know your friends well, but your enemies better, why the united states will fall Options

[sadolakced acid]

The United States of America.

the promise land?
land of milk and honey?
land of the mountain of gold?

maybe.

yet, like all empires, doomed to fail.

why, you ask? mayhaps it's politics. mayhaps it's terrorists. or mayhaps it's cultural.

So says the old joke, that people who only know one language are americans. This may be true for some, but with more and more high schools requiring foriegn languages, this is slowly changing.

yet to what purpose? sure, we might learn the culture of the romans, the french, the spanish (and mexicans), and the germans. but will this help us in the world?

if we consider the world as a whole, what is the greatest threat to the United States of America? Is it russia? they seem to be fading from the stage, their act over, exiting stage left.

is it the middle east? certainly they are the source for terrorists. Yet what do terrorists do? they kill people. They terrorize. yet this is not what kills a nation. Terrorist's actions unify America, they make it stronger.

then what is the threat?

let's look at recent events.

george bush annouces that the united states will return to the moon by 2019.
and china anounces that they will put a man on the moon by 2018.

a brilliant display of one-up-manship if it's pulled off.

this is a nation that has vast potential, and they are begining to tap it. Sure, there are growing pains, but it means they are growing.

so let's consider this for a second. most every nation, china included, teach thier children to speak english.

To do this, they read american books, learn from american teachers, and watch american movies.

American culture is exported to other countries. yet these countries don't completely ignore thier own culture. the two- american culture and local culture- coexist.

jump to america.

a country where youths make jokes based on racial stereotypes from 100 years ago.

a country where most children's knowledge of chinese is how to say a few bad words.

a country where other cultures are not valued, or studied.

let us look to the future. Is the united states going to be able to sell things to china? not anymore, not with our limited understanding of thier culture.

but they, on the other, they have hundreds of thousands of college graduates who know how to operate in a western buisness world, who know what americans want, and can give it to them for much cheaper.

So what, you ask. Why should it matter?

the answer is staring you in the face. America dominates because america innovates. the internet. automobiles. aeroplanes. all created here.

so what happens when america loses it's innovation? then it's military weapons cease to be the worlds best. It's industry ceases to do things others cannot. It's commerce soon depends on someone else. and it's dominence-- it's dominence fades.

and thus the empire falls.

[stryker76]

I havent yet read everything that everyone has posted yet but i do have one thing to add as i eat my Cookies and Milk

1. Americans do not learn about other cultures because they choose not to. Once many kids hit high school that have a plan on what they want to do after school. although it may change from time to time it doesnt usually involve what they have to do if they have a meeting with a business many from China, India, or any other country. The little details are not all that important at that time in there life. But those that end up goin in to fields where they must meet with people from a different culture often do some homework before goin to these meetings as to no upset someone. It is what business men do. If they do things right that is.

2. The one thing that you are looking at wrongly is that fact is yeah there is alot we dont kno from countries like China becuase for so long there communist government maintained a "wall" in way keeping other cultures out of there countries and there culture from gettin out. Every culture that can be studied into High schools in america have usually had open boarders for at least the last 100 years or longer. With the exception of Latin or Roman culture which is no longer a living culture but an ancient one that was the basis for many of the western languages...as well as all the medicial fields.

Btw these cookies are great!!!

But Moving on....

3. Our government knows alot of information and is always developing new stuff that we would not have a problem with other countries for decades. We have the resourse that those countries do not have. As well as the population that is not as large as one like Chinas wo maintain. That gives us as a country a little bit more funds to play around with i guess you can say. For example; The F-117A Stealth Bomber was in use for 15 years before the American Public knew about it. Now imagine that technology that is presently in use know that we currently do not have public knowledge on.

What you do not take into account about american supremecy is the fact that there is tonz of stuff that we dont have any knowlege on that goes on that keeps us on top. There are things that go on behind the scenes with other countries that cant be taught in schools that you cant be taught about and that you cant prepare for that keep america where it is. But yes eventually we will fall as the major power in the world. But i dont think it will be because of another country. It will be internally. We will casue you selves to fall as a world power if things at home do not change.

Oh and sorry for the double post but...

Taiwan is presently the fastest growing Economic power in there world.


Btw Sam's Club Cookies suck