导读:二战结束后，美国取代英国，一跃成为了超级大国。凭借雄厚的政治、经济、文化和军事实力，其影响力在世界上无处不在。但是，随着社会的发展，美国的制度越来越受到了挑战，其领导世界的能力也受到了各国的质疑。
As the US has lost more international status and influence since the global financial crisis in 2008, the international community is raising doubts about its leadership and ability to contribute to the world, an expert said, analyzing that such a decline of influence can be attributed to some deep-seated reasons, including its self-willed overseas military operations.
一位专家表示，由于2008年世界金融危机，美国的国际地位下降，影响力也有所减弱，国际社会对其领导能力和促进世界发展的能力提出了质疑。他还分析道，这种影响力的衰退是由一些根深蒂固的原因造成的，其中包括它肆意的海外军事行动。
Since the financial crisis, the US can neither provide effective solutions to a host of global challenges, nor sustain its control over other countries, Zhang Ruizhuang, Director of the Center of American Studies at Nankai University, wrote in an article published in the People’s Daily.
南开大学美国研究中心主任张睿壮发表在《人民日报》上的一篇文章中写道，由于金融危机，美国既无法给出应对一系列全球挑战的有效措施，也无法维持它对其他国家的控制。
In the commentary titled “The City upon a Hill is not there any more,” he gave an in-depth analysis on the reasons of such changes.
评论的标题为《“山巅之城”今不如昔》，它就这些变化的理由给出了深刻的分析。
Zhang says that “A City upon a Hill,” often cited by American politicians as their political creed, verified the self-labelling of the arrogant Americans as “God’s Chosen Ones” to lead the world. After the Cold War, the preaching about the superiority of its values brought US much popularity and pulled the country to a commanding stage.
张睿壮表示，“山巅之城”通常是美国政客们的政治信条，表达了傲慢的美国人自认为是“上帝的选民”，负有引领世界的宏大使命。冷战后，关于美国价值观优越性的论调使得美国广为待见，同时还达到了居高临下的地位。
But it over-consumed its accumulated political capital during the last quarter of the 20th century, which resulted in a decline in its global influence, Zhang said, adding that the most destructive threat to its dropping status can be attributed to overseas military operations.
20世纪仅仅过了1/4之后，美国便消耗了大量长期积累的政治资本，导致其国际威望大幅下降。张睿壮还补充说，对其下降地位最致命的威胁是其海外军事行动。
After the Soviet Union collapsed with the end of the Cold War, the US dominated the world and launched a series of capricious measures. With the excuse of protecting democracy, human rights and the world order, Uncle Sam trampled on the post-war international law based on the UN Charter and norms governing global relations by bringing the flames of war to many parts of the world.
随着冷战结束，苏联解体，美国控制了世界，并肆意而为。它以捍卫民主、人权和世界秩序为由进行了一系列征伐，把二战后以联合国宪章为基础的国际法和国际关系准则践踏无遗。
Panama, Somalia, Haiti and Kosovo are all victims of such wars waged by the superpower. With a made-up excuse, it pulled Iraq into a war and this political farce finally brought the latter millions of civilian casualties, endless terrorist attacks and ceaseless disturbance.
巴拿马、索马里、海地以及科索沃都是这一超级大国挑起的战争的受害者。打着无中生有的幌子，美国将伊拉克拖入战争，这一政治闹剧最终使得伊拉克数百万平民死伤，这也导致了日复一日的恐怖袭击和无休止的内乱。
What the US gained, after it paid a price of trillions of dollars for the war, was a hotbed for terrorist organizations which in turn threatened the security of itself and other Western countries. The war against Iraq ultimately turned out to be a foolish one that not only crumbled its diplomatic morality, but undermined its own strategic interests, Zhang concluded.
张睿壮总结说，美国花费数万亿美元的代价，赢得的却是一个滋生恐怖组织的温床，这些恐怖组织已成为美国乃至西方国家安全的心头大患。伊拉克战争最后成为了既瓦解美国外交的道义基础、又有损美国战略利益的愚蠢战争。
Despite the lessons, the US never gave up every opportunity to start “color revolutions.” Its attacks on Libya and Syria, once again, dragged these nations into raging wars. What’s worse, as a result of the wars, a number of regulation vacuums provided ISIS and other religious extremist organizations a bed in which to grow stronger.
尽管有了这些教训，美国却仍然不放过策动“颜色革命”的机会。它对利比亚和叙利亚发动战争，这再一次将这些国家拖入了混乱和内战。更严重的是，在这些内战肆虐的国家出现了大量管制真空地带，成为宗教极端组织如“伊斯兰国”得以发展壮大的根据地。
The US, its Western allies, as well as the whole world, are now swallowing the sour fruits resulted from its self-willed deed, he added.
他补充说，这给美国及其西方盟友乃至世界带来无穷后患。
According to the scholar, apart from its frequent diplomatic mistakes, its economy, politics and society, in which the Americans once took pride, are all in a predicament, arising more doubts over the superiority of the US system.
根据这位学者的说法，除了在外交战略方面连连失误，美国人本来引以为傲的国内经济、政治、社会安排也不断出现问题，使得越来越多的美国人开始对美国制度的优越性产生怀疑。
The global financial crisis breaking out in 2008 exposed the defects of capitalism once again. It brought to light not only the failure of Keynesian policy to narrow the wealth gap and boost effective demand, but the greed and corruption of financial executives, the ineffectiveness of financial supervision, plus the government’s shielding of tycoons.
2008年的国际金融危机再次暴露了资本主义缺陷。这次危机不仅显露了凯恩斯主义政策无法解决贫富差距悬殊、提高有效需求，还使得金融高管的贪婪与腐败、金融监管的失效以及美国政府对金融巨头的偏袒庇护公之于众。
The US public felt shock, despair and anger towards such defects, and the ensuing “Occupy Wall Street” movement is one of their ways to express dissatisfaction. The protest wave later spilled to other part of the world, triggering worldwide query over the US system and its values.
这些都令普通美国人感到震惊、绝望和愤怒。随之而来的“占领华尔街”运动就是这种不满情绪的表达方式，它迅速波及世界其他国家，引起全球范围对美国经济体制及其价值的质疑。
Zhang also criticized US domestic politics, citing its notorious presidential election system as an example.
张睿壮还批评了美国的国内政治，他将遭人诟病的总统选举制度作为案例。
Manipulated by capital, the “winner takes all” election system in many states gives no chance to other newborn parties besides the two major parties. The American elections of the past two to three decades have been more like technical games.
这不仅因其为金钱政治所左右，而且由于多数州“胜者全得”的选举人制度，使得两党之外的新生力量已经无法胜出。过去二三十年的美国选举越来越趋向单纯的技术性博弈。
The candidates now focus more on technical details for the sake of more votes rather than their political ideas and governance philosophies, and the whole process has fallen into personal attacks between the two candidates, he added.
他补充说，候选人现在关心的重点不再是政治理念、治国方略，而是赢得更多选票的技术细节，竞选也在很大程度上沦为候选人之间的个人攻击。
