Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Power Shifts: Rise and Fall of Great Powers


Because of Don Vito’s health problems, his son Michael (as a fictional Marine Captain, he was the obvious choice as successor) assumed control of the Corleone family business. His rapid ascent disrupted the distribution of power within the family. After Don Vito’s passing, Michael used an early version of distributed operations against the leadership of near-peer competitors. Michael’s rise within the family and subsequent violent struggle to bolster the Corleone’s position within the organized crime syndicate illustrate the inherent dangers of power shifts.

The reality is – shifts happen. Power shifts happen in clans, in industry and among states. State power shifts occur at various levels – internal, regional and global and many believe power shifts are frequently the cause of international conflicts. The graphic below illustrates various power shifts in modern history.

1 comment:

Nich Hills said...

G'day,

Interesting graphic, Will. I see Germany/Prussia had a bit of a setback in the 1940s and has been in decline ever since. Whereas Japan has had no such setback and continues to rise; albeit flattening out in the 1980s.

Cheers,

Nich