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> fifty years ago if you were a US citizen in a foreign nation you were nigh untouchable

This is very much an exaggeration. Plenty of Americans were arrested along the Istanbul–Kathmandu trail 50 years ago for drug possession and spent some time in local jails, for example. And back then, if an American was arrested for drug infractions, he or she could expect as little sympathy from the local US consulate as today. Yes, for other sorts of crime, Americans might have been the beneficiaries of a very active consulate with some sway over local police and politicians, but Americans were hardly untouchable.

Agreed, and this was in the service of US drug policy. it worked in the interests of the US government and was permissible. To contrast, nationalizing a US citizens foreign property and ousting them from the country was impermissible. Much of Latin America was brought to heel under overwhelming sustained violence in the service of maintaining the US Citizens unspoken right to operate with impunity in any nation they saw fit. In short, the US can and has starved and destroyed entire nations for offending the interests of their citizens.

I don't think the USs influence in Latin America had/has much to do with US citizens interests as such but US corporations interests.

"Have you ever been in a Turkish prison?" is a 40 year old movie quote referencing a 50 year old event, so....yeah.

I know of some folks arrested in other countries ... the marines were not sent in to save them. There was no help from the US government.

I think you're overstating things way beyond reality.

Sure but not for being a tourist!

I mean we're the diseased and shameful ones here, so it's a bit different but still!

Who's getting arrested for being a tourist?

Presumably tourists breaking quarantine...

Which months ago was something even Hawaii was doing to American tourists, so I don't think it's particularly interesting to note.

This take doesn't deserve the upvotes it's getting. I would be surprised if you can provide sources for any of these outlandish factual claims.

Singapore arrested and caned the child of a US Ambassador in 1994. We didn't threaten to invade them. The US didn't use imprisoning or detaining travelers as a pretext for any war in the 20th century that I'm aware of.

The US did not lose respect in the world because we aren't winning enough wars, or somehow because of something Obama did (really?).

I politely disagree. in response to the caning, the US effectively shut down the Singapore summit that year. It was a blow to their ability to affect international trade in the context of the WTO.

https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=19940510&slug...

So, in response to the arrest and caning of the son of the US Ambassador to Singapore, the US retaliated with some temporary blow to their trade?

That sounds way less extreme than what the OP suggests. If the US didn't threaten invasion over the detention of a family member of their embassy, I doubt they would do much for some random citizen that ran afoul of law enforcement in another country.

>This take doesn't deserve the upvotes it's getting

But it sounds good and that feel-good-factor was what the parent comment was trying to evoke. I'd say they succeeded momentarily.

I need to take a slight exception to "did not lose respect".

In an interview, Lee Kuan Yew said he felt very pained with Clinton's lack of dignity in interjecting himself into something as petty as a vandalism case, and as a face saving measure for Clinton reduced the penalty from 6 to 4 lashes.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/spare-the-rod-spoil-the-c_b_8...

I don't have the exact reference to this told from Lee's side much later, but the above story tells of Clinton's involvement.

You are hugely overestimating American power 50 years ago. We were in the process of losing the Vietnam war, the Korean war was basically a draw, were unable to impose our will on a tiny island nation 90 miles off of our cost, and we were on the verge of the 1973 oil crisis.

"the credit defaults during the debt ceiling brinksmanship of the Obama presidency"

What a strange way to try and pin what the Republicans did in 2011 and 2013 on Obama.

For context here is what actually happened... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_debt-ceiling_cri...

Republicans generally blow out the deficit on tax cuts for the rich while in office, get booted out, then point the finger at Democrats for the national debt.

It's tradition at this point.

Overly optimistic about the past gone by, overly pessimistic about the present and future. This does seem to reflect a big part of the American psyche as it stands today.

It was likely neither that good nor this bad. Moving away from such a mindset is the best way to get out of the vicious cycle.

> Overly optimistic about the past gone by, overly pessimistic about the present and future.

That seems to be the backdrop of Asimov's Foundation series, about the fall of the Galactic Empire... which was itself modeled after "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire".

I was abroad in an south east Asian country when the Sept the 11th attacks happened.

I was shocked that there was a general view was America had it coming - having to take a bit of their own medicine after behaving like an arrogant bully.

That was almost 20 years ago, before all the endless wars in the middle east.

The decline started way before that - something you could perhaps lay at Kissinger's and politicians of his ilks door.

> fifty years ago if you were a US citizen in a foreign nation you were nigh untouchable. Even the countries of most ill repute wouldnt dare to upset you. Arresting, imprisoning, or torturing an american meant incurring the wrath of a nation...

This is a incredible exaggeration and it's shame it has been upvoted.

I think this happened not because USA lost a lot, but because others gained ground. USA, despite all it's losses, was much better than most after WW2, industrial gap was enormous. Now other countries caught up in easier areas and the gap is smaller. Very obvious examples - Russia (USSR). They were stagnating in tech sector up to nineties end, then oil money bridged part of the gap and now Russia is immediately arrogant, "going it's own way" and all that rhetorics.

> The last 3 ground wars either lost or ended in stalemate

Afghanistan, Iraq and ?

There were two Iraq wars - the Gulf war in 1990 and the Iraq war in 2003.

It’s very hard to declare the first Iraq war as lost or ended in stalemate.

The US-led coalition won the Gulf War. In fact, it was a very decisive victory.

Curious how those would be framed as lost or statement personally. Both have had long occupations, but you have to toy with the definition of winning to frame either of these as a loss/statement.

The major theaters were decidedly over in a very short period. Unless you need winning to mean annihilate or getting everyone to agree on things, those were both won quickly.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wars_involving_the_U...

Libya, Uganda,Syria, Yemen, Pakistan

Perhaps Vietnam?

Vietnam?

I don't know how untouchable US citizen ever were, but there has been a change in perception over the last couple of decades. Some of it has to do with political actions or inactions, but I think big part is just due to information becoming more easily and quickly available worldwide, the facade of the "american dream" started crumble. So I think for the most part it just that US citizens in a foreign nation simply aren't considered special anymore and in many parts of the world the perception shifted from generally positive to negative. But this is not just since Trump took office as I have heard some people think. Neither with the military power and fear thereof.

The eastern block existed. If anything you were more likely to find refuge from america somewhere than today. Plenty of places where americans were not safe.

only Superpowers will give refuge from the US. the US forced the president of Boliva's plane to land because they suspected Snowden was on board. Can you imagine any other country forcing air-force one to land? We would be at war within the day over such a affront had it been done to us. Only players like Russia China and the US can get away with this kind of behavior.

Equador did

A superpower creates a block of aligned countries

It sounds grandiose because it is, and super inaccurate.

"the US doesn't command the same Kissinger grade soft power it used to". I don't see any evidence showing that to be the case.

You should go into journalism, you're very good at writing baseless/misleading hyperbole.