Recently, there has been more and more news about the decline of the United States, which has sparked heated discussions.
Among them, an article in the New York Times stands out.
On June 13, the New York Times published an opinion piece entitled "The United States Is No Longer the World's Boss," which caused quite a stir in the Western world.
The article points out that since Biden took office, he has been working to restore the global leadership of the United States, but with little success.
True leaders not only stay ahead of the curve, but also solve problems and inspire confidence, which Washington clearly fails.
In November 2019, the United States announced that it was formally withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, and the United States chose to sit on the sidelines as the world worked together to tackle global warming.
Since 2020, global economic growth has been sluggish, and when countries around the world are trying to promote economic and trade exchanges, the United States has successively fought a trade war, a technology war and a chip war, casting a shadow on the recovery of the global economy.
In 2022, NATO's further eastward expansion, the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war, the turmoil in Europe, and the heavy losses of Ukraine, Russia did not collapse as the United States expected, but further expanded its military budget.
In 2023, when the Israeli-Palestinian conflict broke out and countless civilians were killed in the war, the United States resolutely stood on Israel's side despite the opposition of the international community, making peace in the Middle East seem elusive.
In the decades after the Cold War, the United States has never been more like a world leader and more like a faction leader.
Inadvertently, they are relegated to defending their preferred side against an increasingly united opponent.
And most of the rest of the world is watching, muttering inwardly: I don't understand why Americans still think of themselves as bosses.
There is an essential difference between a global leader and a military power, but now Washington is confusing them.
Yes, the United States is still the world's number one military power.
More than 750 military bases have been set up in more than 80 countries around the world, and the US military and fleet are spread across five oceans and seven continents, which is unprecedented in human history.
However, the current United States simply cannot afford a medium-sized war, even if the war does not take place on American soil.
Yes, the United States has 11 nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, which look majestic and unbeatable.
But these aircraft carriers and fleets, most of which were built more than 40 years ago, are rusty and extremely difficult to maintain.
The most critical thing is that the United States has lost its shipbuilding capabilities, just as the United States has lost the ability to land on the moon.
The country that rose by sea power after World War II now has only 1/200 of China's shipbuilding capacity, which sounds incredible.
What's even more incredible is that in the United States, the government's financial crisis is getting worse and worse.
In 2023, the U.S. will have $4.4 trillion in revenue and $6.1 trillion in fiscal spending, with a deficit of $1.7 trillion, which is comparable to South Korea's GDP in a year.
I can't make ends meet, so I can only live on debt.
In 1989, the U.S. national debt was less than 3 trillion U.S. dollars, and now it is almost 35 trillion U.S. dollars, and 1.34 trillion U.S. dollars will be paid annually in interest alone, which is equivalent to Indonesia's GDP in 2023.
With the hollowing out of industry and heavy debt, the American people are not having a good time.
60 years ago, the United States had a developed industry, and the husband worked alone, and the whole family lived a very prosperous life.
At that time, if the wife worked outside, the husband would be looked down upon by others.
Nowadays, in the United States, which is dominated by financial and service industries, the lives of the people at the bottom are even more difficult.
In order to maintain basic living expenses, both spouses may need to work 2~3 different jobs.
Most Americans can't even get $400 in cash in their hands, and more often have multiple credit cards, going back and forth.
You ask them: Do you think the United States is the number one power in the world?
After hesitation, they often give the answer this: maybe, I'm not sure.
And 60 years ago, the answer was: Of course, the United States is the strongest and best country in the world.
Perhaps, only being the strongest country in the Americas will make the United States anxious; But when the United States forcibly exerts influence in Europe, Africa, and Asia, it pushes the United States to the brink of war, and that's the really dangerous thing.
A true leader who knows when to make room for others.
#姜萍或因专业限制无缘浙大##11省区将有大到暴雨##国产大飞机C919亮相 "Shanghai-Guangzhou Express"##北约高官: More than 300,000 ##官方回应银行女员工向领导视频表白 troops can be dispatched within 30 days#