How long has the USA been a World power? Are things starting to return to normal?

Nope

Europe is not becoming more powerful.Many European countries are broke and having a lot of economic problems just like the US. Even the UK is being hit hard by economic problems. Many Europeans countries have already cut their defense budgets and many more are beginning to (The UK and Germany included.) The US alone has a GDP that is only slightly lower than the entire EU's.

Japan has a high GDP but their military is not incredibly powerful and it isn't likely to get much stronger. They still rely on the US for protection to a certain degree.

Russia is not getting stronger either. They're fallen behind since the Soviet Union split. Their GDP is around the same as countries such as the UK and France. Militarily they are still better off than most countries but they are not a superpower anymore and they aren't on pace to become one again.

The two rising countries are India and China. Both have rapidly growing economies and militaries.

At this point they're all regional powers.

The US didn't emerge as a global power until after WW2, when Europe (and the various European Empires) had been pretty much destroyed; the US, in contrast, was pretty much unaffected by the fighting.

While US power is certainly waning a bit, they'll still be around for a while.

As for competitors, even after the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia remains in high place, even if only because it retains the ability to nuke the US and everyone else into a fine radioactive dust several times over.

China is already a strong contender, although there's still at least a decade before they become a serious challenge.

In Europe, the emergence of the EUBG concept, and the fact that even otherwise avidly-neutral EU member states like Sweden, Ireland, and Austria commit troops to them, is seen by many as a precursor to a sort of "European Armed Forces". As the EU further integrates the military capabilities of its member states, that's very likely what will emerge at some point. Such a force would certainly be the most dominant in the world: think of a military power with more personnel than the Chinese and Russians combined, with a technological capability that equates/exceeds that of the US, and backed up by the largest economy on the planet.

That is a dumb question. If you live in the US you have to realize that we are in debt to almost all of the countries you mentioned, and that those countries have already recovered from WWII (for the most part). Although the US has the largest military in the world in comparison to its size, we still don't have nearly as many troops as all of Europe put together. Just about all major countries have balanced out at this point, but who knows when we will actually elect officials who are willing to start reducing our debts and making this country an icon once again. Many other countries see us in a negative light because of the wars we chose to fight, and the reasons we fight them. This is a semi-valid reason to be disappointed with today's America, but it is no reason to not support our troops. If we would actually just put the political BS to the side and let our military leaders run the war, our forces would have been back years ago. Our politicians are more obsessed with special interests and reforming America into some radical idea, than just trying to stabilize the country and letting us go back to being the world's beacon of democracy that it was back during WWII.

Prior to WWII Great Britain was pretty much the only "World Power". Japan was a Regional Power and remains so today. China is working towards becoming a Superpower but still has a ways to go before it does as China cannot project their military might much further than their own borders.

Also, the US still has the largest economy in the world much larger than any other nation. And that is where the real power lies.

Normal? What do you consider normal and why should we stop with 1945. If we go back to 1845 or 1745, then Great Britain is the real world power. The fact is all of Europe combined has a lower GDP than America. You can't brush that aside by wanting what once was.

that's obtrusive that the U. S. foreign places coverage had grow to be self-serving in the process the previous years. What I mean via that's that the U. S. made lots of its foreign places coverage judgements entirely based via itself pursuits, with out pondering the pursuits of the different events. For this, most of the international perspectives the U. S. as hypocritical in its strikes. Take the Iraq invasion, for occasion. all of us understand that the U. S. took unilateral militia strikes, flatly ignoring the UN's attraction for greater time, as no concrete information proving that Iraq possessed WMD's have been accepted yet. after which Bush's pronouncement of "the two you're with us or against us" had alienated many countries, lots of whom detrimental terrorism yet on a similar time weren't in desire of the U. S. invasion of Iraq. Then got here the controversies that developed subsequently of US installation Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, and "greater-elementary rendition" rules, whilst on a similar time exhorting "human rights and freedom" to the entire international. And now which you stated Russia. Russia now does in Georgia precisely what the U. S. did in Kosovo. that's why Russia isn't listening this time.

The US was recognized as a world power when Roosevelt's Great White Fleet circumnavigated the globe, ca. 1908. Or perhaps earlier, like when we picked up a bunch of Spanish territories. Nothing says "world power" like beating up the Don's navy. See also England v. the Spanish Armada.

As for a "return to normal," no such thing. Change is the only constant. It is impossible for the pre-WW2 "normal" you are envisioning to ever return.

Xyz

Do you know how the Indians were conquered by the British so easily? It's because they weren't unified and were at war with each other...

Sure, sheer size and manpower may get the US, but I doubt the Europeans would agree on anything long enough to get sh*t done...

The Europeans are nothing more than a collection of different countries with different agendas...history has shown time and time again that in order to achieve victory you need to unite and consolidate your forces under a single banner.

There's no doubt that the US would lose if it's us against the entire world...but realistically, it's not. We're the biggest fish in the ocean and of course, everyone wants to take a shot at us. It's called penis envy. Get used to it...besides, the Chinese have more people than all of Europe and the US combined...if anything, they have a better shot at it than you guys do.

Ha! You fail to mention how it was convenient for Europe that the US participated in that war, donating the lives of many. You fail to recognize that Russia and Japan were run by dictatorship?? Furthermore, despite some decline, the United States is far more superior economically and militarily than any other nation in the world. This is not due to change anytime soon. "Normal" is also your opinion btw, an obvious poke at the US.

**** you.

Sometime before or after WW2. In WW1 the US was just a helper while in WW2 the US along with various allies spearheaded through against the Axis.

The US also took charge during the Cold War.