Imperialism is bad for business because empires torch cash on flags and garrisons while war, ugly as it is, at least closes the books. War pays better than peace if you sit in a U.S. or EU boardroom counting missile orders. The racket is simple: defense giants skim fat margins, politicians sell deterrence, factories run graveyard shifts, and China fingers the mineral valve that keeps every guidance chip alive. Profit climbs, but each new sanction turns procurement into luxury shopping. Imperial vanity still burns money on parades; the modern hustle is cheaper, sell weapons, pinch supply chains, and let rare earth chokepoints remind the Pentagon who brings the batteries.
The nineties and early 2000s proved free markets were the best self‑gift Europe and the United States ever wrapped: fewer tariffs, more trade, investors betting on code instead of colonies. Washington’s