The founding father of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, delivered a speech last week, predicting that 2 1 century will be the century in which the United States will lead the world in strength. Because America can attract talents from all over the world. Since the elites of mankind are all gathered in the United States, the influence of the United States in the world will not decline. Lee Kuan Yew is a politician who spans eastern and western cultures. His assessment of the international situation has always been accurate. Lee Kuan Yew is also a realistic and rational leader, deeply influenced by British culture. He never takes politics personally, but only takes actuarial interests. In 1970s, when the Red Disaster spread to East Asia, Lee Kuan Yew refused to guard against China and banned Chinese education. After the 1980s, Lee Kuan Yew visited China many times, judging that the mainland had abandoned its economic policy and embarked on the road of no return to the free market. Later, he advocated learning Chinese and advocating Confucianism, but at the same time, he established close military relations with the United States, making Singapore a naval base of the United States and setting the court of final appeal for trade disputes in the Privy Council of England. Although there is controversy about his paternalism in China, even Mrs. Daidrow praised Lee Kuan Yew's international political skills, saying that he won the essence of conservative politics and was "the only Englishman east of Suez Canal". Lee Kuan Yew began to comment on the status of the United States, which was superior to many nationalist third-rate commentators in neighboring countries and hurt the self-esteem of some fanatical nationalists in the third world. Unfortunately, this is inevitable. After the end of World War II and the disintegration of the British Empire, the United States took over the baton from Churchill and announced the arrival of a new hegemonic era with two atomic bombs. Compared with the British empire's "the sun never sets" border, the United States does not occupy too many foreign territories on the earth. In the heyday of Britain, Queen Victoria ruled a quarter of the world's land, and the territory directly under the command of the United States only accounted for 6.5% of the world, and the overseas territory was less than 1%. At the peak of the British Empire, the population ruled accounted for one fifth of mankind, while the United States ruled only one percent of the population overseas. Many people take Rome as an example to show that the national strength of the United States is too extensive and will eventually collapse like the Roman Empire. These are all old ideas. The similarity between the United States and ancient Rome lies in that both sides are victorious representatives of the advanced civilization of contemporary mankind. The difference is that the United States does not need to occupy land like Rome at all. Roman territory crossed the Mediterranean, Carthage, Jerusalem and the coast of Turkey, and vassals were stationed everywhere, and the British Empire followed its form. The United States does not have to occupy territory, nor does it have to send a chief executive. In 130 countries around the world, there are 752 military bases. Like acupuncture, acupoints are located at key points of meridians. In addition to the military, the United States also has a strong global economic penetration. The Roman Empire could not allow China in the Eastern Han Dynasty to trade in Roman currency, but the US dollar was the currency of the earth. Rome's cultural influence is not from the Middle East, but American multinational companies, from Citibank, Esso Oil, Microsoft and time warner Inc. to Coca-Cola and McDonald's, have mastered the lifeblood of global consumption. 1967, McDonald's opened its first foreign branch in Canada; Today, it has 30,000 branches in 100 countries. Less than half of them are in China. McDonald's fast food industry is changing the eating habits of the next generation of human beings, including drinking tea in Guangdong and ordering food in Shanghai, just like Harry Potter movies in the United States: because the United States can attract talents from all over the world to contribute ideas to her, because the United States has the strongest soft power. What is soft power? In recent years, China media began to pick up the wisdom of the United States and followed suit: Is soft power the Forrest Gump of Harvard? Joseph nye, Dean of the College, defines it as the temptation and attraction of external ownership (where does the ability and soft power come from? Noe believes that it comes from the values of the founding of the United States: freedom, democracy and the rule of law. McDonald's and Coca-Cola have already reached places that American aircraft carriers cannot reach for the time being. This was the unparalleled hegemony of the Roman Empire two thousand years ago. In the foreseeable future, the United States will not become another Rome. Over the years, I have been to many countries, and most Chinese in the world feel sorry for being a rootless generation. Only Chinese in the United States, the 30-year-old generation, if they know English, always talk about the United States "before us" and "after us": "We play the movie plaque of" The Sick Man of East Asia "to vent their anger. In today's United States, blacks can also run for president, and their popularity ranks first in the country. The United States has shown a strong ability of progress and renewal, which is more tolerant and reasonable than when Bruce Lee opened a martial arts school in Chinatown. The United States established a liberal imperialism, which is the reason why Britain and France declined because of the traditional arrogance and superiority of Europe when they dominated the world. An immigrant from India and Pakistan will never become the British Prime Minister in the foreseeable future, and this is where the United States inherits and carries forward the spirit of British imperialism. America is not without its shortcomings. American civilians are used to freedom, happiness, innocence and easy to be deceived, but American Jewish elites are extremely intelligent animals. American life is too wasteful. With a population of 300 million, carbon dioxide emissions and oil energy consumption rank first in the world. But in the past 200 years, the United States has made the most achievements and consumed the most in its great contribution to world civilization and creativity. Although a little selfish, it can be forgiven. Lee Kuan Yew saw this with a realistic and rational eye. What is rare is that he is not hypocritical or excited. He spoke this common sense honestly, which made Singaporeans more aware of the situation. Singapore is surrounded by unfriendly countries and there is no danger to defend. Lee Kuan Yew refused to open democracy, controlled the population balance with the eugenic policy, and advocated a clean government. The advantage is that the living environment of Chinese in Singapore is sanitary and polite, and like Japan, their image is quite humble. The disadvantage is that Singaporeans still lack their own creative industries, such as film and television, design and animation, even in colonial Hong Kong. Since it is admitted that Lee Kuan Yew of the United States is not grandiose or boastful, he is a practical figure, and his old