becoming all of those things does not make them a pre-ww2 colonial power, the cold war spawned a new style of colonialism one based on common ideologies and none of the fighting done by the "colonial powers".

The US did not crush dissent with tanks like USSR did in Czech and satellite nations.

The US did not invade countries as a means to their resources but to counter USSR imperialism.

The USSR was an imperial colonizer directly taking over countries with force to further their borders, the US have always reacted to USSR aggression: ex. Cuban missile crisis, Afghanistan & backing of Taliban.

The differences are day and night, the US actively trying to suppress Soviet nuclear proliferation and communist expansionism that is the same as colonialism from pre-WW2 days.

Do you really want Iraq, North Korea, Iran to be nuclear armed? The US knows these countries are too unstable to be responsible enough to control their nuclear weapons. This is why the US tolerates Pakistan because downright distabilizing it is against their interests and national security.

What do you think is in North Korea? There's absolutely no resource worth going to war over. The US doesn't even need Iraq's oil, why do you think they went to war in the 90s? It was to protect Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to stop further destabilization.

Destabilizing = Increased probability of nuclear weapons falling to terrorist and unfriendly groups = Nightmare scenario for US security interests & allies = Breakdown of economic trade & diplomacy = global chaos.

The US simply is not the traditional colonial power but does the absolute minimum to protect it's interests in regions where if things went south, it would affect global trade = less action for IMF & World Bank = reduced control over the variables that threaten the economic infrastructure that was born out of Nixon's era by going off the gold standard = US dollar is the de facto commodity in which all other currencies are pegged against = economic hegemony.

I hope that makes it clear, the US has no interest in invading Mexico to impose ethnocentric views and usurp all of it's wealth using military power. Even Russia is unable to escape the sting of US led sanctions. Pressure is mounting on China to float their Yuan which would crush it's value against the USD sending it to a major recession.

The US practices economic warfare to keep countries in line, it is not an imperial power in the traditional sense which would require direction action to achieve their economic goals.

They figured out long time ago it's easier to catch bees with honey than vinegar, this is why I believe the American "empire" will last for a very long time as long as the economic incentives are there in countries where structural oppression of the masses is automatically produced as a result of having a democratic and capitalist markets.

Instead of losing your palaces you keep them and your offsprings are sent to a great US school where they will learn to be American and impose American values back in their countries where they become leaders.

Even in relatively poor countries like China and Russia where the wealth is almost directly usurped by it's elite class, they must also be able to buy US dollars to spend on materialistic ambitions, essentially unwittingly doing their part in solidifying the status quo in which the US continues to maintain it's hegemony status with it's old enemies trying to find their place to keep their elite class well fed and spoiled.

The people now suffer in the hands of their own leaders as a result of having their monetary incentives aligned with the US led global economy. Essentially countries are colonizing itself due to economic incentives the US presents to individuals who vote with their taste for luxury.

It's the perfect "empire" one that exploits our innate desire to chase after rare goods (US dollar) which benefits the individual but makes their country dependent on the US and surrounding countries, there by greatly increasing the cost of breaking bad and attempting to usurp neighbour countrie's resources. Ex. Just like how Saddam like previous dictators, tried to escape the system created by the US in which the US will use military power to keep countries in line and play nice with each other.

I'm not saying America is perfect but the world has become a lot more stable as a result of their status. American leadership is not only desired but necessary to maintain peace and further quality of life for countries that play the the game well. The downside is the game is rigged and the US will always win as a result of the world using greenback as underlying value for the world's currency.