It is such a pleasure to read the nice things that are being said on this thread about America. Our nation has struggled with many things in it's 200+ years, but the good has always far out weighed the bad.
Below is a rather long piece on America, it is really well worth the read.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/135380/output/print
The Rise of the Rest
It's true China is booming, Russia is growing more assertive, terrorism is a threat. But if America is losing the ability to dictate to this new world, it has not lost the ability to lead.