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Article: Pox Americana. (United States' involvement in post W.W. II military conflicts leading up to the Persian Gulf War)
- Article from:
- Monthly Review
- Article date:
- July 1, 1991
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1991 Monthly Review Foundation, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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POX AMERICANA
The recent war in the Persian Gulf is the latest in a long series of U.S. actions dating back to the second half of the 1940s. They include large-scale military interventions, major regional wars, counterrevolutionary subversions, low-intensity conflicts, and proxy wars. Let us run briefly through the list.
The first large-scale, post-Second World War military effort--huge by prewar standards, involving 50,000 marines--was directed to restoring Chiang Kai-shek to power throughout China. This had apparently succeeded by the beginning of 1947 to the general satisfaction of all elements of the ruling class. China was saved and would form the ...