The term “poly-crisis” has been put before a large Lexington civic group. It was part of the title of a Rotary Club presentation by Dr. Robert Farley of the University of Kentucky Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce. Farley said, for some, poly-crisis means the combination of factors like the pandemic, the 2020 election, the future of trade, and climate change.
On the topic of the U.S democracy, Farley expects it to remain consistent for years to come.
“The United States economy is large and robust and our political system has been able to manage that for a very long time, despite a lot of different challenges. And so, I would bet against the survival and even the health of American democracy over the next 20 years,” said Farley.
Farley told Rotarians the U.S. democracy has survived very difficult times in the past. He cited the late 1960s and early 70s with violence including assassinations and protest deaths on a college campus.
The Patterson School professor said the Russia-Ukraine war is impacting matters of trade, energy, and climate change. Farley fears the conflict will continue for some time.
“I have grown pessimistic about the war ending in 2023. By the end of the year we may be to a situation where we could find our way to some kind of peace conference. But, peace conferences last a long time and very often people keep fighting during the peace conference,” said Farley.
While he expects the U.S. democracy to survive and be stable over the next 20 years, Farley’s not so sure about other countries. He said it’s possible more and more countries globally could move away from a democratic form of government.
Here's more with Dr. Robert Farley:
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