The US Has 761 Military Bases Across the Planet, and We Simply Never Talk About It

[bemildred]

Here it is, as simply as I can put it: In the course of any year, there must be relatively few countries on this planet on which U.S. soldiers do not set foot, whether with guns blazing, humanitarian aid in hand, or just for a friendly visit. In startling numbers of countries, our soldiers not only arrive, but stay interminably, if not indefinitely. Sometimes they live on military bases built to the tune of billions of dollars that amount to sizeable American towns (with accompanying amenities), sometimes on stripped down forward operating bases that may not even have showers. When those troops don't stay, often American equipment does -- carefully stored for further use at tiny "cooperative security locations," known informally as "lily pads" (from which U.S. troops, like so many frogs, could assumedly leap quickly into a region in crisis).

At the height of the Roman Empire, the Romans had an estimated 37 major military bases scattered around their dominions. At the height of the British Empire, the British had 36 of them planetwide. Depending on just who you listen to and how you count, we have hundreds of bases. According to Pentagon records, in fact, there are 761 active military "sites" abroad.

The fact is: We garrison the planet north to south, east to west, and even on the seven seas, thanks to our various fleets and our massive aircraft carriers which, with 5,000-6,000 personnel aboard -- that is, the population of an American town -- are functionally floating bases.

And here's the other half of that simple truth: We don't care to know about it. We, the American people, aided and abetted by our politicians, the Pentagon, and the mainstream media, are knee-deep in base denial.

http://www.alternet.org/story/97913

[RC]

1. And not even here apparently, as this sinks like a rock.

[ngant17]

2. Well, it does end on a part-omnius, part-optimistic note:

"Today, you have to be in full-scale denial not to know that the twenty-first century -- whether it proves to be the Century of Multipolarity, the Century of China, the Century of Energy, or the Century of Chaos -- will not be an American one. The unipolar moment is already so over and, sooner or later, those mega-bases and lily pads alike will wash up on the shores of history, evidence of a remarkable fantasy of a global Pax Americana."

As the US dollar loses its value, whatever benefits that the Pentagon tried to convince the host countries, that will tend to evaporate also.

Of course, countries which have been almost perpetually invaded, governments overthrown, coup d'etats, all of that facilitated by the presence of US military bases in those regions, it should only be a matter of time before those people realize that there is no long term benefit to having a US military presence in their country. I specifically am referring to Latin America. The advance of democracy in Latin America will not bode well for US military bases in Latin America.

Also, the US base in Guantanamo, Cuba is being illegally occupied in defiance of the wishes of the Republic of Cuba. So while the US military may have a foreign base in a particular country, it does not always mean it has been established there by any express permission from the host country. It's that plain old US imperialism that hopefully will run its course some day soon.

[Just-plain-Kathy]

3. I can't imagine Americans allowing other countries to set up military bases here.

K&R