Thoughts on US Empire

It is surprising that Major-General John Kelly can state ".....we have never retained a square foot of any country we have defeated. We possess no empire.....we have never subjugated any society." If he would consider the following, he would need to seriously revise those three statements.

He should consider the enslavement of blacks, the "Trail of Tears" as the Indians were forced from their land, the invasion of Mexico, which left us in possession of another six states, the military acquisition of Cuba from Spain, the ten years spent defeating Philippine independence after "purchasing" that country from a defeated Spain, the conquest of Hawaii, the two million Vietnamese we killed attempting to control their country after they had defeated Japanese and French colonial efforts, the overthrow or attempted overthrow of democratic governments in Iran, Chile, and Guatemala. In Nicaragua the US supported Somoza for 50 years, and then the Contras. In Cuba we supported Batista, and then the Bay of Pigs invasion. We retain bases in Cuba, the Philippines, Germany, Japan, Korea, and many other locations around the world, much as Britain did with the Empire they took such pride in maintaining.

The essential point of empire is not the paperwork - the constitution. Or the personnel - the governor, Shah, King, or other potentate. It is the control - by military action or the threat of it.

Underlying much of the imperial effort is the "exceptionalism" (we are so fine it fell in our lap, and only we can develop this territory as it should be cared for), religiosity ( God has blessed us and intends us to have it), and racism (we are the chosen people, the master race; they are less than fully human and need our guidance.)

Martin Luther King Jr. described our problems in his speech "Beyond Vietnam":

Beyond Vietnam -- A Time to Break Silence http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkatimetobreaksilence.htm

Full text and audio mp3 of Martin Luther King's Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence.

A Marine Major-General who greatly impresses me is Maj.-Gen. Smedley Butler, in my opinion the most under-reported and under-taught hero in US history:

Smedley Butler on Interventionism

-- Excerpt from a speech delivered in 1933, by Major General Smedley Butler, USMC
War is just a racket. A racket is best described, I believe, as something that is not what it seems to the majority of people. Only a small inside group knows what it is about. It is conducted for the benefit of the very few at the expense of the masses.

I believe in adequate defense at the coastline and nothing else. If a nation comes over here to fight, then we'll fight. The trouble with America is that when the dollar only earns 6 percent over here, then it gets restless and goes overseas to get 100 percent. Then the flag follows the dollar and the soldiers follow the flag.

I wouldn't go to war again as I have done to protect some lousy investment of the bankers. There are only two things we should fight for. One is the defense of our homes and the other is the Bill of Rights. War for any other reason is simply a racket.

There isn't a trick in the racketeering bag that the military gang is blind to. It has its "finger men" to point out enemies, its "muscle men" to destroy enemies, its "brain men" to plan war preparations, and a "Big Boss" Super-Nationalistic-Capitalism.

It may seem odd for me, a military man to adopt such a comparison. Truthfulness compels me to. I spent thirty- three years and four months in active military service as a member of this country's most agile military force, the Marine Corps. I served in all commissioned ranks from Second Lieutenant to Major-General. And during that period, I spent most of my time being a high class muscle- man for Big Business, for Wall Street and for the Bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism.

I suspected I was just part of a racket at the time. Now I am sure of it. Like all the members of the military profession, I never had a thought of my own until I left the service. My mental faculties remained in suspended animation while I obeyed the orders of higher-ups. This is typical with everyone in the military service.

I helped make Mexico, especially Tampico, safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefits of Wall Street. The record of racketeering is long. I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1909-1912 (where have I heard that name before?). I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American sugar interests in 1916. In China I helped to see to it that Standard Oil went its way unmolested.

During those years, I had, as the boys in the back room would say, a swell racket. Looking back on it, I feel that I could have given Al Capone a few hints. The best he could do was to operate his racket in three districts. I operated on three continents.

Smedley Butler - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smedley_Butler
Despite his father's desire that he remain in school, Smedley Butler dropped out when the United States declared war against Spain in 1898....

I think Maj. Gen. Kelly should read a WWII Navy veteran who went on to study history:
William Appleman Williams - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Appleman_Williams
William Appleman Williams (1921--1990) was one of the 20th century's most prominent historians of American diplomacy. He achieved the height of his influence...
Williams described American empire. And many others do not shrink from applying the label:

From USA Today - embracing imperialism - an excerpt: "Yet, while generally successful as imperialists, Americans have been loath to confirm that's what they were doing. That's OK. Given the historical baggage that "imperialism" carries, there's no need for the U.S. government to embrace the term. But it should definitely embrace the practice."

"That doesn't mean looting Iraq of its natural resources; nothing could be more destructive of our goal of building a stable government in Baghdad. It means imposing the rule of law, property rights, free speech and other guarantees, at gunpoint if need be. This will require selecting a new ruler who is committed to pluralism and then backing him or her to the hilt. Iran and other neighboring states won't hesitate to impose their despotic views on Iraq; we shouldn't hesitate to impose our democratic views." Source:

USATODAY.com - American imperialism? No need to run away from label http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2003-05-05-boot_x.htm What is the greatest danger facing America as it tries to rebuild Iraq: Shiite fundamentalism? Kurdish separatism? Sunni intransigence?

Another WWII veteran, USAF bombardier Howard Zinn, also went on to become a prominent historian, and he refers to imperialism:
Alternative Radio : Howard Zinn : U.S. Imperialism & the War with... http://www.alternativeradio.org/programs/ZINH019.shtml
U.S. Imperialism & the War with Spain Howard Zinn. Available Formats. Tape:, ZINH019aT, $17.00. Transcript:, ZINH019aD, $9.00...

Other references on the subject:
The Age of Imperialism http://www.smplanet.com/imperialism/toc.html
The Age of Imperialism: An On-line History. This history unit covers United States expansionism around the turn of the century, with many links to related...

Let the Bloody Truth Be Told: A Chronology of U.S. Imperialism http://www.neravt.com/left/invade.htm
The Age of Imperialism -- part of an Online History of the U.S.... at the University of Wisconsin- Eau Claire (Box 4004, Eau Claire, WI 54701 USA....

Mexico, the USA and imperialism http://flag.blackened.net/revolt/mexico/impdx.html
North of Mexico the USA lurks, ready to intervene if things seem to be getting out of the control of the government. These documents highlight the...

Nye -- Gateway to Nevada's Rurals: Blackwater USA: Checkbook... http://nyenevada.blogspot.com/2007/09/blackwater-usa-checkbook-imperialism.html
Instead, we have checkbook imperialism. The U.S. government purchases... which has led to the dependence upon private contract firms like Blackwater USA,...

American Imperialism http://asms.k12.ar.us/classes/humanities/worldstud/97-98/imper/Philippines/usa.htm
An overview of the imperialism of the Philipines by the United States.

The American Empire Project http://www.americanempireproject.com/booklist.asp
The American Empire Project, a series of books examining the role of the the United Staes in world affairs.

Killing Hope: US Military and CIA Interventions Since World War II http://www.killinghope.org/
and other essays by Blum | order Killing Hope | other books by Blum | Blum speaking... Freeing the world to death: Essays on the American Empire...

New Book Project http://mujca.com/newbook.htm
9/11 and American Empire: Christians, Jews and Muslims Speak Out Edited by Kevin Barrett, John Cobb, and Sandra Lubarsky Interlink Books,...

The decline and fall of the American empire - Salon.com http://dir.salon.com/story/books/int/2002/12/02/kupchan/index.html
The decline and fall of the American empire... Dec 2, 2002 | The title of Charles A. Kupchan's new book, "The End of the American Era," sounds grim,...

Book by John Perkins - Dream Change - Serving the Earth http://www.dreamchange.org/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=10&MMN_position=83:83
John's newest book, The Secret History of the American Empire, zeroes in on hot spots around the world and, drawing on interviews with other hit men,...

The American Empire Project http://www.americanempireproject.com/bookpage.asp?ISBN=0805077979
"Chalmers Johnson's relentless logic, authoritative scholarship, and elegantly biting prose distinguish The Sorrows of Empire, like all his other work....
Note this comment from googlebooks:
The Sorrows of Empire suggests that the former American republic has already crossed its Rubicon-with the Pentagon leading the way. ...
books.google.com/books?isbn=0805070044...
This is a serious charge; when Julius Caesar took his Army across the Rubicon River into Rome, he broke Roman law, overthrew the Republic, and became the first Roman Emperor.
I think it is high time for the US public to stop denying Empire, and start debating it. if we don't have any moral qualms, then let's start figuring the economic cost, stop running it as ballooning debt, stop debasing our currency, and stop passing the massive costs to our advancing years and future generations.

So one more, for good measure:
Empire of Debt by Bill Bonner and Addison Wiggin http://www.investmentu.com/resources/empireofdebt.html
Empire of Debt confronts head-on critical concerns about the position of the United States as the world's leading economy and its great military might.