The Question of Superpower Status of the United States essays

The Question of Superpower Status of the United States essays Americans have just witnessed what may stand in historical perspective as the onset of a new era. That is, the terrorist bombing of the World Trade Center on September 11th. The World Wars represented for most people the depth of carnage, brutality and government excess that is possible when the moral foundation of society is lost to the acquisition of power. The twentieth century brought with it a new awakening to multiculturalism as technology enabled the conceptualization of a 'global community'. The twenty- first century may well prove an era of change in power, especially in the sense of the United States as sole superpower'. Richard Ned Lebow has said, "Power is defined as capability relative to other states" (1994, p. 249). The collapse of the Soviet Union is said to have been the deciding factor in America' ascension to sole superpower' status. The problem with being at the head of the pack' is that a balance must be maintained between the use of such power for responsible leadership and the misuse in the interests of exploitation and, or, expansion (Lipsett, 1998). Balance is also the key word in considering the military buildup as opposed to the economic consequences of military spending. There are many who would side with the "declinist theories that posited an exhausted America, the geoeconomic assumption that military power was pass, and the chaos' theorists who saw America as incapable of dealing with the real problems that would define the next age of history, including proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, local famines and genocide, pollution, and resource depletion" (Harkavy, 1997, p. 578). It is thought that the United States' continued role as a superpower will be based on the political conduct as well as world opinion as to the abuse of such power The future of America's power status is dependent on "American power and p...