Indeed, it is far too soon. America’s best days are yet ahead. Chinese officials who dream of their own dominance will be as disappointed as Japanese bureaucrats who dreamt the same scenario a generation ago.
The world belongs neither to the selfish ambitions of those Japanese corporatist s nor to those of contemporary Chinese statists.
Bremmer sees ways in which we’re doing well, even now:
Yet investment in the future continues apace. No nation is home to more elite universities and graduate schools, more major multinational corporations, and more breakthroughs in state-of-the-art technology. Silicon Valley’s latest tech start-ups have built enough momentum to fuel talk of a new “bubble”. Development of unconventional gas technologies has been the single most economically significant innovation of the past several years; US-based companies have led the way. All these traditional measures of strength suggest the country is doing fine.
Match that – as we will – with a restored confidence in democratic government and truly free markets – and we’ll be just fine.