ABSTRACT
The last decades of the twentieth century were marked by a resurgence of neoliberal ideology and a sustained attack on the institutions of the welfare state. A critical question about the complexion of society in this new century is how this process will play itself out. In answering that question, developments in the United States are key. They are key in part because of the pervasiveness of American enterprise in world markets and the competitive pressures which they exert upon other countries. But they are key as well because of the importance of US institutions in generating and disseminating lead technologies and of American cultural institutions in setting style and fashion throughout the world. They are key in a third respect as well: the power and influence the United States wields in international agencies enables us to impose our models upon other countries as a condition for participation in the evolving international trading regimes, and we have demonstrated our willingness to do so.
