10 Ideas for the Next 10 Years英文版本.pdfVIP

COVER 10 Ideas for the Next 10 Years ILLUSTRATION BY JAMES VICTORE FOR TIME 1 The Next American Century By ANDRES MARTINEZ Thursday, Mar. 11, 2010 ILLUSTRATION BY JOHN RITTER FOR TIME In 1941, prior to the U.S.s entry into World War II, the co-founder of this magazine, Henry Luce, penned an essay in LIFE that exhorted unhappy Americans, [distracted] with lifeless arguments about isolationism, to create the first great American century — the first, mind you, not the last. We are now entering the second decade of what will be an even more markedly American century; in fact, the Americanization of the world will characterize the foreseeable future far more than the past. Its true that Brand America took a hit this decade. The global superpower botched an election at home and an occupation overseas. Its vaunted financial markets were roiled by sketchy accounting early in the decade, then triggered a global economic crisis later on, thanks to Wall Streets leveraged gamble that it had conquered risk once and for all. All these missteps dented the U.S.s credibility but were also a reminder that, fairly or not, the U.S. retains an enviably large margin of error. And times of economic dislocation only accentuate Americas competitive advantage — its nimbleness and adaptability. With only 5% of the worlds population, the U.S. produces a quarter of the worlds economic output. Even as the global economic crisis led to the expansion of the G-7 (or G-8, depending on whos counting) into the G-20, none of the newcomers offer a compelling challenge to the American way. If anything, they want to make sure the U.S. abides by its own rules. The dollars status as the worlds reserve currency has only been bolstered as the Greek debt crisis unveils the perils of a monetary union that lacks political and fiscal coherence. China, ostensibly the next big thing, continues its long march toward Western notions of