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Dahms 1

I. IntroductionA. World War II

1. Great Power War

2. Developed the atomic bomb3. Rebounded economically

4. Became the preeminent superpowerB. Cold War

1. Great power struggle

a. US vs. USSR

b. Capitalism vs Communism

c. Sparked by soviet proliferation2. Expressed in proxy wars

a. Korea

b. Vietnam3. US wins

a. 'Triumph of freedom'

b. Soviet economic collapseC. The status quo

1. Still the biggest superpower

2. Strained relations with other countries3. Wars in Middle East unpopular

4. Economic downturn

D. Thesis: Even though American presence overseas has been unpopular in recent years,

American primacy and hegemony will continue to remain high due to the necessity ofunipolarity, new strategies of maintaining power around the world, and influence in

international relations.

II. Unipolarity

A. Unipolarity is inevitable1. History

a. Cold War bipolarity couldn't happenb. WWII lack of a superpower in Europe led to rise of Germany

c. Status quo even other superpowers won't challenge American heg

2. Multipolarity can't happen

a. Power vacuumb. Realism

1. Dictates that states will always act in own interests in order to

gain power2. Any loss of US heg will be compensated for by another

hegemonic powerB. Unipolarity is preferable to multipolarity

1. Multipolarity makes great power wars inevitable

a. Realism dictates that states will always try to extend beyond others

b. Differences of interests can't be solved by a higher intervener2. Interests

a. States will have different interests in foreign policy

b. Economic competitiveness means that states will constantly have to

outdo each other in order to maintain economic growth

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Dahms 2

C. The US will remain the unipolar power1. Challengers

a. China won't challenge because they are dependent on the US economy

b. Russia won't challenge because their economy isn't strong enough2. Superiority

a. Best militaryb. The entire global economy hinges on the US

III. Maintaining Power

A. Offshore balancing

1. Allows the US to act through other countries

a. Saves faceb. Saves resources

2. Allows US to exert control in a more indirect way

3. Funds the fight for democracy instead of directly taking part in itB. Air and sea power/technology

1. Unrivaled air force/navy

2. Vast amounts of conventional troops no longer necessary3. Nuclear submarines

a. Location is unpredictable

b. allows faster response time4. New technology

a. Airborne Laser

b. Ballistic Missile Defense

c. Prompt Global StrikeC. Economics

1. Stranglehold on world economy

a. Biggest economy

b. Most important economy empirically proven1. Great Depression

2. Recent financial recession2. Corporations permeate other countries

a. Allows US to control other countries economically

b. Makes other countries reliant upon the US

IV. Influence in international relationsA. Involvement in bodies of international law

1. United Nations

a. We pretty much fund UN aloneb. Important member of Security Council

2. NATOa. Most powerful international bodyb. mainly controlled by US

c. Key to dealing with rogue states and allies alike

B. Peacekeeping1. Foreign aid

2. Interventions into conflicts

a. Afghanistan and Iraq

b. Russia and Georgia

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Dahms 3

c. North Korea and South Koread. Israel and Palestine