In many nations, weary and impoverished citizens submit to the growing lure of conquest. As the ability of the United States to exercise effective leadership declines, crisis flourishes. Situations that might have once proved manageable explode. Others that might have never matured smolder, then quickly burst into flame. Famine and war lead to more war and famine.
Weapons flow more freely than relief.
Through it all, the United States shuttles from crisis to crisis, overwhelmed and often unwelcome, shipping a few dollars here, some troops there. America's predicament, however, does not go unnoticed. As it soon discovers, the United States can no longer persuade and cajole as it did at the height of its power. It is a bitter tonic, one to which the Americans cannot seem to adjust. The United States military stands alone as the single most powerful fighting force on the planet.