Precipitate Decline: The Advent of Multipolarity (Who Will Rise? A TILTED BALANCE‪)‬

As recently as 2003, it was considered absurd to talk of the decline of the United States. Now, however, such a belief has become common currency among theorists, policymakers, and the media. What significantly raised the awareness of this concept was, of course, the fiasco of the United States' preemptive invasion of Iraq. What is not yet sufficiently appreciated is the precise nature of this decline and when it specifically began. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]