USA at 250: A legacy of war & conflict
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What historical conflicts have shaped the United States since its founding?
First of all, I suppose I should say a happy Independence Day to all our American listeners, be they here, there or yon. And as Americans celebrate the 4th of July with many events marking the 250th anniversary of the creation of that country... Their founding ideals of liberty, democracy and freedom are once again taking center stage. But there's another story running through America's history and not one of peace interrupted by war, but of a nation shaped by almost continuous conflict. David Vine is the author of The United States of War, subtitled A Global History of America's Endless Conflicts from Columbus to the Islamic State. And he argues that war has become deeply embedded not only in American foreign policy, but in its politics, its economy, and its national identity.
So, as the U.S. reflects on 250 years of independence, has the culture of perpetual war become one of the defining features of the American experience? David Vine joins me now from California as the celebrations move from the East Coast to the West. David, good morning and welcome at a happy Fourth of July.
How has the culture of perpetual war influenced American identity?
Thank you for having me. It's a pleasure to speak with you. It's a difficult day to entirely embrace the happy 4th of July, but I feel very lucky to have a chance to talk together.
Now, the United States, you say, has been at war for most of its 250 years. Why?
It's a darn good question, and I've been dedicating a lot of my working life to answering that question. We can quickly dispense of any idea that U.S. wars have been inevitable or somehow baked into the DNA of the country. I think the easiest way, and surely many in Ireland can understand, to understand the history of endless wars that the United States has been fighting since independence, almost without cessation, is to understand that, of course, the United States is a country that won its independence in a war with Britain.
What role did the U.S. wars against Native Americans play in American history?
It freed itself from the British Empire and very much inherited the imperial roots of the British Empire. It was a war not just for freedom or democracy as... Some of the myth would have it, but it was a war for imperial control and control over imperial mechanisms that enabled the United States to expand as an empire across the North American continent and then eventually to expand beyond North America to conquer and control lands around the world to become ultimately a global empire.
Now, I would invite our listeners to maybe Google and have a look at all the wars that the United States has been involved in since its foundation. I'll just throw a few countries that were affected. Well, Tripoli, which is in Libya, 1801. Haiti, Mexico, Sumatra in 1832. war against Great Britain itself in 1812, Hawaii, 1893, the Spanish Civil War, 1818 to 1902, and so on and so forth, and many wars against Native Americans.
Exactly right. Virtually the entire 19th century and most of the late 18th century after the United States won its independence from the British Empire was fought fighting a long series of wars against Native American peoples and nations.
What are the long-term impacts of U.S. military actions on foreign nations?
And those were just some of the wars. At the same time, the United States invaded Canada on 11 separate occasions, invaded Mexico on 10 occasions, and took almost half of Mexico's territory, which is part of how I'm sitting now in the United States, living in California and not in Mexico, or for that matter, in Spain, or of course, this is ultimately occupied native lands. We could spend the rest of the interview reading the 100 and more than 135 different nations and peoples that the United States military has fought wars with or engaged in some form of combat with. Many, of course, are most focused, as we should be, on the last war. Now, almost 25 years of war since the George W. Bush administration launched its so-called war on terror.
And in many ways, that is exactly why the United States is involved in yet another endless war. Hopefully not endless completely, but the current war in Iran is a product. of both the George W. Bush administration's war on terror and a product of this much longer history of U.S.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What historical conflicts have shaped the United States since its founding?
0:01–1:16
2
How has the culture of perpetual war influenced American identity?
1:16–2:18
3
What role did the U.S. wars against Native Americans play in American history?
2:18–3:44
4
What are the long-term impacts of U.S. military actions on foreign nations?
3:44–4:59
5
How have recent conflicts affected U.S. domestic issues and public perception?
4:59–5:49
6
What financial costs have the U.S. wars incurred since 2001?
5:49–6:32
7
How does the narrative of U.S. greatness overshadow its historical injustices?
6:32–7:50
8
What future changes in U.S. foreign policy could emerge from current dissatisfaction?
7:50–20:13