Such totally baseless pontificating and lashing out are the symptoms of the failed “prima dona” syndrom. Go have a session with your analyst.

The Philippines chain was essential in controlling the sea lanes for vital commerce. It was an essential as a base in the Pacific. That of course is why the Japanese empire zeroed in on its conquest and later its defense at all cost. They never bothered to invade Hawaii that laid beyond the operational radius of the time with the weapons of war available at the time.

The Philippines were also an agricultural paradise that Americans quickly took over from the former Spanish masters. Enormous wealth was derived from these plantations. As Fidel Castro aptly pointed out: “Cuba and the Philippines were ripe fruits ready to fall off Spain’s colonial tree into the mouth of the Yankees.”

Do a little reseach into the insurgency that followed the US’s “liberation” of the Philippines.

Peace and health be with you too brother/sister.

It is quite easy to explain it all to a civilized nation, secular and urbane, literally decimated by the United States.

The Americans are barbarians, like the Mongols, and will soon pass.

Besides destruction what do they have to offer except force and death, and killing civilians, even women and children at a distance, because they are so few in number, and so fearful of death, that they cannot afford killed in action and casualties.

Or are you so unacquainted with history not to realize that much technology, even as with the Mongols, is often invented or mastered in new ways by barbarians.

Unlike the Mongols, however, the American troops, in the way they fight, have also proved themselves cowards.

And what imperium do you know that is run by cowards, except over other cowards?

That explanation, which is partial, will have to do for the nonce.

Go back to your misreading, your pretended moral outrage, and your jumping to easy ideological conclusions.

Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are occupied territories. Their monarchies were created as mere facades for western oil companies. They are the Herods of the Roman empire.

It may or may not ever dawn on Gore to thank his lucky stars that he was not elected president.

After all, not only has he got a Nobel Prize, but he was not assassinated in office.

Imagine the war in the Near East that would have ensued.

I am not sure that your analysis is entirely accurate. Indeed, in Iraq as well as Afghanistan (in both of our misadventures there), it is safe to say that net/net, we are spending far more than we are taking in.

With respect to the Philipines, please tell me again what great natural resource are we getting from that chain of tropical islands?

The fact that the USSR was forced to subsidize its ‘less fortunate’ client states (weren’t they all less fortunate?) points to the abject failure that was Communism. Contrary to your implication, I would choose private ‘business’ over collectivist ‘principle and ideology’ everytime.

None of this is in any way meant to justify the inherent evils of imperialism. Nations and their peoples should certainly be allowed self-determination. Even though we would love to see contitutional republics the world over, citizens must come to that conclusion on their own and not at the open end of gun. We certainly can not and should not force that ideal upon them.

Peace be with you.