Obama:
For unlike the great powers of old, we have not sought world domination.
Reality: With ~ 5% of the world's population, we consume about 25% of its resources. If that's not domination... but let's put that into some historical perspective, shall we? From Visualizing Economics:
Since Spain, Holland and Britain all had their turns at being top dogs in Western Europe's share, it would misleading to claim that we're the only 5%ers to have taken such a large bite. But we're certainly not uniquely unselfish by any stretch of the imagination.
Obama:
Our union was founded in resistance to oppression.
Reality: Which is why we've had so much goodwill, and still do as a people despite robbing half the planet blind.
Obama:
We do not seek to occupy other nations.
Reality: Because most of the time we pretty much realize (a) it doesn't work and (b) it isn't necessary. But still, we've invaded or intervened in other countries literally hundreds of times. To take just one decade, almost at random, from one Wikipedia's timeliune of US military operations:
1900-1909
1900 - China. May 24 to September 28. Boxer Rebellion American troops participated in operations to protect foreign lives during the Boxer rising, particularly at Peking. For many years after this experience a permanent legation guard was maintained in Peking, and was strengthened at times as trouble threatened.[RL30172]
1901 - Colombia (State of Panama). November 20 to December 4. Panamanian Revolution US forces protected American property on the Isthmus and kept transit lines open during serious revolutionary disturbances.[RL30172]
1902 - Colombia. - April 16 to 23. US forces protected American lives and property at Bocas del Toro during a civil war.[RL30172]
1902 - Colombia (State of Panama). September 17 to November 18. The United States placed armed guards on all trains crossing the Isthmus to keep the railroad line open, and stationed ships on both sides of Panama to prevent the landing of Colombian troops.[RL30172]
1903 - Honduras. March 23 to 30 or 31. US forces protected the American consulate and the steamship wharf at Puerto Cortes during a period of revolutionary activity.[RL30172]
1903 - Dominican Republic. March 30 to April 21. A detachment of marines was landed to protect American interests in the city of Santo Domingo during a revolutionary outbreak.[RL30172]
1903 - Syria. September 7 to 12. US forces protected the American consulate in Beirut when a local Moslem uprising was feared.[RL30172]
1903-04 - Abyssinia (Ethiopia). Twenty-five marines were sent to Abyssinia to protect the US Consul General while he negotiated a treaty.[RL30172]
1903-14 - Panama. US forces sought to protect American interests and lives during and following the revolution for independence from Colombia over construction of the Isthmian Canal. With brief intermissions, United States Marines were stationed on the Isthmus from November 4, 1903, to January 21, 1914 to guard American interests.[RL30172]
1904 - Dominican Republic. January 2 to February 11. American and British naval forces established an area in which no fighting would be allowed and protected American interests in Puerto Plata and Sosua and Santo Domingo City during revolutionary fighting.[RL30172]
1904 - Tangier, Morocco. "We want either Perdicaris alive or Raisuli dead." A squadron demonstrated to force release of a kidnapped American. Marines were landed to protect the consul general.[RL30172]
1904 - Panama. November 17 to 24. U.S forces protected American lives and property at Ancon at the time of a threatened insurrection.[RL30172]
1904-05 - Korea. - January 5, 1904, to November 11, 1905. A guard of Marines was sent to protect the American legation in Seoul during the Russo-Japanese War.[RL30172]
1906-09 - Cuba. - September 1906 to January 23, 1909. US forces sought to protect interests and re-establish a government after revolutionary activity.[RL30172]
1907 - Honduras. - March 18 to June 8. To protect American interests during a war between Honduras and Nicaragua, troops were stationed in Trujillo, Ceiba, Puerto Cortes, San Pedro Sula, Laguna and Choloma.[RL30172]
1910 - Nicaragua. - May 19 to September 4, 1910. Occupation of Nicaragua US forces protected American interests at Bluefields.
And then there's the little matter of our overseas military bases:
737 U.S. Military Bases = Global Empire by Chalmers Johnson, Metropolitan Books. Posted February 19, 2007:
Once upon a time, you could trace the spread of imperialism by counting up colonies. America's version of the colony is the military base; and by following the changing politics of global basing, one can learn much about our ever more all-encompassing imperial "footprint" and the militarism that grows with it.
It is not easy, however, to assess the size or exact value of our empire of bases. Official records available to the public on these subjects are misleading, although instructive. According to the Defense Department's annual inventories from 2002 to 2005 of real property it owns around the world, the Base Structure Report, there has been an immense churning in the numbers of installations.
The total of America's military bases in other people's countries in 2005, according to official sources, was 737. Reflecting massive deployments to Iraq and the pursuit of President Bush's strategy of preemptive war, the trend line for numbers of overseas bases continues to go up.
Interestingly enough, the thirty-eight large and medium-sized American facilities spread around the globe in 2005 -- mostly air and naval bases for our bombers and fleets -- almost exactly equals Britain's thirty-six naval bases and army garrisons at its imperial zenith in 1898. The Roman Empire at its height in 117 AD required thirty-seven major bases to police its realm from Britannia to Egypt, from Hispania to Armenia. Perhaps the optimum number of major citadels and fortresses for an imperialist aspiring to dominate the world is somewhere between thirty-five and forty.
Obama:
We will not claim another nation's resources or target other peoples because their faith or ethnicity is different from ours.
Reality: See the last decade, in general, and my diary, "Obama vs. ISG: Yes Blood For Oil!" in particular.
Obama:
What we have fought for - and what we continue to fight for - is a better future for our children and grandchildren, and we believe that their lives will be better if other peoples' children and grandchildren can live in freedom and access opportunity.
Reality: Which is why our military spending is going up, up, up! While we're also getting ready to plan on slashing Social Security and Medicare, because simply can't afford them!
God damn reality & its terrible left-wing bias!
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