I know it's a strange position to take in a time of high deficits, debts and military overstretch in what seems to be a divisive political culture, but while I've read the "all empires come to an end" angle to American power, I stubbornly think too many factors suggest things aren't going astray just yet.
It's all in the trends. American innovation and demographics fall heavily in its favor when compared to Europe and China.
As we witnessed in different points in the 20th century, America is an adaptable entity.
From the CIA library:
"The United States’ higher fertility rate and its ability to absorb and assimilate newcomers in ways that others culturally reject support the notion that demographic trends will only enhance the United States’ ability to maintain its position as superpower on the world stage. With continued superpower status will come continued pressure for leadership and increased challenges."
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My philosophy has always been "take care of your back yard first" before anything else. I can extend this by saying I believe one should travel and get to know its own country before exploring others. How foolish is it if you can't answer questions about your own country to curious foreigners?
In this light, the essay 'Global Rebalancing: The Dangerous Obsession' makes a similar claim. Basically, it calls for the United States and other nations to get their domestic house in order before seeking to globally rebalance things.
That the accounting books are not sustainable among Western countries is not debateable at this point. But is it dire? According to some studies, current account surpluses and deficits remain inside - or around - the 4% of GDP mark - even for high debt nations. This doesn't sound dire to me.
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