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I am not sure. Mushroom clouds would end in a total world economy collapse probably so it's not in the interest of US to go that route just because the world wi

I am not sure. Mushroom clouds would end in a total world economy collapse probably so it's not in the interest of US to go that route just because the world will become multi polar rather than the current model with a single superpower (This process is already well underway and I don't see how it can be stopped). Yes US will end up losing some of advantages but it doesn't need to be so dramatic. Even in multi polar world with several super powers US will be one of wealthiest and most prosperous countries. The tremendous wealth accumulated over last century is not going anyway.

QAPereo 9y ago
> The tremendous wealth accumulated over last century is not going anyway. Wealth follows the wealthy, and most of the wealth in the US rests in very few hands, much of it offshore and in other ways hidden from taxation. If they leave, the "wealth" leaves with them for the most part.
- richardknop 9y ago
  But wealth is not just money. Infrastructure, industrial base, technology sector and military / space exploration complex, domain knowledge (just think about how hard it would be for a new upcoming power to replicate the deep knowledge of all the people working for something like NASA), highly educated population with valuable skills (tech, finance, science), real estate (houses and flats in US are bigger than rest of the world). For another nation to get to the level of US it would need all of these things and it would take decades and massive investment to build up all of this. Few very rich people taking their money and leaving for some other country would not be the end of the world.
  - QAPereo 9y ago
    Our infrastructure is crumbling, tech is being exported and offshored, space is in tatters, and the latest from the military is an incredibly expensive jet it still won't work, and incredibly expensive boat they just don't want.
- graedus 9y ago
  > Wealth follows the wealthy, and most of the wealth in the US rests in very few hands, much of it offshore and in other ways hidden from taxation. If they leave, the "wealth" leaves with them for the most part. All true enough, but I'm not convinced the wealthy would leave the US en masse as it gradually declines in power and we enter a more multi-polar world, with the dollar possibly losing reserve status at some point. Where would they go, China? I think in the scenario where the US is less powerful compared to the rest of the world, it's still a very attractive place to live in many ways (edit: especially for Americans).
  - QAPereo 9y ago
    It could be an attractive place to live, if populism doesn't rule the day for too long, and we do actually bother to invest in some infrastructure. Without that, it could very rapidly become a singularly ugly place to live. Meanwhile if you're rich enough, maybe Switzerland starts to look more stable and appealing in the long run. You can still travel to wherever you like, but your wealth would be elsewhere.

QAPereo 9y ago

> The tremendous wealth accumulated over last century is not going anyway. Wealth follows the wealthy, and most of the wealth in the US rests in very few hands, much of it offshore and in other ways hidden from taxation. If they leave, the "wealth" leaves with them for the most part.

richardknop 9y ago
But wealth is not just money. Infrastructure, industrial base, technology sector and military / space exploration complex, domain knowledge (just think about how hard it would be for a new upcoming power to replicate the deep knowledge of all the people working for something like NASA), highly educated population with valuable skills (tech, finance, science), real estate (houses and flats in US are bigger than rest of the world). For another nation to get to the level of US it would need all of these things and it would take decades and massive investment to build up all of this. Few very rich people taking their money and leaving for some other country would not be the end of the world.
- QAPereo 9y ago
  Our infrastructure is crumbling, tech is being exported and offshored, space is in tatters, and the latest from the military is an incredibly expensive jet it still won't work, and incredibly expensive boat they just don't want.
graedus 9y ago
> Wealth follows the wealthy, and most of the wealth in the US rests in very few hands, much of it offshore and in other ways hidden from taxation. If they leave, the "wealth" leaves with them for the most part. All true enough, but I'm not convinced the wealthy would leave the US en masse as it gradually declines in power and we enter a more multi-polar world, with the dollar possibly losing reserve status at some point. Where would they go, China? I think in the scenario where the US is less powerful compared to the rest of the world, it's still a very attractive place to live in many ways (edit: especially for Americans).
- QAPereo 9y ago
  It could be an attractive place to live, if populism doesn't rule the day for too long, and we do actually bother to invest in some infrastructure. Without that, it could very rapidly become a singularly ugly place to live. Meanwhile if you're rich enough, maybe Switzerland starts to look more stable and appealing in the long run. You can still travel to wherever you like, but your wealth would be elsewhere.