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.Indeed, the board ultimately ruledthat a  submarine mine of unknown provenance had destroyed theMaine, implying that the Spanish had some covert role.McKinleyimmediately demanded that Spain lay down its arms, allow theUS to mediate between the Spanish government and rebels andrevoke the re-concentration measures.Secretly, however, he orderedthe US ambassador to inform the Spanish government that the USwould devote its  friendly offi ces to Cuban independence.Thiswas the one stipulation, McKinley knew well, that the Spanishmust reject, though Spain met his fi rst demands.Ignoring theseconcessions McKinley ordered Dewey to commence battle evenbefore he addressed Congress to demand  the forcible interventionof the United States as a neutral to stop the war, according to thelarge dictates of humanity&  8 Unwilling to declare war Congresspassed a resolution authorizing armed intervention.The Americanfl eet would unmask itself, crush the hapless Spanish, and Cuba,Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Guam would be freed from Spain ssovereignty only to be ruled from Washington and New York.In short order, with a crushing victory over Spain, the CaribbeanSea became, as the Romans used to say, mare nostrum,  our sea.Allfour island-nations became de facto American colonies, exploitedas bases for the American navy and for their resources, their peoplenow serving American masters.Cuba s constitution was writtenWAR WITH SPAIN, THEN ANOTHER AND ANOTHER 103in Washington and came with the proviso known as the PlattAmendment that the US could intervene militarily on the islandany time American interests were said to be at risk.The Philippineshad been promised outright independence but Manila Bay put theUS at  the doorstep to Asia and no imperial advantage such as thiscould be surrendered no matter what had been guaranteed.WhenFilipinos rose in rebellion against the army that had claimed to freethem, the US had its fi rst counter-insurgency jungle war which itwaged with utmost brutality, killing upwards of 200,000 civilians,the greatest number of civilian deaths up to that time.With the riches of Asia looming, which of the new empires woulddominate?At this critical stage the US enunciated its plans for the futureand on first sight these seemed benign, and equitable as well.TheOpen Door policy asserted the right of all nations to access thewealth of China on equal terms.But since the US economy couldalready out-compete its capitalist rivals, and would begin with aclear-cut advantage, American rivals understood that the US couldpotentially close the doors to them.Japan especially took notice.Washington was asserting the fundamental rules of a new game,applicable to the entire world, even if the US was not yet powerfulenough to enforce them.But the message was clear.Henceforth, themarkets and resources of the world would remain open to Americanpenetration.From that moment on the US would rely increasingly onits arms to enforce what would come to be its overarching policy.Meanwhile, the shores of the new American lake had to bepacifi ed.American marines were landed in Mexico, Nicaragua,Honduras, Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and those nationsbrought to heel.Colombia was refusing to allow a new inter-oceaniccanal through its province of Panama to enable the American navyand merchant fleet to pass easily between the Atlantic and Pacific.Roosevelt s solution was simple.He told Washington s handpickedPanamanian rebels to declare independence and then dispatchedthe navy and marines to prevent Colombia from doing anythingabout it.Some in Congress objected to this naked land grab but,said Teddy,  I took the Panama Canal, let Congress debate! Only afew years later Woodrow Wilson would justify the new war againstMexico with the words  I will teach them to elect good men.The United States had joined the club of empire.7World War I: Making the World Safefor American Capital InvestmentIn American national mythology World War I is represented, in thewords of President Woodrow Wilson, as the war waged  to makethe world safe for democracy.It was also claimed to be the  warto end all wars [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]