What is the best way to defend America without alienating other nations?

[TinVanMan]

It seems like most American military policy aims at creating a single force so overwhelming that no one would dare attack us. This obviously has turned the tide of international opinion against us. If policies were altered so that we placed an emphasis on creating allies instead of trying to be self-sufficient, how could we accomplish that?

 

[missbishi]

Well, I consider the US and the UK to be close allies already. Maybe not so close as the good ole Blair/Bush days but we'll both be getting new leaders in the near fuure (well, hopefully!) and it remains to be seen whether the friendship will be maintained.

 

[Joe Shearer]

Build surrogate armies? Pay for them, train them, but do not intervene? Jobs are difficult; hiring armies of a 100,000 rifles is peanuts.

Second thing, dismantle the CIA. A look at the recent past shows that most of the horrible situations that the US has got into it have had a CIA theme to them.

The Middle East mess, for instance; Iraq, and then Libya (even Tunisia), and then Syria. All three totally unnecessary, all three having done more harm than good. And that's before saying the 'A' word.

Then the failure to build up a lazy, slack Philippines; they were having a great time, lounging about, entertaining US sailors at their bases, and generally leading the life of Riley, so when the yellow stuff hit the fan, they could do nothing about it except to pretend that they had been against the US, all along, yes, really, Massa, and fall flat in front of a bully-boy China as fast as their spines would bend.

Not being prepared a decade ago, when it became clear that Chinese growth was not an illusion but would continue at a rapid rate; failing to take advance measures and then thrashing about helplessly.

 

[Nilgiri]

Then the failure to build up a lazy, slack Philippines; they were having a great time, lounging about, entertaining US sailors at their bases, and generally leading the life of Riley, so when the yellow stuff hit the fan, they could do nothing about it except to pretend that they had been against the US, all along, yes, really, Massa, and fall flat in front of a bully-boy China as fast as their spines would bend.

You shouldn't let pinoy political elite and neo-elite fool you like that regarding Pinoy people overall.

It is actually quite similar to Nepal (vis a vis India) as far as politics is concerned.

If you go to PH, they have really only one massive over-arching soft power culture in play, its American. Manila slum areas to this day are named after NBA teams. The middle class aspire to be American in thought, outlook and demeanor. The general elite exclusively send their kids to the US, watch US TV and take cues from US events and culture. This is all easily accessible if you go there and look around. China on the other hand has simply kept a ton of this under lock and key projection wise....and fully invested projection wise into hard power (be it loans or military threat).

It is really the non-Christian countries in SEA and Asia at large that have inherent lower resistance to the Chinese efforts in a long term way as a result.

 

[Joe Shearer]

You shouldn't let pinoy political elite and neo-elite fool you like that regarding Pinoy people overall.

It is actually quite similar to Nepal (vis a vis India) as far as politics is concerned.

If you go to PH, they have really only one massive over-arching soft power culture in play, its American. Manila slum areas to this day are named after NBA teams. The middle class aspire to be American in thought, outlook and demeanor. The general elite exclusively send their kids to the US, watch US TV and take cues from US events and culture. This is all easily accessible if you go there and look around.

But that's exactly what I said in my post!! That they were pro-US until faced with a confrontation, when they buckled under.

China on the other hand has simply kept a ton of this under lock and key projection wise....and fully invested projection wise into hard power (be it loans or military threat).

It is really the non-Christian countries in SEA and Asia at large that have inherent lower resistance to the Chinese efforts in a long term way as a result.

I didn't understand the second bit, to be honest.

 

[Nilgiri]

But that's exactly what I said in my post!! That they were pro-US until faced with a confrontation, when they buckled under.

What I am saying is they as a people are inherently still very pro - US in thought and action. How they could operate in reckless abandon politically (say under Marcos in the cold war) and ignorantly/defiantly against China's (military) interests will definitely be tempered today with China's rise by about 100 times in (esp naval) hard power projection from that earlier time under Mao.

A political class's actions are always tempered first given they are the ones that have to balance realpolitik with their own populations desires and drive.

This is all very inevitable. The cold war situation is very different to the multi-polar situation taking shape now. The US is of course not going to be able to have the same capacity to maintain power and influence in such a brittle way like it did... they aren't producing twice the number of cars as the rest of world put together like they did in the 50s (to give an idea of the economic dominance at the start of cold war)....and they went through the horrific bloodletting (in every way imaginable) that was the Vietnam war that really sapped what they inherited post WW2.

The fact the US is still the sole superpower today and will be for quite a long time yet illustrates just how much they inherited and were able to sustain for at least another generation during their peak. That inertia, even with the much more complicated multi-variate environment introduces today..... does not evaporate that easily.

 

[Falcon29]

It seems like most American military policy aims at creating a single force so overwhelming that no one would dare attack us. This obviously has turned the tide of international opinion against us. If policies were altered so that we placed an emphasis on creating allies instead of trying to be self-sufficient, how could we accomplish that?

Actually it hasn't, how are you coming to that conclusion? As for the Middle East, US policy there has improved. If we are more impartial to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, we will be the major power in that region. We have a lot more to offer to developing Arab nations then Russia does. Enabling the Palestinians to get statehood would do wonders for our image there. Having the strongest military is necessary and I'll touch on that if you want.