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It is already a 'Second World' country and sinking. It's going the way of Europe - a lower standard of living for all but the 1%.
America's "poor," on average, own multiple televisions, have cable, a smartphone, a/c, at least one car, aren't food insecure, have access to health care on an as-needed basis, spend a significant portion of acquired cash on non-necessities, and enjoy more living space than their average non-poor European counterparts. Heaven above is surely drowning in supernatural tears upon witnessing this lamentable set of circumstances...
Capitalism is great....doesn't work well with corrupt governments. It really doesn't work well with stagnant societies. We are on the verge, of being a stagnant society.
I don't agree much with Elizabeth Warren, but breaking up Google, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and others might be a real good idea.
China, might or might not, be the next world power. A corrupt society will always be working below its potential. Interesting how the Chinese are using technology to create a dynamic society under a totalitarian regime. They might succeed, but I doubt it. Hitler managed to do it for a short period of time and I suspect China has lasted longer than the Third Reich, but will hopefully, meet the fate of the Soviet Union rather than that of the Third Reich.
The US is blessed with incredible natural resource and geographic advantages. It is one reason why we became a world power. It is more than capitalism, you need a functioning society.
Just like rich kids throw away their inheritance, countries can do the exact same thing.
I don’t know if that holds true.
I can think of quite a few corrupt and downright nasty governments in countries that we now consider to be first world. South Korea and Taiwan immediately come to mind. And now you have China making massive strides with all the characteristics you mentioned.
2) Russia, on another hand, just got ahead of US military-wise. If not in numbers (yet), but for sure in technology. Add to that that Russians always have been top-of-the-line warriors, and US here again is #2 already. But, Russia economy if pretty far from US, even though it is in a better shape.
Meh, I'd digress on that. Sure, Russia has always done a good job of defending its own turf, when idiot despots try to invade in the dead of winter with poor supply lines that the Russian do a great job of cutting off. Their leaders have also done a great job, historically, with being willing to lose huge amounts of infantry to achieve objectives. I don't know that I'd consider either of those things "top-of-the-line warriors."
It will take 50 years or more but agree with the OP. China will eventually dominate the world in every respect. They are patiently and continuously advancing their technology and their society. The huge difference in that China makes plans for 5 years, 10 years, 20 years ahead. Whereas the West is obsessed with the next fiscal quarter.
Commitment to the good of society is drilled into their consciousness from day 1; where in the West individualism is put on the highest pedestal. In China and Japan people live to work and they seldom question authority.
It is hard to imagine that in the long run the West can prevail against the inexorable will of China.
Meh, I'd digress on that. Sure, Russia has always done a good job of defending its own turf, when idiot despots try to invade in the dead of winter with poor supply lines that the Russian do a great job of cutting off. Their leaders have also done a great job, historically, with being willing to lose huge amounts of infantry to achieve objectives. I don't know that I'd consider either of those things "top-of-the-line warriors."
I think Vladimir Putin is the most successful diplomatic and political warrior Russia has ever produced. He has accomplished more with sheer intellect and personality than a thousand brigades. Knowing when and how to exploit an opportunity is a formidable talent.
I think their are two things that will lead to China lagging behind. Right now China is the fourth and a distant fourth in terms of soft-power worldwide for just the continent of Asia.
India- Bollywood, South Korea- Samsung+K-Pop, Japan- Toyota+Anime+Video Games are all arguably ahead in terms of soft power. Language wise outside of Africa which is important in the future of world power Chinese is not growing from a large enough base to be important even decades after China economically flies past the U.S.A. Their trying to economically dominate SE Asia like the U.S did with Latin America in the past but i'm not sure if an old strategy can work in the modern world.
Also another thing not to forget, China has competition. India is quickly rising and while it's still behind China it could quickly catch up if when china's economy slows down as it enters developed state, Russia population wise even with resources doesn't have an iota of a chance to challenge America.
Simply soft power China isn't even a world power, except for the fact they provide the most tourists. But that's not the same as providing a good that is popular within the world. U.S on the other hand has several of the most popular music genres, Hollywood, Silicon Valley, and a host of other large companies that are dominant worldwide. Many of China's companies that are popular worldwide deal with governments and not consumers and so while they have global reach it's not like they have the social effect on people as American goods have.
Indeed. The UK remains one of the most prosperous, safest, most innovative and advanced nations on earth. Brexit might sully that, but that notwithstanding, the UK’s decline from its apex (the 1890s?) to 2016 was not exactly precipitous. It only looks to be large in hindsight, because the UK was once so dominant.
If the US follows a similar trajectory, then most of the 21st century will remain the American Century. It won’t be until 2100 or so, until a true superior (not a rival, but a superior) become obvious, and even then, the entire 22nd century would be a gentle decline. It would not be until the 23rd century that the US would sustain some truly stupid self-inflicted wound, seriously jeopardizing its prosperity or world-stature.
The difference is that as the British Empire was declining it slowly pivoted its focus from the maintenance of empire to the creation of a more socially democrat state. They dumped Churchill right after the end of the war and put into place programs like the NHS. Coal, Steel, Railroads and electricity became nationalized industries.
The US on the other hand is doubling down on everything that it was doing before. More military spending, greater economic inequality, more government cronyism, more privatization, more corporatism, etc. The US is not going to have the soft landing the UK had. The US is going to implode in a devastating fashion.
The difference is that as the British Empire was declining it slowly pivoted its focus from the maintenance of empire to the creation of a more socially democrat state. They dumped Churchill right after the end of the war and put into place programs like the NHS. Coal, Steel, Railroads and electricity became nationalized industries.
The US on the other hand is doubling down on everything that it was doing before. More military spending, greater economic inequality, more government cronyism, more privatization, more corporatism, etc. The US is not going to have the soft landing the UK had. The US is going to implode in a devastating fashion.
The U.S. is also restoring its manufacturing sector. Manufacturing is an important metric of a country's overall prosperity. High tech produces an affluent elite. Manufacturing produces a middle class.
Where we're really falling behind is in education. Chinese students, like Europeans and many others around the world, learn more math and science, study harder, and have high career aspirations.
American students graduate high school unable to speak, write, or reason. Their grasp of history, civics, math, and science is poor. Increasingly, there's a well educated elite and a poorly informed broad majority that cuts across ethnic groups and geography. This is a desperate situation.
Then there is the population implosion. Millennials are choosing not to have kids, a sharp break from previous generations.
China has a population problem of its own, because of the one-child policy. Even though they've relaxed the rules, they're on a downward trajectory for decades to come, with huge consequences for future growth.
Europe and Russia are having a similar population crash. The places still growing are mainly the Middle East and Africa. Those burgeoning populations are migrating north to fill job vacancies in the developed world, but not in China.
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