as an american, i think the secret behind america being a super power is that this status is an illusion.  the foundation underneath america's status as a super power is fragile and crumbling.  it's an image, nothing more.  an image that unfortunately likes to throw its weight around and hurt others who they don't like.  at my school we called that a bully and bully's ended up getting put on their butts and shown for what they really were.  america is having its time to bask in the glory, but i think that's fading fast.\n\nkinda like a person who parades themselves around as being rich and powerful but in reality are dirt poor, in serious debt and one slip up away from having the entire illusion yanked from underneath them.