The book describes the ways in which the US shapes the world in which we live. It shows how America has used its power to fashion international institution--both economic ones like the World Trade Organization or the IMF and political organizations like the UN--in line with its own interests. It addresses the many ways in which American policymakers and commentators describe the role of the US. And it projects the current trends in American foreign policy into the future, and speculates on the effects of further American predominance in the first years of the new century. Behind the celebrations and the speeches marking the millennium, a fundamental question remains to be answered: will continued US domination of the international order make the world a safer place? Given the conflicts and suffering of the past hundred years, the answer is crucial for all of us.