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I'd say great empires are like people in that they have finite lifespans. I really don't believe that the two standard responses to this question, i.e. overextension of empire or moral decline are anything more than vast and sweeping overgeneralities that beg particular questions and points of view. Empires are composed of people. People have many failings. I see the failings of people to be essentially variations on the theme of stupidity in one form or another. I define stupidity as the inability to correctly discern what is in one's self interest and what is not.
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create evolution
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