Pros & cons of American might & influence

The limits (& excesses) of American military might:

 

"...Wherever the standard of freedom and Independence has been or shall be unfurled, there will her heart, her benedictions and her prayers be. But she goes not abroad, in search of monsters to destroy. She is the well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all. She is the champion and vindicator only of her own."

from the Independence Day address of 1821, John Quincy Adams

 

"He who fights monsters should see to it that he himself does not become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you."

Beyond Good and Evil, Nietzsche

 

 

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The IRRESISTABLE (soft) power of (contemporary) American influence:

"Lately, in my (godforsaken) part of the planet (where I'm temporarily residing  ), there's been this trend where a large number of kids who don't speak a damn word of the world's lingua franca have been dressing in following manner --

resplendant red, white & blue

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Ah, America the Beautiful, don't matter what her sins.

God bless the good ol' U.S. of A!" -- Yours Truly