[GFischer]

From an outside view (South American), the U.S. is getting worse and worse, while China is getting steadily better.

The U.S. is a few Dick Cheneys away from getting worse than China.

Not to mention many people over here still HATE the U.S. because of their support to the murderous dictatorships of the 70's - I don't think China is going to get much worse than that. I was born in 1981 so I obviously don't have memories of the time, but the current Uruguayan president was a former guerrilla fighter from that time, so the memories are ever present.

[tome]

I don't think the US is getting worse. Vietnam, Watergate, Iran-Contra, arming the mujahadeen in Afghanistan. It's always been this bad.

You may not believe yet that China could be bad. I would love to dream of a benificent Chinese world hegemon. But if China can't even give freedom to its own people, what's it going to do to others?

The US is, in my view, the least worst option by a long way.

[GFischer]

I believe China could and probably would be bad. The question isn't whether it would be bad, it's whether it would be worse than the U.S. .

So far China is worse in its regard for ecology and human rights, but the U.S. is backwards in shoving down our throats absurd legislation, especially copyright and patent laws (one of the main reasons Uruguay doesn't have a preferential trade treaty with the U.S.), and it's almost a radical religious country in some points (Uruguay is secular), and extremely self-absorbed (much like China!).

It is ironically easier for me as an Uruguayan citizen to visit China than the U.S. due to increased visa restrictions and xenophobia.

I didn't say Chinese hegemony was good, they're probably not much better, but I do think and see them getting better, while I see the U.S. sliding down. At which point Chinese would be more tolerable (the lesser evil, not necessarily better or good) than the U.S., I don't know, but they're getting nearer than an U.S.-centric view might lead you to believe.