This just in - Europe in decline, US losing power

To read the reports from the think tanks today, you would think that the US and Europe are on the verge of falling off a cliff. Even liberal thinkers in the US talk about Europe behind closed doors as if they were Donald Rumsfield, describing the former powers as Old Europe without employing the moniker. Europeans, on the other hand, look at the latest images to come out of the US (Katrina, Iraq, Rita, etc.) and call it the end of US power. What kind of power can survive with such a rotten, battered core? It is hardly surprising that doomsdayers would seize upon such images and news items, but many of these reports are coming out of normally sensible think tanks and news organizations. Liberals in the US, following the Bush administration's lead, are already identifying other potential partners for the US - China, India, Eastern Europe. Of course, these zones are willing partners with anyone who throws money (trade agreements) their way. But there is another intangible that these reports don't quite touch on - credibility and cultural ties. While the US has arguably the most money to throw around given its enormous economy, the Europeans have a rich history (both positive and negative) of cultural ties to many of their former colonies which they exploit for economic agreements and political alliances. Indeed, with Karen Hughes marching around the Middle East right now offending one regime/democracy/kingdom after another with her lack of cultural capital, is it any wonder US credibility is sitting near record lows?

This reminds me of an anecdote I heard in Belgium some years ago. In 1989, East Germany collapsed and panicked Stasi officials tried to shred their secret documents. Alas, they did not succeed (the sheer volume prevented it - vive la bureaucratie!) and among the 33 million pages recovered by the West German authorities, were several files which attempted to rate the effectiveness of other intelligence gathering agencies from around the world. The CIA was rated fourth. The reason: money. They didn't care to learn about other cultures; they simply bought agents or turned informants with money. This is how American diplomacy seems to work at times. Just throw money at them. Unfortunately, as Karen Hughes is finding out, Bush can't find his cherished loyalty as easily abroad, outside his protected bubble. Sometimes when you flash green, they respond with the finger.

So is Europe really about to crumble? Is the US teetering on the edge of existence? Hardly. But it is worth noting when the moderates pick up the paranoia.