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- MarkusX, on 11/21/2008, -8/+64Maybe that's not entirely a bad thing.
There are plenty countries aside the U.S. where I would like to live, and those are not dominant world powers.
Being a dominant and influencial power in the world does not necessarily make for a good country to live in.
Being told that we are the Greatest Country in the world, is such a propaganda anyway.
What's great for one person, might not be great for another. And we're also told that we can live free and think free.
If that's so, then we should be allowed to think freely what's great for ourselves - individually.
Not being that world power anymore, that tries to convert everything to their image, might actually result in not being a target anymore for terrorists or the likes, who are jealous of the lifestyle we live and we symbolically stand for. - theberlindoctor, on 11/21/2008, -0/+30i just ran across a quote from Steve Earle recently that reflects on the nature of being an american:
"We are a people perpetually balanced on a tightrope stretched between our history and our potential, one faltering step away from a headlong tumble from the most dizzying of heights. But fear not we're working with a net.
In spite of our worst intentions and ignorance of our own history, our Constitution has, thus far, proven resilient enough to withstand anything that we throw at it, including ourselves. For myself, my faith in this one institution of our all too human (and therefore imperfect) society is absolute, but, I hope, not blind. It was built to last, but only if properly maintained. Fierce vigilance against the erosion of its proven principles is the very heart of our peculiarly American brand of democracy." - Finalreminder, on 11/21/2008, -0/+23Tell me in 1980 that the USSR would collapse, Germany would reunite, Britain would be at war with Argentina, We'd invade Iraq, Russia would lose in Afghanistan, we'd have something called the Internet with speeds 1,000 times faster than 14.4k and I'd have thought you were on crack. (Well not crack, we didn't have it then)
NOBODY can predict the future. - inactive, on 11/21/2008, -0/+22"The U.S. will remain the single most important actor" sounds pretty influential to me.
- sgiffy, on 11/21/2008, -0/+21People in the UK still live pretty well, same with most of the former world powers in Europe. The difference between modern powers and former empires like say Rome (or even the soviet union as it was organized in much the same way) is that our economies are not based on resources or feudalism. Instead we have highly decentralized economies with a tremendous amount of skill and sophistication. That is not going anywhere anytime soon.
I see this not so much as America declining, though out world wide influence will, but more of other countries catching up. And economies are not zero sum games. - robert82, on 11/21/2008, -2/+17to be read as: "The US must get ready for a strong stance on foreign policies, make use of its 700+ global military bases and its influence in the IMF and WB, to secure its position"
Its important to remember this is the same group of 16 intelligence agencies that got the Iraq WMD analysis so strikingly wrong. - smallstepforman, on 11/21/2008, -1/+15Ever hear of Canada, Australia, UK, France, Spain and hundreds of other countries where you have a mixture of people from all over the world?
Brainwashed idiot. - mrcaulfield, on 11/21/2008, -10/+23I've a pretty bad feeling about our Chinese "friends", especially
since I've heard rumors that they had been printing US currency for quite some time.
"Confessions of an Economic Hitman" is a book every one should check out. - Zippo, on 11/21/2008, -15/+28Good, a lot of the world is sick and tired of arrogant US influence.
- Finalreminder, on 11/21/2008, -0/+13Communism by name, Capitalist by nature.
- ironhide, on 11/21/2008, -1/+14Why does it matter? Why do we have to be the biggest kid on the block?
- ironhide, on 11/21/2008, -0/+11Excellent satire - I hope.
- fireashes, on 11/21/2008, -9/+19 US Intelligence: US will not be a major power in 20 years
news.bbc.co.uk — National Intelligence Council Says: US economic, military and political dominance is likely to decline, US dollar will no longer be the world's major currency, over the next two decades .
http://digg.com/world_news/US_Intelligence_US_will ... - Bloodwine, on 11/21/2008, -0/+9I don't mind the U.S. slipping and me ending up not living in the #1 superpower in the world. Look around and you don't have to be top tog to still enjoy a good life. Canadians, Brits, and Europeans don't seem to have it any worse than Americans.
I personally think the U.S. will be the last truly global superpower. We'll start seeing more parity among the top-tier nations. It will take something major to shake us out of the globalization movement. - commenter01, on 11/21/2008, -7/+16yeah, lets go back to colonialist french and english influence. or better yet, let's let the italians conquer most of the world again. my point is, if its not the US, its someone else.
- sgiffy, on 11/21/2008, -0/+9The trend toward a multipolar world has been going on for sometime now. Really since the second world war though the cold war overshadowed much of it. The EU, China, India and maybe the middle east are all poised to be quite powerful. This is not a bad thing for the US or anyone. Complex developed nations have a lot more to lose from war then to gain from it. They also need and depend on trade, open travel, etc to survive and function.
- mrseptic, on 11/21/2008, -0/+8You can't have the following sentences in the same argument without sounding like a moron:
- "be free to do what we want without fear of reprisal or persecution."
- "If you don't like America, please leave"
And like the posters above me pointed out, the US is not unique in having a multicultural and free society. Try doing some traveling, snowflake. - CrazedLeper, on 11/21/2008, -1/+9There was no mistake on Iraq. They were lying the whole time and they knew it. Google "Downing Street Memo".
- inactive, on 11/21/2008, -0/+8That article did not say that the US will not be a major world power you idiot. In fact, it said that the US would be the "single most important" country.
- MrEddy, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7There isn't really any way someone could predict this. There is so much that can happen in 15+ years that anything is possible. America could continue down its current path and become another in a long line of failed countries. Or america could get its head out of its ass and get its act together and create the next big thing for the world. Suddenly throwing america right back in the limelight of influence and power.
I do not believe that we are going to be able to get by just exporting military power anymore and that america will actually have to work for a living and start living within their means. But, this is the same thing that happened after the great depression. It's all just a repeating cycle. If you want to know whats going to happen next just look at the past. - maximilen, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7Civilizations and countries rise and fall...
- scottknick, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7Why would China buy so much of our debt and then devalue our currency by counterfeiting it?
- slvrbullet87, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7When nobody even read that in the summary, how many do you think read the article
- Wargala, on 11/21/2008, -2/+9Have fun dealing with Chinese and Russian "influence". I'm quite sure that they'll be nice and play well with others as we have. If you think that the US is a "police state" and how we're the bad guys, just wait until people like Putin get a taste of REAL power.
Moron. - Lhandroval, on 11/21/2008, -1/+8The world isn't getting smaller... there's just less in it.
- NinaOdell, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6Dugg immediately for Steve Earle reference, but this is also exactly what I believe. Thanks.
- credential101, on 11/21/2008, -3/+9Who didn't see this one coming?
- tgjerusalem, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6Okay, I give up: is this sarcasm or not?
- NinaOdell, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6I'm too poor to move...
- Finalreminder, on 11/21/2008, -4/+10If the USA go's down, they take the world with them. They're the tapistry that the economic thread is weaved into.
Who would rise from the fallout is anyones guess. - Beveridge89, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6Crazedleper- I like your idea of me being part of an all-controlling World Superpower better than, you know, reality, so i'm not going to argue against it. You should know, however, that your inverted commas around "Great" is misplaced since it refers to it being the largest of the British Isles.
- bryanws, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6I, for one, welcome the US getting out of the world spotlight. Time for this giant to go back to sleep for a bit. We've mucked in the affairs of the world, pissed off various peoples, and caused a whole bunch of chaos. Let the US keep to itself and let the rest of the world figure out what they want. We'd be better off in all aspects if we didn't have to keep up appearances. And more importantly, let someone else draw the ire and attention of the world's undesirables. :P
- pintomp3, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6communism started falling in china in the 90's. it's very capitalist now. it's still fascist though.
- regeya, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6Wow, what a load of misinformed propaganda. Only uninformed "real Americans" actually believe that.
- kingmanic, on 11/21/2008, -0/+5Authoritarian hyper nationalistic regime with tightly controlled economy = Fascism.
I'm Chinese and I'd have to say China is more Fascist than communist. There isn't much of a social safety net, the idea of "communal spirit" disappeared a while ago. It is not direct control but their tight grip on their currency gives them indirect control. I just hope this wealth is liberalizing as wealth was a liberalizing factor all over the western world. They are already trying to cope with the global recession by pumping a lot of money into infrastructure and social programs. Perhaps some democratic reform is on the horizon. - smallstepforman, on 11/21/2008, -0/+5The intelligence agencies did exactly as ordered. War is but a continuation of (greedy) politics using more radical means.
- inactive, on 11/21/2008, -1/+6US wouldn't take the whole world with them. Someone will most likely step in to take America's place. And it would probably be China/EU.
- SuperSunny, on 11/21/2008, -3/+8No. Lets move FORWARD, not back.
Lets rephrase that:
"yea, lets go forward to multi-cultural influence, or better yet, multiple nations where multiple races influence the direction the world is heading. my point is, it doesnt have to be the US, it can be everyone." - mongo25, on 11/21/2008, -2/+7Good, if true, then let someone else try to take on the burden of a lot of the world affairs for a while. The US needs to focus on itself for a while. Russia once sat on top and fell. Now, they're projected to rise to the top again. It's all cyclical.
- kesam, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4Given the extremely arrogant behavior of the US as a world power in the last decades, this is really long overdue. No, I don't think a world dominated by Russia or China would be much better, and that's why more balance is needed. A single superpower, no matter who it is, will always lead to too much abuse of power.
- darkz77, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4you had an english teacher???????????????????????????????
- AlbionEikon, on 11/21/2008, -1/+5Hmm... I think more so that your point is that you're pissed off. Otherwise, perhaps, you would have referred to the contemporary governments of the English, French and Italians.
Who would that "someone else be"? Well, it's going to be China, India, Iran... and countries like France, Italy and the UK which happen to be part of the EU which has been growing in political and financial stature in recent years (at the expense of America).
Evidence of why foreign governments have been, and will continue to excel? Likely the most pressing and relevant issue today is that, if it were not for Gordon Brown, analysts are strongly touting that foreign countries would have been hit much harder by the exposure to bad debts that the US banks misrepresented to governments and other financial institutions outside of the US. After Gordon Brown demonstrated the way for governments to intervene into the financial crisis, other foreign governments adopted similar measures. The Americans (e.g. Bush, Paulson, et.al.) tried to copy elements from it but are still going about it the wrong way. (Hence, lending by the banks to businesses and home owners has suffered at the expense of lavish events , purchasing of weakened competitors, boardroom benefits, etc.) Sure, non-Americans are going to take a hit... but the projection is that it will not be at the cost nor the duration that the US taxpayer is going to take.
So, ya... people (including Americans) are sick and tired of the arrogant US influence which includes the government and corporate responses, as well as individuals such as yourself. (No offense.)
You can digg me down. I'm not saying this for popularity but to convey a point in contrast to the one you initially propositioned.
P.s. I'm not a Brit. I'm an expatriate that happens to be living here a.t.m., so I'm not trying to say the UK is better according to citizenship bias. - NinaOdell, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4I will - thanks.
- DrPh0bius, on 11/21/2008, -1/+5I think a lot of the U.S. influence even now exists primarily in the mind of the U.S.
When America actually made things, and the dollar was strong, Americans would use the threat of withdrawing their support from the world.
Now the U.S. is primarily a consumer and has a weak dollar, and still... the same bravado, but now changed to threats of "we'll stop buying your goods."
I say this as an American myself... and really, just hoping that this country will someday come to understand the interdependence of all the countries in the world and stop always having to prove it is "the best." - oboshoe, on 11/21/2008, -1/+5Yes. The world is ready to be sick and tired of someone else's arrogance.
- getbusyliving, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4You guys should also be concerned about aliens sucking out your brains with a straw and pink unicorns having their way with your significant other.
- oldhick, on 11/21/2008, -2/+6India doesn't have enough energy to survive and much of their economy is tied to providing service jobs to the US and others. They will fall as well.
I don't know enough about Brazil, but I can't think of any reason why their power and influence would increase. - TheBigBad, on 11/21/2008, -1/+5If you read the entire article, you'll see this at the bottom which sums up the sensationalistic approach used by modern media.
"Of course, these projections are hardly certain. Analysts note that most past attempts to look ahead have been turned out to be wrong. But the report is aimed at starting the policy dialogue as a new Administration maps its strategy. " - davidany, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3terrorists did not attack us because they are jealous of our lifestyle or because what we symbolize.
they hate us because we have been bombing the ***** out of their countries and have military presence there also.
think about the things you are told, dont just repeat what you hear in the media as if its a fact. - oldhick, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3They are wealthy, they are not powerful right now. We push them around as we see fit. That tide is about to turn.
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