

I don't see empires disappearing; they are merely referred to as some other title.