i think its funny that YankeeChica thinks that the us reigns supreme. just as britain fell as the world superpower, so will the us. then when china becomes the world superpower, how r u gonna credit britain for its prosperity? we could say that if it hadnt had been for britain, democracy would not have spread, but then do we extend the argument further to say well if it hadnt had been for the Greeks, democracy wouldnt have been invented in the first place? 'If' is a very odd word, and you cant base an argument on 'what if this never happened'- thats just called speculating.
i agree with subjectiv about how the english language is not necessarily a good thing. so many languages and such diversity is going. and isnt diversity one of the keys to survival?