The US never really had a long term strategy except hope that all its enemies are Japan. Just bomb them and they will promptly liberalize and westernize.

I think the fact there wasn’t an armed resistance to the US occupation of Japan and the fact it became a US ally after the war, really damaged the US perception of the world. They only know one tool (bombs) and it worked for them that one time, so it must always work for them. Unless I am wrong and there was an armed resistance to the US occupation of Japan. I just never read or heard about it.

The US spent decades bombing us, toppling our governments and subverting the people’s wishes. With nothing to show for it. The moment our monarchs and military juntas -which were supposedly sock puppets of the US- found another super power to court they went and courted two of them: Russia and China. Even Iraq is allied to Iran and being rebuilt by China.

Global stability and prosperity will inevitably chip away at the vectors of control held by the empire. As its influence wanes, it will likely drive turmoil at home, as it may have to transition away from its service economy into a more productive and useful economy on the global playfield. If the dedollarization efforts continue at pace, it will only further weaken its position. Plurality appears to be the name of the game in the next 10+ years.