To what extent has American Imperialism come to replace that of the
British Empire since the end of the Second World War?
“We [the English] seem, as it were, to have conquered and peopled
half the world in a fit of absence of mind”
John R. Seeley, 1883
“By our actions [in Iraq], we will secure the peace, and lead the world to a better day”
President George W. Bush, October 7, 2002.
The term “imperialism” is often looked upon with disdain; as something taboo; a chapter in history that is best forgotten. The records of oppression and brutality that the European Empires wrought upon their subjects coupled with the economic exploitation of colonies at all four corners of the world make for uncomfortable reading. However, as the writers of Monty Python so astutely pointed out in the “what have the Romans ever done for us?” sketch, empires did have their up side. Most of the major European nations had empires – from Belgium to Italy – and these exported infrastructure,......
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