America Is Ageing As The Dominant Player in The World System

by Rafie Hamidpour Ph.D.,D.E.,DABFE and David H. Adams, B.S.
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine why the U.S.A. is getting older and why China, The EU, Russia or even Brazil would be considered young countries and new world superpowers.
No other period of time has helped to shape the world as we know it quite like the Industrial Revolution. This period of time, which stretched from the late 18th century to 1914 helped the entire world to evolve, both socially and technologically; most especially the United States of America. The advances during this long stretch of time included manufacturing, which was just developing, communications, metallurgy, transportation, and energy development.
The Industrial Revolution originally started in Britain, and when it reached America it provided a number of influential inventions. Many of these inventions helped to create a new standard for the production of goods. Inventions like the cotton gin, the spinning Jenny, and the steam engine would move various industries away from a manual, or muscle powered method of creating items and replace it with a mechanized way of creating the same goods, often at a much lower price. This was especially true in farming and the agricultural field.
Along with the massive boom in almost every industry the revolution touched, social change and advancement would quickly follow, including an increase in wages, a growth in population, and new schools of thought.
How did America become a superpower?
It had nothing to do with the United States of America’s desire to become so. Up to the early twentieth century the U.S.A. followed a policy of isolationism. However, World War II left U.S.A. the only big guy standing and other nations turned to America for protection from emerging totalitarian countries like the Soviet Union. The United States found itself playing an international role when it really was not necessarily in the countries own best interests. The U.S.A. began making food and money grants to smaller countries by way of the Marshall Plan. The U.S.A. influenced France and England and other European countries to free their African, Asian and Middle Eastern colonies; a treaty item from WWII. The U.S.A. signed treaties with smaller countries. NATO and SEATO used U.S.A. military and industrial might as the trump card to guarantee sovereignty to whole regions of the world. The U.S.A. ended up being a super power by default.
During WWII the U.S.A. supplied the rest of the free world with oil. It is an odd fact that the U.S.A. was an oil exporting country and could be again if we could remove the automotive sector from the oil equation. North America (US, Canada and Mexico) would be larger than OPEC if we cut consumption by finding ways to remove oil from our transportation needs.
What does the title of superpower mean?
A superpower is a state with a dominant position in the international system which has the ability to influence events along lines of its own interests and project power on a worldwide scale to protect those interests. A superpower is traditionally considered to be one rung up the ladder from a great power. It was a term first applied in 1944 to the British Empire, the Soviet Union and the United States of America. Following World War II, as the British Empire transformed itself into the Commonwealth and its territories became independent, the Soviet Union and the United States generally came to be regarded as the only two superpowers, and confronted each other in the Cold War.
After the Cold War, only the United States appeared to fulfill the criteria to be considered a world superpower. Brazil, China, the European Union, and India are thought to have the potential of achieving superpower status within the 21st century. A few heads of states, politicians and news analysts claim that Russia may have already reclaimed that status.
Some people doubt the existence of superpowers in the post Cold War era altogether, stating that today's complex global marketplace and the rising interdependency between the world's nations has made the concept of a superpower an idea of the past and that the world is now multipolar.[15
The American dollar and its struggle for future supremacy?
The US dollar is used as the reserve currency for the rest of the world. Three major currencies will battle during the next decade. The Chinese Yuan, the Euro and the US dollar are all vying to dominate the global currency market. China’s Yuan may be two years away from becoming a global trade currency. Over time the Yuan, mainly in Asian trade markets, could move demand away from the dollar diminishing its status as the world’s reserve and trade currency.
Number of nuclear plants increases with global population growth?
Within 40 years, according to the United Nations, the global population is expected to rise by 32 percent to 9 billion people, mostly in the developing world. Despite Japan’s earthquake caused nuclear crisis, China still plans to build as many as 50 nuclear reactors over the next five years; more than the rest of the world combined. Japan on the other hand, decided to shut down all its nuclear plants. This year will be the first summer free of nuclear energy. With peak-demands and hot summer, black outs could be widespread. This will have an impact on manufacturing and the GNP if plants are shut down for any extended period of time.
Other countries without nuclear energy will join the current nuclear powered. Countries supplied by low cost nuclear energy could have a higher GNP. It will make lower cost products for domestic use and for export.
Which country will step foot on the moon or beyond next?
The United States of America put together the first and last moonwalk some 40 years ago. India, China and the Russian Federation have ambitions to be the second country to walk on the moon. No dates have been set but all three have plans. The U.S.A. can also get back in the picture and either go back to the moon or to mars. Making this happen will be a major achievement. It will make a country stand out among the rest; the world will take notice. By the same token, a failure could tarnish a country’s reputation. If China is the next in line to reach the moon, it could help develop a Chinese aerospace industry that could take a large portion of worldwide exports of aerospace products from the U.S.A.
Which military will make gains on the ground, sea, air and space?
In space, China has accomplished an anti-satellite test. In the near future, the Chinese have a desire to dominate control of space. During the summer of 2012, they will launch three astronauts to a Chinese space station. India intends to have anti-satellite capabilities and also a man in space. Space tourism is expected to be widespread with Soviet Union being the pioneer. Now the United States of America is in the picture, with space trips becoming available in the next few years.
At sea, the U.S.A. still has the stronghold with over half the aircraft carriers in service. China will be home for a new carrier in the next few years. In the next decade or two, China plans to add even more carriers to its fleet.
In the air, the United States of America outnumbers all nations in combat aircraft. On the ground, China outnumbers the U.S.A. The U.S.A. can compensate for military force with technology. The world has a large number of nations with highly skilled ground troops.
Overall the United States of America is militarily superior. Unfortunately, it needs a high GNP to pay and keep up the military. Lack of spending may cause the U.S.A. to lose sole claim to superpower status. The U.S.A. is investing much less in space exploration, as in past years because of lack of funding. With current military spending, other programs will suffer. This may be a global problem, with the exception of China, which has the funding for the future. The Chinese military is expected to close the gap on the United States of America.
Conclusion and Potential superpowers
Academics and other qualified commentators sometimes identify potential superpowers thought to have a strong likelihood of being recognized as superpowers in the 21st century. The record of such predictions has not been perfect. For example in the 1980s some commentators thought Japan would become a superpower, due to its large GDP and high economic growth at the time. However the prediction has not come to fruition.
Due to their large markets, growing military strength, and economic potential and influence in international affairs, the Federative Republic of Brazil, the People's Republic of China, the European Union, Republic of India and the Russian Federation, are among the powers which are most often cited as having the ability to influence future world politics and reach the status of superpower in the 21st century. While some believe one (or more) of these countries may replace the United States as a superpower, others claim they will rise to rival, but not replace, the United States.

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