The episode does a great job of communicating actual military considerations in space. The Enterprise locates itself in a specific location to appear to be a sensor echo in Romulan sensors, which belays an in depth understanding that the Federation has for the Romulan Star Empire. Everything that both sides do shows an understanding of what the other side can reasonably do and in that creates a chess game.
I can’t think of too many sci-fi properties today that get into the lived in reality that this episode does. This episode goes way deep into the how of war, even with a new technology disrupting it.
I’m able to guess plot points in movies before they happen. This includes guessing how the kid keeps the family from eating the meal in Troll 2 and guessing the kind of sword Excalibur was in Sharknado 6.
Even the anticipated cut of 2.25% is still higher than why the Silicon Valley boom was based on. You are also seeing the cuts happening due to an anticipated recession.
After the War of 1812, the UK started to recognize the USA as a local power it had to deal with diplomaticly instead of with war. This gets shown in the negotiation of the 49th parallel and its maintaining of the Monroe Doctrine. Hell, the USA almost declared war against France after the Civil War to liberate Mexico.
Post World War I, the UK seemed to be the better ally. The UK was more willing to let the USA expand into core imperial territories during and after World War II. The USA didn’t have to fight a post British imperial war like it did for France in Vietnam. You also had the UK fall in line in NATO while France didn’t.
France would have been the better natural ally, but things change over time.