Play by the Rules

Book excerpt: In Play by the Rules, acclaimed writer and historian Michael Pembroke offers a fresh take on the USA’s vast influence and asks whether it is still a force for good. In the heady days after 1945, the authority of the United States was unrivalled. But seventy-five years later, its influence has already diminished. The world has now entered a post-American era – defined by the rise of Asia and the return of China, as much as by the decline of the United States. This book is a short history of that decline; how high standards and treasured principles were ignored; how idealism was replaced by hubris and moral compromise; and how adherence to the rule of law became selective. Play by the Rules is also a look into the future – a future dominated by greater Asia and China in particular. We are in the midst of the third great power shift in modern history – from Europe to America to Asia. Washington’s failure of leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic is accelerating history.