The Philippines is a perfect example: "But, while Mt. Pinatubo provided a visible excuse to abandon the air base, U.S. officials were increasingly coming to vie

The Philippines is a perfect example: "But, while Mt. Pinatubo provided a visible excuse to abandon the air base, U.S. officials were increasingly coming to view the facility as too expensive, as well as unnecessary in a time of tight budgets and easing post-Cold War tensions. Philippine political hostility to the continuing U.S. military presence and acrimonious negotiations with Philippine officials also made retention of the facility less attractive." (http://articles.latimes.com/1991-07-18/news/mn-3381_1_clark-air-base http://articles.latimes.com/1991-07-18/news/mn-3381_1_clark-...) Dick Cheney said, "We have made a decision ... that we simply do not want to go back in and try to reuse Clark Air Force Base. The cost of doing so would be several hundred million dollars. It's in an area that is still threatened by continuing eruptions by the volcano." > So what? Indeed, "so what?" is our common reply to people's wishes to get our military off their land, as with Cuba's Guantanamo Bay and the Middle East in general. I already mentioned one obvious alternative to occupying Okinawa against its residents' wishes. But as usual, "so what?" is the response. > We "let" Japan do things to the same extent we "let" other countries do things. Yep, ask people in the Middle East, Cuba, etc. (That's it from me, given that I cite evidence rather than merely repeat vague snatches of politics we can get from propaganda sources. I wish others would show us the same respect.)