US Imperialism — Bases Beget Violence

I recently finished up an incredible book by David Vine titled the US of War. Judging by my cursory exploration of his Twitter account, he deserves a whole lot more recognition and interaction than he is currently getting! Give him a follow.

The book centers on a single, powerful idea, summarized by an age old phrase: “Build it and they will come”.

The variation Vine envisions related to US military bases is as follows: “Build the bases, and war will come”. The book itself covers (almost) every conflict in US history, and uses this idea of bases begetting violence as a thread to tie it all together. It is exhausting to read over and over again how many of the US armed conflicts worldwide have been thinly justified at best, often underpinned by racist and supremacist ideologies. From the genocidal erasure of Native American culture and society to the support of Apartheid in Africa, the mindset of white supremacy and Manifest Destiny has followed us to the present day.

This article isn’t designed to be a summary of David’s work, but more of a complementary musing. I want to discuss three main follow-up topics that the book discussed, but not in immense detail. I’ll leave that to the reader:

1. What is the ecological impact of US military scope and size?
2. What could the money spent on the Military Industrial Congressional Complex do for America or the world?
3. How can we re-envision and even begin to mend the damage caused by our actions worldwide and at home?

As Vine discusses many times in his book, one of the main reasons foreign bases are so dangerous is that they exist in a sort of semi-lawless purgatory. Exempt from many domestic laws and often completely or partially detached from local law, this freedom has led to unaccountable killings, sexual assault, and theft. More than that though, it has allowed the DoD to embrace the bare minimum approach to sustainability, often dumping toxic material into local landfills or bodies of water.

Part of the problem here is that the terms and conditions signed upon for the 800+ bases worldwide were largely signed prior to modern environmental protection knowledge and focus. The Cold War period saw the largest buildup of bases “in response” to the Soviet Union’s “threat”. Since then, the style of imperialism has been forced to change as public opinion of foreign wars gets less and less generous. Many bases were closed after the Cold War, with the US opting for “lily pads”: small and secretive bases worldwide that are likely not even fully accounted for to this day.

It is tough to quantify the ecological devastation caused my US military forces, particularly since a good portion of it is likely to have occurred outside the books. What we do know is this:

“As the world’s biggest polluter, our armed forces create 750,000 tons of toxic waste every year in the form of depleted uranium, oil, jet fuels, pesticides, defoliants, lead and other chemicals…”

That’s a terrifying figure, I am sure you will agree. Hand in hand with this is my second area of interest: what could the money be used for? If we lower the budgetary investment in armed forces, we can simultaneously see benefits at home and abroad. Internally focusing on domestic issues, like green infrastructure, environmental justice, cancellation of student debt, reparations for income and wealth inequality, providing homes for the homeless…some of these could be done instantly with less than 50% of the $703.7 billion 2021 Military Industrial Complex budget. For example:

1. $20 billion estimated to eradicate homelessness — 2.84%
2. $1.59 trillion is the current student debt, meaning if a third of the 2021 military budget was spent eradicating debt for the next 6 years, we could pay it off. Better yet, President Biden has the authority to cancel it outright (there well may be legal consequences, but the power is there. When does the wage enslavement and debt burial end?)

All of this, without even taxing the rich. Combining a tax hike for the top 1% with a defunding of military and police, as well as a carbon tax and/or carbon coin for industry would provide a financial platform for radically improving the material conditions of Americans and securing a future for our children and grandchildren.

The most important part of any future plans for the military needs to be an honest look into the past. Just like reparations are designed to rectify inequalities baked into the American system(s), any military repurposing and restructuring must be done with the past in mind. It is not enough to reform and move on. Many governments, as well as entire peoples across the world should be compensated. The destabilization, direct meddling in foreign affairs/elections, violent sanctions and outright war and devastation the US Military Industrial Complex has rained upon the world needs both an expiration date and an eviction notice. The only question is, how much time do we have to wait, and what is the actual, bloody cost of doing so? Because if there is one thing history can teach us, it is that the US Military is an ever present threat to global peace.