Of course the Empire In Decline is the U.S.

in this article. I admit that I'm seriously suspicious of anything coming from someone who writes things like "An imperium in its death throes can be a nasty beast; I am by the same token nervous that the American empire may lurch dangerously around for decades to come.", but I will say his idea is interesting. I don't think it'll work, for the simple reason that 'containing' radical islam is just a touch different than the Soviet Union.