>> because the US wont be the most powerfull country forever
I honestly find this hard to believe because:
- When there is conflict in the world, countries always come to the US first for military intervention
- When there is a serious disaster of some kind, countries always expect us to send billions in aid (both militarily and financially) to help them
- When a country is trying to obtain nuclear weapons or weapons of mass destruction, they come to us to stop them
Essentially it comes down to everybody comes to the US first for everything. When that starts to change, maybe I would entertain the fact that we won't be the most powerful country. When so many countries and millions of people rely on us for so many things, our position as being a global leader won't change in the near future.
And quite honestly, I know there's large chunks of our population that would welcome some other countries stepping up and taking the lead instead of the US. It would certainly save us thousands of military personnel that have been lost over our involvement in questionable conflicts in the Middle East.
I'm not disagreeing with your assessment of the current situation, but forever is a long time.
> I know there's large chunks of our population that would welcome some other countries stepping up
>t would certainly save us thousands of military personnel that have been lost
The US spends more on its military than the next 30+ countries combined of which only one is not a NATO ally.
We in Europe seem quite content with the situation. We get the fruits of the american sacrifice, but not the economic and cultural burden. We spend all that money on social issues in our little paradise. Then we either point our fingers at the US and naively assume our freedom & security comes from us being such darn nice people. Not realizing it is the United States who are walking the perimeter of our little paradise of moral superiority.
But outside of Europe, there are lots of countries who definitely want more power and standing in the world (China, Russia, India). And the economic imbalance from our history is wearing off.
So financially, the military budgets are going to look more similar. The West will only keep its dominance in terms of culture and values, if we (Europe) and the other NATO allies start contributing our fair share. As a side-bonus: this would give us more influence in the more questionable aspects of the US military strategy. But like the spoiled child of rich parents, i doubt we will figure that out in time. The US might end up in a situation not that different from Germany after WWI or WWII.
I'm not arguing it's fair. But i don't have to explain to an American that everyone always roots for the underdog. And the US hasn't been the underdog for a long long time.
You make some really excellent points, and I agree with all of them.
I will be curious to see what does happens once the US does have to share the military and economic influence you reference. Will we be happy to hand it off? It seems lately, our population has grown weary about waging constant proxy wars and getting involved in long standing regional and tribal disputes that go back thousands of years with no real end in sight.
I feel like there is the beginning of a vacuum and there are a lot of countries already queuing up to get a shot at that power and influence.
Aren't you assuming the implied change of power mentioned in the parent comment will come at the hands of a rational actor/state? That seems fraught with hindsight, no?
I honestly find this hard to believe because:
- When there is conflict in the world, countries always come to the US first for military intervention
- When there is a serious disaster of some kind, countries always expect us to send billions in aid (both militarily and financially) to help them
- When a country is trying to obtain nuclear weapons or weapons of mass destruction, they come to us to stop them
Essentially it comes down to everybody comes to the US first for everything. When that starts to change, maybe I would entertain the fact that we won't be the most powerful country. When so many countries and millions of people rely on us for so many things, our position as being a global leader won't change in the near future.
And quite honestly, I know there's large chunks of our population that would welcome some other countries stepping up and taking the lead instead of the US. It would certainly save us thousands of military personnel that have been lost over our involvement in questionable conflicts in the Middle East.