IMF bombshell: Age of America nears end

I find it amusing that we declare the end of America by the simple fact that another country may become a greater economic power.<p>I'm just envisioning America popping out of existence -every man, woman, child, cow, car and building going <i>poof</i>- the moment the Chinese economy becomes greater.<p>Strikes me as the "X is Dead" meme.

The surprising thing would be if a country with 4 times the population of the US didn't eventually surpass it in terms of sheer economic size.<p>I'm not an economist, but in my opinion this is far from meaning the end of "the American Age". I have no doubt that day will come (nothing lasts forever), but I would bet that is a lot more likely to happen when GDP per capita in China overcomes that of the US... and that day is far into the future. Specially if you consider the political changes that a 4 fold increase in per capita wealth will bring to such a country.

Thinking in terms of 'size' is old thinking.<p>Plus it is not clear whether the growth of China is sustainable. It is an authoritarian dictatorship, huge increasing environmental problems, and much of the growth of the last decade is more like an experiment whose results are still not known.<p>The US has enough problems that it would not need to worry about China. What the US definitely needs to fix is the trade inbalance with China and its outsourcing of manufacturing to China.

Anyone changing investment strategies based on news like this?

The one thing no one ever mentions about America is this: it's well governed and free for most part. That in itself makes it a country that people aspire to be part of. I wonder if people would say that about China - ever.