Yes, it does herald the end of American Empire.(1) First, those social media posts are on the Internet. Not via some state-aligned prestige outlet, not via broadcast media. They are on the Internet, on tech platforms operated by non-government actors, where anyone can talk back. Very different from the institutional strength of the past!(2) Second, obviously the global economy would not choose from scratch to center itself around something so unpredictable as today’s DC. The past architects of American Empi ...