UKRAINE ... YET ANOTHER REMINDER THAT THE U.S. IS AN EMPIRE IN DECLINE

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Igor Sechin, one of  Putin's long-term allies and a sanction target.

As a result of their refusal to go along with U.S. demands in Crimea the Obama administration has imposed new sanctions on Russia. Well, sort of.

The U.S. is going to impose a visa ban and an asset freeze on seven Russian officials, while sanctioning 17 Russian companies. The European Union is expected to follow suit, but will restrict sanctions to individuals rather than companies.

Under the new measures the U.S. will deny the export or re-export of defense related technologies or services to Russia or Crimea that contribute to Russia's defense or military capabilities.

Here's the problem with the sanctions. Absent the removal of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has squashed the opposition and neutered the independent media, the sanctions will only serve to heighten tensions between the U.S. and Russia in the immediate term. Put another way, expect military events in Ukraine and Crimea to continue apace.

What we need to keep in mind is that Russia has legitimate historical and national security claims in the region, and will continue to embrace and push them.

Over the long-term we can expect Russia and China (as well as anxious rogue states) to continue looking for an alternative to the U.S. dollar as the world's anchor currency.

There's more, but the new reality is that the era of U.S. global primacy is now officially over. We are now - as the British were in 19th century - firmly perched as the world's "swing" state. We misallocated resources and embarrassed ourselves in Iraq, and are bogged down in Afghanistan. Our performance in both places, and our paranoid responses at home, are hardly examples of enlightened leadership.

Sure, Osama Bin Laden is dead. But at what price?

Without a shift in how the U.S. Congress conducts business, or a reversal in the forces that are creating America's growing National Security State domestically, those who think the 21st century can be another American Century are delusional.

- Mark