Barack Obama wins the Democratic Nomination

[Squeezer]

we don't even want to be world police irl

I favor a base because I don't think realistically that Iraq is going to iron itself out. There still needs to be some sort of supportive military service, but we don't need our standing army occupying. A base seems like a drastic enough cutback. On top of that, it's good to have a place in the middle east which is open to refugees and can stock up on aid supplies if a crisis or disaster were to occur. You Euros criticize us for having bases, but had we not put one in Japan, the people of Myanmar a few months ago, and those that survived the tsunami in 2004 would not have had access to supplies if the US hadn't been so close and thus able to drop a continuous stream of supplies.

Oh and....

HILARY OFFICIALLY CONCEDES

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24993082/?GT1=43001

It's Obama's party now.

[Galleleo]

Your base was useless for the people of Myanmar as it took weeks for their Military Government to open the borders to helping organisations and it still isn't easy.

Besides, you could also.. I don't know, work together with foreign countries and store stuff at their bases/use their bases for a continuous stream of supplies.

And Izor, you are a retard if you didn't see that I was referring to the permanent base shit. But then again, I already know that you are a retard.

[Cops]

thank god, she conceded!

[Squeezer]

Your base was useless for the people of Myanmar as it took weeks for their Military Government to open the borders to helping organisations and it still isn't easy.

Besides, you could also.. I don't know, work together with foreign countries and store stuff at their bases/use their bases for a continuous stream of supplies.

How is it our fault that their govt. wouldn't let us in? That doesn't serve as a good reason not to put a base in the region so we can lend relief.

And as far as working with other countries...That sounds cool and all but we have way more planes, supplies, investors, and capabilities in general than your crappy Dutch country. When it comes down to it we do things our way because we put forth the most aide.

[Kolar]

There's no problem with having Military bases in places like Germany and other NATO countries, and those who are open to it for that matter. But opening up massive bases and embassies in places like Iraq is poor planning. I think they're providing construction and infrastructure well beyond what should be there, or will be there in the next 5, 10 and even 15 years. No matter who wins the presidency the US can not in military strength and economic support continue an occupation of Iraq for much longer. And if Obama doesn't take that message to the street he will lose, they can not allow the Republicans to paint a rosy picture of Iraq.

I'm not against any country having the capacity to react to events around the world, Canada is failing to provide that but there's a difference between stacking your barracks with weapons and humanitarian supplies. I'm not saying you guys don't do a lot of good, Burma was a disaster absolutely not of our making, but the US has bases world wide to assert political influence beneficial to their own economic wellbeing and security, for better or worse.

Edit: And I think Obama will lose any debate on foreign policy because he's not the type of person to give you a black and white answer, IE do we stay in Iraq for 50 years or do we remove all troops on day 1. Obviously a good portion of both parties want it one way or the other, the reality on the ground is going to require something in the middle of both. The use of force is going to always be an issue that requires a delicate touch and I don't think that's what people want to hear.

[Galleleo]

Uhm, the Dutch people are known for being among the countries who give the most money to for instance the Tsunami per resident.

And, there were tons of Dutch people and equipment helping the oh so great USA with Katrina. You needed our specialists, our divers, our F16s.

Royal Netherlands Navy Frigate Hr.Ms. Van Amstel has arrived from the Netherlands Antilles. The frigate is filled with supplies and has helicopters on board that can be used in rescue actions. Further, The Netherlands have sent experts on the subject of water containment and dikes, identification teams and pumps to deliver clean drinking water, F-16s and divers from the Royal Netherlands Marine Corps.

[Izor]

How in the fucking hell do you think we're going to just stand a base up and leave it there like it wont get attacked. If you're going to have a base there, then you will still need to have a substantial amount of troops there for force protection. Clearly not 175000 but still a pretty large number, considering my boss is in the green zone and his ass is still getting mortared at

[Kolar]

Clearly not 175000 but still a pretty large number,

That would be the middle part I was talking about. Military operations should go towards training, reconstruction, and defense of a gradual build down of forces. Not literally policing the streets, hunting down insurgents ect... There's always going to be an American and foreign presence in Iraq but if they want to destroy their country in a civil war they can do it on their own.

[Cops]

Having a single military base in Iraq is just a breeding ground for terrorist attacks, it also acts as a reminder to the Iraqi people that they are still occupied. The number of troops and size of that base would have to be extensive, you'd almost have to consider whether you even left the war in the first place.

[Izor]

You needed our specialists, our divers, our F16s.

rofl. We didnt NEED shit from you. Your pisant country joins in on one humanitarian mission and you think you're the shit for it? Get over yourself

[Galleleo]

Izor, stop talking out of your arse.

The Dutch are the specialist when it comes to water management. You sure as fuck needed us as it was your piss poor dikes that broke.

[Jerome Scuggs]

Izor, stop talking out of your arse.

The Dutch are the specialist when it comes to water management. You sure as fuck needed us as it was your piss poor dikes that broke.

Several local New Orleans companies have been itching to bid on new levees for years. Guess who told them no?

It's not a lack of expertise - well, perhaps it is: politicians are not experts on levees. So why are they the ones who control their upkeep?

[Squeezer]

Izor, stop talking out of your arse.

The Dutch are the specialist when it comes to water management. You sure as fuck needed us as it was your piss poor dikes that broke.

No, Izor is right he's just being abrasive as usual. The Dutch people simply aren't comparable when it comes to foreign aid. We have more resources, man power, population, and experts than you. We have a larger pool to draft from. The fact remains that we are the premier aid giving country in the world.

That's fine, I feel like many, if not most Americans don't mind providing foreign relief, but if that's going to be the case then you can't bitch when we build a base to store all that shit.

As far as our bases in Europe, we're already sort of entrenched there and it's not like we don't cooperate with local laws. It allows us to store planes and other supplies so that we can deliver things (including bombs if necessary), in a quicker and more convenient way.

[Izor]

Izor, stop talking out of your arse.

The Dutch are the specialist when it comes to water management. You sure as fuck needed us as it was your piss poor dikes that broke.

Look I'm not saying that the help isnt appreciated or anything, but we help out with pretty much every humanitarian crisis in the world more than anyone else. I just dont like it when we spend billions and billions of dollars on humanitarian efforts elsewhere in the world, but when a disaster ravages one of our cities and some country sends over a thousand people (or whatever the case may be) its citizens act like we owe them something. Thats not how it works. We dont say 'hey remember when we helped you with that tsunami? how bout you come help us with katrina' We do what we do to save innocent peoples lives because of a misfortune that could happen to any one of us thats way outside our control. Not to use in a pissing contest on interweb forums

[Galleleo]

No Izor isn't right, its a fact that the Dutch are the authority when it comes to water management. You needed our expertise in New Orleans.

Obviously you have more possibilities, you have 600+ million people, we got 16 Million, relatively speaking:

http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=34329

Overall, the U.S. placed 13th among the top 21 aid donors -- the same ranking as last year -- due to the small size of its foreign aid programme relative to the size of its economy, the amount of its aid that is "tied" to the purchase of U.S. goods and services, and its environmental and energy policies that indirectly harm developing countries by accelerating global warming.

In the aid criterion, Denmark scored highest of all 21, followed by Sweden, Norway, and the Netherlands. Worst performers included Japan, Italy, the U.S., New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, and Australia, in ascending order.

#5 Netherlands: 9.508 per 1 population
#19 United States: 2.678 per 1 population