The U.S. Military Moves Deeper into Africa

Tomgram: Nick Turse, The U.S. Military Moves Deeper into Africa | TomDispatch: It’s true that, if you're watching the news carefully, you will find references to a small number of these bases. In the present Korean crisis, for instance, there has been at least passing mention of Washington’s bases in South Korea (and the danger that the American troops on them might face), though often deep in articles on the subject. If, to pick another example, you were to read about the political situation in Bahrain, you might similarly find mentions of the U.S. base in that small Gulf kingdom that houses the Navy’s Fifth Fleet. Generally, though, despite the millions of Americans, military and civilian, who have cycled through American bases abroad in recent years, despite the vast network of them (the count is now approximately 800), and despite the fact that they undergird American military policy globally, they are, for all intents and purposes, a kind of black hole of non-news. Don't even think to ask just why the U.S. garrisons the planet in this fashion or what it might mean. It would be un-American of you to do so.