US Military Returns to Philippines

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OK, I give up, what's the problem with this? We operate all over the world. If this makes our ties with the Phillipines better AND keeps China on their toes, all the better.

I guess I just like the irony here...

Yeah, I'm not quite getting your point either. Can you explain the irony?

(Not looking for an argument, I really don't understand what you're trying to say.)

Well...

1) The US had a huge military presence there, but the Filipinos kicked us out in 1992...

B. No sooner do we "bring home" troops from Iraq and Afghanistan than we start SENDING troops to Australia and the Philippines...

3rd. The Chinese will soon be able to bring CONSIDERABLE force to bear on its claim to the South China Sea thanks to its new AIRCRAFT CARRIER... An aircraft carrier paid for largely with American trade.

If China becomes a menace to the region, it will be because American Greed allowed it.



In short, we made China what it is, and now we are stationing troops to keep them in check.

I think that's pretty damn ironic.

Last edited by GoonSquad on 27 Jan 2012, 9:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Think of it this way: If we're China's best customers, then we're also someone China can't afford to tick off, lest it lose its gravy train. So, we just place people anywhere we don't want China to mess with, the peace is kept and everybody's happy. Or, we can pull Most Favored Nation status, embargo everything from them, make prices of everything here go up, and make them revert to Militarism and bullying everyone for food and resources instead of just buying them. I like option A better.

I knew the RP couldn't last forever without us.

Magsaysay Boulevard, here we come!

I was under the impression that China owns around $3 trillion of US debt. If this is the case, America can ill afford to tick off China.

It's really a tale of two deficits. On one hand the US has a $500 billion+ trade deficit with the world--about $300 billion with China alone. On the other hand China owns trillions in US debt, frankly, because they don't know where else to put their huge piles of excess cash.

In essence, China is loaning us money to buy their stuff even as they help to undermine and destroy our industrial base. This is a really bad situation for the US, and it cannot last.


The sad truth is, sacrip's "option A" is not sustainable.

China has an economy based on creating wealth by combining capital, labor, and raw materials to produce something more valuable than the sum of its parts. The US has an economy based on Investment Fraud and credit abuse. Partisan politics aside, Obama was right when he said we need to bring industry back to America.

We certainly don't need to try to confront/isolate China. First, it is not possible, and second, if it was possible it would only trun them into a giant version of North Korea...

We need to find a middle way. We need to demand better from China in the realm of Human Rights and working conditions/wages for workers that produce goods for export to the US.

We need to scale back trade with China and redevelop some domestic manufacturing. Sure, it will mean higher prices, but that is not really a bad thing (google "Fordism").

What is going on is that the Campaigner-in-Chief is burying his head in the sand even though we'll be at war with Iran within a couple of years anyway.

Sorry to be the one to tell you, but that is a WRONG statement.

President JIMMY CARTER signed an altered "SOFA" while in office in the '70's. It gave away the Panama Canal AND all the military bases in the PI. The US forces were "allowed" to stay (as tenants--read RENTERS) and the American TAXPAYERS got to pony up the gravy for all kinds of fiascos over in the PI (I know this for a fact because I was stationed over there in the 1980's).

In 1992, Mt. Pinotubo (a supposed dormant volcano) erupted....THAT is why the U.S. military left. (The "lease" was actually set to expire w/in a year or 2 of THAT, anyway). So, unless you consider a volcano as a "Filipino", NO ONE kicked the U.S. out.

Look, I know everyone is super scared of China's shiny [old... Soviet] aircraft carrier and the others planned for the future. But it won't change the balance of power that greatly in that region. Why? Because basically everything in the disputed area is in range of ground-based aircraft. The aircraft carriers are meant to tip the balance elsewhere.

In any case I'm not all that surprised. I think there will be a clash between the US and the PRC eventually

I hope we can count on Canada's support if it comes to that.

...'cuz that will help...

If there's more than a cold war style proxy war the US is doomed.

Direct conflict is not an option.

PS

Going back to a bipolar/cold war world model might not be so bad...

Last edited by GoonSquad on 12 Feb 2012, 7:22 am, edited 1 time in total.

That's really a distinction without a difference. The Filipinos were not going to renew the lease because they wanted us gone.

"distinction without a difference" are you in politics? That statement is full of smoke & mirrors.

Your original post said one thing. That one thing is NOT true.

As for what the prevailing feelings were back then, it was not a factor as the volcano made it a moot point. As for what the prevailing feelings are now, Congress might take it into consideration, but there are MANY factors higher-up than the feelings/wants of a 3rd world nation.