'The modern era of American warfighting started with what President Roosevelt called the “date of infamy”: Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, which brought the GIs into World War II.'

The ‘modern era of American warfighting’? What’s that supposed to mean? As compared to the ‘PRE-modern era’ of American warfighting, I suppose.

Let’s go back to 1898, when the US declared war on Spain in order to get its hands on Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines. These were made US colonies in that year, with Cuba being allowed independence but with full US control of its foreign and financial policies.

And then there’s the independent nation of Hawaii, under Queen Liliuokalani, which was overthrown by the US in the period around 1900 and later made a state. And then there’s the time when the US sent gunboats to secure Panama’s separation from Columbia for control of the Panama canal (in 1903).

In fact, according to the publication ‘Addicted to War’ by Joel Andreas, which I’d highly recommend: (http://www.addictedtowar.com/book.html):

‘Between 1898 and 1934, the US invaded Cuba 4 times, Nicaragua 5 times, Honduras 7 times, the Dominican Republic 4 times, Haiti twice, Guatemala once, Panama twice, Mexico 3 times and Colombia 4 times’ – and in most cases, left occupying armies/bases of marines to ‘protect’ its interests, mostly sugar and oil.

And let’s not forget Mexico, which the US started a war with in 1848, in order to sieze what is now California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, for their gold and land (contrary to Remember the Alamo propaganda).

In its 230-year history, the US has made more than 200 military interventions abroad ... an average of one every 14 months.

I doubt if the people who have suffered and died as a result of these invasions would care whether they were part of America’s modern or pre-modern addiction to war.

According to the United States Constitution all the wars that the United States has been in since World War 2 have been illegal. Article 1 section 8 of the US Constitution gives only Congress the power to declare war. No wars since WW2 have had a declaration. There have been congressional authorisations in some cases but no declarations. The Congress has tried to limit the power of the president by such laws as forbidding the executive branch to supply arms to the contras in Nicaragua, but the Reagan administration supplied the arms anyway. Bush 41 got the Senate to authorise action in Iraq by having fake testimony about the Iraqi atrocity of tossing babies out of incubators. Bush 43 told lies about Hussein's attempt to buy yellowcake, possession of WMDs and connection with Al Qaeda. Neither Reagan nor either Bush was called to account for lying the US into war and ignoring a Congressional resolution.

If you are good at it, being a bully works well in a "law of jungle" type situation.
It helps if you have learned to not look like a bully, thus avoiding retribution. "The land of the free"...etc really takes on a different meaning when you know the history!
Being appeasers of the bully, Australia is not exactly in an honorable position...but at least it is pretty safe. When the bully dies of stupidity (in progress), we can shift allegiences fairly cheaply.
Politics is a grubby business. It's tools: Nationalism, Religion, Hype and Ignorence are far grubbier, but are held in high esteem. Western civilisation: A good idea yet to be tried.

"War is the health of the state."

Wing Ah Ling wrote: "War is the health of the state."

The health of the state is the sickness of the people.

Seeing that if us English clans could turn dirty historics like colonialism into big Biz, one could guess that any Good Lord if there is one, surely will have us pay Pay the Piper, even just for telling God knows how many lies about it.

Certainly that Iranian female judge was spot on when she said to our media that we are quite capable of forming our own democracy thank you, and very certainly not in the English American way.

Cheers, BB, WA.