I think the longer the US waits the relatively weaker it becomes, so the sooner the better from that point of view.

I think many people in the US, and almost everyone in Europe, has not really woken up to the extent to which their economic clout has diminished over the last few years.

People go into denial about this, as it undermines their worldview, but if you look at west vs rest GDP the change over the last few decades is huge.