I think most people believed that the developed world would eventually be eclipsed by China, Brazil, et al, but I think few, if any, believed that it would happen due to a rash of self-inflicted wounds. Some, perhaps, were a long time coming (e.g., European monetary union, the polarization of American political parties), but that just makes it even more disheartening to see the world’s richest countries lose their bearings.
