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      and prosperity can only be found in our modern world of shrunken 
      time and space, by its integration into four or five economic 
      and political groups- the Monroe system, the Franco-British system, 
      the Germanic system, Russia, and the Japano-Chinese system. Each 
      could be relatively self-supporting economically. Each could 
      make itself defensively secure at not too great cost. Each could 
      obtain what it wanted from outside either by barter or between 
      the democratic groups by relatively free trade. The world might 
      settle down to a long peace and security in which the forces 
      for freedom everywhere would once more have an opportunity to 
      develop.
 
      
 
 
But the condition of such a development is not only that the 
      League powers no longer claim to dominate or maintain anarchy 
      in Europe and the Far East - a claim destroyed at Munich and 
      Shanghai but that the democracies are sufficiently strong and 
      united to make attack on their oceanic system of defence an impracticable 
      task.
 
      
 
 
The decision of these vast issues now rests with the United 
      States. Great Britain and France are no longer strong enough 
      to do it alone. They are on the defensive; the totalitarian powers 
      are on the offensive. Whichever way we look the future of the 
      world rests with the United States. The choice is inexorably 
      presented to her. Either she will become the centre of the world, 
      not crusading in Europe or Asia, but the main director of the 
      policies of the democracies and organiser of their security; 
      or she will watch the gradual disintegration of the old oceanic 
      defences of democracy and become almost the last really independent 
      democratic state in the world - with what results on her internal 
      condition none can predict.