Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

truedelphi

(32,324 posts)
37. I am well aware of Russia's military
Sun Mar 2, 2014, 03:54 PM
Mar 2014

Last edited Sun Mar 2, 2014, 04:38 PM - Edit history (6)

Adventures.

But the poster I replied to said that Russia went in and killed everyone in the country they invaded. I wanted to point out that we are pretty good at doing very awful things ourselves.

Sort of our nation being a pot calling the kettle black.

Here is brief summary of nations where we have been less than peaceful and friendly in our interactions:
With our utilization of the National Guard
offshore shows of naval strength
reinforcements of embassy personnel
the use of non-Defense Department personnel (such as the Drug Enforcement Administration)
military exercises
non-combat mobilizations (such as replacing postal strikers)
the permanent stationing of armed forces
covert actions where the U.S. did not play a command and control role
the use of small hostage rescue units
most uses of proxy troops
U.S. piloting of foreign warplanes
foreign or domestic disaster assistance
military training and advisory programs not involving direct combat
civic action programs
army, navy and marine attacks and massive weaponry deployed
and many other military activities.

Among sources used, beside news reports, are the Congressional Record (23 June 1969), 180 Landings by the U.S. Marine Corp History Division, Ege & Makhijani in Counterspy (July-Aug, 1982), "Instances of Use of United States Forces Abroad, 1798-1993" by Ellen C. Collier of the Library of Congress Congressional Research Service, and Ellsberg in Protest & Survive.

Fair use copyright permission for the below: And pls note - some of these military activities are decent ones - such as our 1948 US Air Force dropping food and supplies to Berliners. Also certain involvements were provoked and so our involvement could be morally justified. (World War II participation; rescue attempts for personnel held in Iranian Embassy.)

Turkish newspaper urges that the United States be listed in Guinness Book of World Records as the Country with the Most Foreign Interventions.

COUNTRY OR STATE Dates of intervention Forces Comments

SOUTH DAKOTA 1890 (-?) Troops use gatling guns on 300 Lakota Indians, many of them children, the sick and the elderly, at the Massacre at Wounded Knee. This military activity serves as an unofficial marker for the end of the US military's genocide of the American Native Peoples. They lost; "we won!"

ARGENTINA 1890 Troops Buenos Aires interests protected.

CHILE 1891 Troops Marines clash with nationalist rebels.

HAITI 1891 Troops Black revolt on Navassa defeated.

IDAHO 1892 Troops Army suppresses silver miners' strike.

HAWAII 1893 (-?) Naval, troops Independent kingdom overthrown, annexed.

CHICAGO 1894 Troops Breaking of rail strike, 34 killed. Republican Party buys ads in Chicago mainstream newspapers, decrying the violence by the Establishment and calling for support for the workers.

NICARAGUA 1894 Troops Month-long occupation of Bluefields.

CHINA 1894-95 Naval, troops Marines land in Sino-Japanese War

KOREA 1894-96 Troops Marines kept in Seoul during war.

PANAMA 1895 Troops, naval Marines land in Colombian province.

NICARAGUA 1896 Troops Marines land in port of Corinto.

CHINA 1898-1900 Troops Boxer Rebellion fought by foreign armies, including the USA. 140,203 casualties on the Chinese side. Remember, this military action came about due to the Chinese rebels "The Boxers" killing around 200 Protestant missionaries who had come from the USA. .

PHILIPPINES 1898-1910 (-?) Naval, troops The Phillippines are seized from Spain, with our military killing 600,000 Filipinos. Many of the dead are civilians; others are imprisoned in concentration camp style system of open outdoor prisons.

CUBA 1898-1902 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, still hold Navy base.

PUERTO RICO 1898 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain,
1898 (-?) Naval, troops Seized from Spain, still use as base.

MINNESOTA 1898 (-?) Troops Army battles Chippewa at Leech Lake.

NICARAGUA 1898 Troops Marines land at port of San Juan del Sur.

SAMOA 1899 (-?) Troops Battle over succession to throne.

NICARAGUA 1899 Troops Marines land at port of Bluefields.

IDAHO 1899-1901 Troops Army occupies Coeur d'Alene mining region.

OKLAHOMA 1901 Troops Army battles Creek Indian revolt.

PANAMA 1901-14 Naval, troops Broke off from Colombia 1903, annexed Canal Zone; Opened canal 1914.

HONDURAS 1903 Troops Marines intervene in revolution.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1903-04 We put in our troops - U.S. interests protected in Revolution.

KOREA 1904-05 Troops Marines land during Russo-Japanese War.

CUBA 1906-09 Troops Marines land in democratic election.

NICARAGUA 1907 Troops "Dollar Diplomacy" protectorate set up.

HONDURAS 1907 Troops Marines land during war with Nicaragua

PANAMA 1908 Troops Marines intervene in election contest.

NICARAGUA 1910 Troops Marines land in Bluefields and Corinto
.
HONDURAS 1911 Troops U.S. interests protected in civil war.

CHINA 1911-41 Naval, troops Continuous occupation with flare-ups.

CUBA 1912 Troops U.S. interests protected in civil war.

PANAMA 1912 Troops Marines land during heated election.

HONDURAS 1912 Troops Marines protect U.S. economic interests.

NICARAGUA 1912-33 Troops, bombing 10-year occupation, fought guerrillas

MEXICO 1913 Naval Americans evacuated during revolution.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1914 Naval Fight with rebels over Santo Domingo.

COLORADO 1914 Troops Breaking of miners' strike by Army.

MEXICO 1914-18 Naval, troops Series of interventions against nationalists.

HAITI 1914-34 Troops, and bombing and then a 19-year occupation after revolts.

TEXAS 1915 Troops Federal soldiers crush "Plan of San Diego" Mexican-American rebellion

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1916-24 Troops 8-year Marine occupation.

CUBA 1917-33 US Troops Military occupation, economic protectorate. As a result, Cuba comes under the rule of ruthless landlords, a dictator and the American Mafiosa.

WORLD WAR I 1917-18 Naval, troops Ships sunk, our entire military fought fought Germany for 1 1/2 years. However the participation of our allies was for a full three years prior to our involvement.
The total number of military and civilian casualties in World War I was over 37 million.

RUSSIA 1918-22 Naval, troops Five military landings to fight Bolsheviks. Naval bombardment.

PANAMA 1918-20 Troops "Police duty" during unrest after elections.

HONDURAS 1919 Troops Marines land during election campaign.

YUGOSLAVIA 1919 Troops/Marines intervene for Italy against Serbs in Dalmatia.

GUATEMALA 1920 Troops 2-week intervention against unionists.

WEST VIRGINIA 1920-21 Troops, on account of a bombing, Army intervenes against mineworkers.

TURKEY 1922 Troops Fought nationalists in Smyrna.

CHINA 1922-27 Naval, troops Deployment during nationalist revolt.

PANAMA 1925 Troops Marines suppress general strike.

CHINA 1927-34 Troops Marines stationed throughout the country.

EL SALVADOR 1932 Naval Warships send during Marti revolt.

WASHINGTON DC 1932 Troops Army stops WWI vet bonus protest.

WORLD WAR II 1941-45 Naval, troops, bombing, nuclear Hawaii bombed, fought Japan, Italy and Germany for 3 years; first nuclear war. A total of fifty million people are killed world wide as the result of this horrendous war.

DETROIT 1943 Troops Army put down Black rebellion.

IRAN 1946 Nuclear threat Soviet troops told to leave north.

YUGOSLAVIA 1946 Nuclear threat, naval Response to shoot-down of US plane.

URUGUAY 1947 Nuclear threat Bombers deployed as show of strength.

GREECE 1947-49 Command operation U.S. directs extreme-right in civil war.
Union leaders, Communists and "sympathizers" are rounded up and killed.

GERMANY 1948 Nuclear Threat Atomic-capable bombers guard Berlin Airlift. US Air Force delivers needed food and supplies to Berliners. This keeps the Western portion of Berlin free from the Soviets.

CHINA 1948-49 Troops/Marines evacuate Americans before Communist victory.

PHILIPPINES 1948-54 Command operation CIA directs war against Huk Rebellion.

PUERTO RICO 1950 Command operation Independence rebellion crushed in Ponce.

KOREA 1951-53 (-?) America's forgotten war. Troops, naval, bombing , nuclear threats U.S./So. Korea fights China/No. Korea to stalemate; A-bomb threat in 1950, and against China in 1953. Still have bases. It is estimated that between 2,500,000 and 2,730,000 civilians are killed by military actions on both sides. American DoD states that the U.S. military suffered 33,686 battle deaths, along with 2,830 non-battle deaths

IRAN 1953 Command Operation CIA overthrows democracy, installs Shah. Shah becomes a most bloody dictator, using secret police spying and brutal torture and execution methods on his opponents, until his removal in the late 1970's. Official sources state that his regime murdered some 16,000 people. This situation is a case of the victor in the 1953 coup getting to write the history books. The Shah's regime is credited for increasing education, and sanitation, health programs etc for his nation, in contrast to what happened to the people of Iran after the extemist Muslims took over the nation in 1979. But no one will ever know what the democratically elected prime minister, Dr. Mosaddeq, would have done for the nation, as he was ousted by the CIA after only a short stint in office.

VIETNAM 1954 Nuclear threat French offered bombs to use against siege.

GUATEMALA 1954 Command operation, bombing, nuclear threat CIA directs exile invasion after new gov't nationalized U.S. company lands; bombers based in Nicaragua.

EGYPT 1956 Nuclear threat, troops Soviets told to keep out of Suez crisis; Marines evacuate foreigners.

LEBANON l958 Troops, naval Army & Marine occupation against rebels.

IRAQ 1958 Nuclear threat Iraq warned against invading Kuwait.

CHINA l958 Nuclear threat China told not to move on Taiwan isles.

PANAMA 1958 Troops Flag protests erupt into confrontation.

VIETNAM l960-75 Troops, naval, bombing, nuclear threats Fought South Vietnam revolt & North Vietnam; one million Vietnamese killed in longest U.S. war; five million others are wounded or left homeless. Cost to us in terms of flesh and blood - over 50,000 troops that die directly, tens of thousands more live on the streets, victims of PTSD and mental disorders caused by their involvement in the war. Also, atomic bomb threats in l968 and l969. Entire financial cost of the war - perhaps 20 billions of dollars (A fortune back in the day.).

CUBA l961 Command operation CIA-directed exile invasion fails.

GERMANY l961 Nuclear threat Alert during Berlin Wall crisis.

LAOS 1962 Command operation Military buildup during guerrilla war.

CUBA l962 Nuclear threat, naval Blockade during missile crisis; near-war with Soviet Union.

IRAQ 1963 Command operation CIA organizes coup that killed president, brings Ba'ath Party to power, and Saddam Hussein back from exile to be head of the secret service.

PANAMA l964 Troops Panamanians shot for urging canal's return.

INDONESIA l965 Command operation Million killed in CIA-assisted army coup.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1965-66 Troops, bombing Army & Marines land during election campaign.

GUATEMALA l966-67 Command operation Green Berets intervene against rebels.

DETROIT l967 Troops Army battles African Americans, 43 killed.

UNITED STATES l968 Troops After King is shot; over 21,000 soldiers in cities.

CAMBODIA l969-75 Bombing, troops, naval Up to 2 million killed in decade of bombing, starvation, and political chaos.

OMAN l970 Command operation U.S. directs Iranian marine invasion.

LAOS l971-73 Command operation, bombing U.S. directs South Vietnamese invasion; "carpet-bombs" countryside.

SOUTH DAKOTA l973 Command operation Army directs Wounded Knee siege of Lakotas. Activities conducted under auspices of FBI and CIA occur in Wisconsin reservations as well. Indian leaders are often found "suicided" - stabbed or shot in the back, but the local police continually ruled deaths suicides.

MIDEAST 1973 Nuclear threat World-wide alert during Mideast War.

CHILE 1973 Command operation CIA-backed coup ousts elected socialist president.

CAMBODIA l975 Troops, bombing Gassing of captured ship Mayagüez, 28 troops die when copter shot down. Over the next few years, the American government sides with Pol Pot, the head of the infamous killing fields operation where 3 million people are killed. IOn UN vote after UN vote, our UN people side with Pol Pot.

ANGOLA l976-92 Command operation CIA assists South African-backed rebels.

IRAN l980 Troops, nuclear threat, aborted bombing Raid to rescue Embassy hostages; 8 troops die in copter-plane crash. Soviets warned not to get involved in revolution.

LIBYA l981 Naval jets Two Libyan jets shot down in maneuvers.

EL SALVADOR l981-92 Command operation, troops and advisors, overflights and aid of anti-rebel war, soldiers briefly involved in hostage clash. These activities were never authorized by Congress but instead funded by the selling of drugs by the CIA and the conversion of those monies to arms and weaponry for the Status Quo.

NICARAGUA l981-90 Command operation, naval CIA directs exile (Contra) invasions, plants harbor mines against revolution. See above.

LEBANON l982-84 Naval, bombing, troops Marines expel PLO and back Phalangists, Navy bombs and shells Muslim positions. 241 Marines killed when Shi'a rebel bombs barracks. Our ally in this fight, Israel, is believed to have killed at least 20,000 people, many of them children, during their offensive which took place at the same time.

GRENADA l983-84 Troops, bombing and Invasion occur four years after revolution. It should be noted that it took a huge American military intervention to succeed against a tiny island with limited military and few people even living there.

HONDURAS l983-89 Troops Maneuvers help build bases near borders.

IRAN l984 Jets Two Iranian jets shot down over Persian Gulf.

LIBYA l986 Bombing, naval Air strikes to topple Qaddafi gov't.

BOLIVIA 1986 Troops Army assists raids on cocaine region.


IRAN l987-88 Naval, bombing US intervenes on side of Iraq in war, defending reflagged tankers and shooting down civilian jet.

LIBYA 1989 Naval jets Two Libyan jets shot down.

VIRGIN ISLANDS 1989 Troops sent to quell to Croix unrest after storm.

PHILIPPINES 1989 Jets Air cover provided for government against coup. Fortunately for the people of the Phillipines, the Marcos regime was ended by the Phillippinos who resisted Marcos, and a better form of government replaced their repression.

PANAMA 1989 (-?) Troops, bombing Nationalist government ousted by 27,000 soldiers, leaders arrested, 2000+ killed. Many foreign journalists believe closer to 10,000 people were killed during the US offensive. Many of these people were civilians.

LIBERIA 1990 Troops Foreigners evacuated during civil war.

IRAQ 1990-91 Bombing, troops, naval Activity. During the actual hot war, 540,000 US troops also stationed in Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, Israel. Blockade of Iraqi and Jordanian ports, air strikes; 200,000+ killed in invasion of Iraq and Kuwait; large-scale destruction of Iraqi military.

KUWAIT 1991 Naval, bombing, troops Kuwait royal family returned to throne.

IRAQ Jan 1991-2003 Bombing, naval No-fly zone over Kurdish north, Shiite south; constant air strikes and naval-enforced economic sanctions. During times of the sanctions, 50,000 Iraqi children die each year.

LOS ANGELES 1992 Troops Army, Marines deployed against anti-police uprising.

SOMALIA 1992-94 Troops, naval, bombing U.S.-led United Nations occupation during civil war; raids against one Mogadishu faction.

YUGOSLAVIA 1992-94 Naval NATO blockade of Serbia and Montenegro.

BOSNIA 1993-? Jets, bombing No-fly zone patrolled in civil war; downed jets, bombed Serbs.

HAITI 1994 Troops, naval Blockade against military government; troops restore President Aristide to office three years after coup.

ZAIRE (CONGO) 1996-97 Troops Troops at Rwandan Hutu refugee camps, in area where Congo revolution begins.

LIBERIA 1997 Troops Soldiers under fire during evacuation of foreigners.

ALBANIA 1997 Troops Soldiers under fire during evacuation of foreigners.

SUDAN 1998 Missiles Attack on pharmaceutical plant alleged to be "terrorist" nerve gas plant.

AFGHANISTAN 1998 Missiles Attack on former CIA training camps that were then used by Islamic fundamentalist groups alleged to have attacked embassies.

IRAQ 1998 Bombing, Missiles Four days of intensive air strikes after weapons inspectors allege Iraqi obstructions.
one of his CIA buddies were sent over to Yugoslavia tot ell the President of the nation that he ahd the right to do as he pleased with regards to his internal affairs and the Albanians.

YUGOSLAVIA 1999 Bombing, Missiles Heavy NATO air strikes after Serbia declines to withdraw from Kosovo. NATO occupation of Kosovo. By the way, back in the early 1990's Armitage and


MACEDONIA 2001 Troops NATO forces deployed to move and disarm Albanian rebels.

AFGHANISTAN 2001-? Troops, bombing, missiles Massive U.S. mobilization to overthrow Taliban, hunt Al Qaeda fighters, install Karzai regime, and battle Taliban insurgency. More than 30,000 U.S. troops and numerous private security contractors carry our occupation.

YEMEN 2002 Missiles Predator drone missile attack on Al Qaeda, including a US citizen.

PHILIPPINES 2002-? Troops, naval Training mission for Philippine military fighting Abu Sayyaf rebels evolves into combat missions in Sulu Archipelago, west of Mindanao.

COLOMBIA 2003-? Troops US special forces sent to rebel zone to back up Colombian military protecting oil pipeline.

IRAQ 2003-? Troops, naval, bombing, missiles The Saddam regime is toppled in Baghdad. More than 250,000 U.S. personnel participate in invasion. US and UK forces occupy country and battle Sunni and Shi'ite insurgencies. More than 160,000 troops and numerous private contractors carry out occupation and build large permanent bases. At the time of the invasion, called "Shock and Awe" some 25 million people called Iraq home.
Before this invasion, Iraq was a nation that promoted equality for women, had high standards of education, with many in the populace speaking more than two languages. It was also a nation that promoted religious tolerance, with Christians, Jews and atheists living in peace with their Muslim neighbors. Since the Spring 2003 invasion, close to one million civilians have been killed, in the civil unrest following the overthrow of the dictators regime, with the resulting divisions along line of Sunni/Shia'a, Christians and Jews and atheists needing to leave the country. Some four million people have left Iraq, never to return.
The American military lost close to 4,500 troops in this war. It was also a war where due to innovations in medical treatment and aid, military casualties were able to survive the initial assault on their bodies, but lived with either terrible loss to themselves in terms of amputations, or else terrible problems due to head injuries they survived but will not overcome.

LIBERIA 2003 Troops Brief involvement in peacekeeping force as rebels drove out leader.

HAITI 2004-05 Troops, naval Marines & Army land after right-wing rebels oust elected President Aristide, who was advised to leave by Washington.

PAKISTAN 2005-? Missiles, bombing, covert operation CIA missile and air strikes and Special Forces raids on alleged Al Qaeda and Taliban refuge villages kill multiple civilians. Drone attacks also on Pakistani Mehsud network.

SOMALIA 2006-? Missiles, naval, troops, command operation Special Forces advise Ethiopian invasion that topples Islamist government; AC-130 strikes, Cruise missile attacks and helicopter raids against Islamist rebels; naval blockade against "pirates" and insurgents.

SYRIA 2008 Troops Special Forces in helicopter raid 5 miles from Iraq kill 8 Syrian civilians

YEMEN 2009-? Missiles, command operation Cruise missile attack on Al Qaeda kills 49 civilians; Yemeni military assaults on rebels

Also in a Huffington Post article dated mid January 2014, an article reports that as many as 2,500 Pakistani civilians have been killed by US drone attacks over the last few years. It should be mentioned that we have never had a declaration of war from either Congress or the President, regarding Pakistan.

Stay out of it Obama seveneyes Feb 2014 #1
Focus is the art of saying no. jtuck004 Feb 2014 #2
No, I want our country to warn Russia they can NOT go in with their military and slaughter everyone! Sunlei Feb 2014 #8
Unlike us, right? Comrade Grumpy Feb 2014 #9
"Warn them?" No, let's just stay OUT of it. Bill76 Feb 2014 #10
Ah. Igel Feb 2014 #29
We always make it worse. Bill76 Feb 2014 #30
Exactly. I mean, we all clearly remember how in 1991, the Russian military went truedelphi Feb 2014 #12
I remember when Russia has gone into its neighbors... Chan790 Mar 2014 #32
I am well aware of Russia's military truedelphi Mar 2014 #37
Well we certainly wouldn't want anyone going around destabilizing other countries. SolutionisSolidarity Feb 2014 #3
Yeah, that's OUR gig! [n/t] Maedhros Feb 2014 #14
'there will be costs'. {{{chuckle}}} Purveyor Feb 2014 #4
Exactly. This is the kind of talk that nobody needs. AngryOldDem Feb 2014 #5
Only one way to deal with a bully... hoosierlib Feb 2014 #6
If anyone is gonna bully the world, it's gonna be us! ForgoTheConsequence Feb 2014 #11
You realize, of course, that Russia is one of only a few countries that could beat us militarily. Xithras Feb 2014 #13
I wouldn't buy into the fearmongering if I were you. AverageJoe90 Feb 2014 #23
You should do some research on the consequences of military involvement in Russia.[n/t] Maedhros Feb 2014 #15
yeah, that's what we need. let's burn another decade and few trillion $$$ on senseless war frylock Feb 2014 #19
Have you ever read about Napoleon in Russia? JDPriestly Feb 2014 #20
What? hoosierlib Mar 2014 #34
No need to lecture me on abuse. I lived near the borders with Czechoslovakia and Hungary JDPriestly Mar 2014 #35
Not sure at all where you acquired the information that our war truedelphi Mar 2014 #39
This message was self-deleted by its author newthinking Feb 2014 #24
now, every one dont freak out.. iamthebandfanman Feb 2014 #7
Trade ban would interesting. dipsydoodle Feb 2014 #17
Likely outcome. JDPriestly Feb 2014 #22
No red line this time ? dipsydoodle Feb 2014 #16
had to SMH and laugh at Hagel admonishing Putin to respect Ukraine's sovereignty.. frylock Feb 2014 #18
maybe we get our nose out of other people's business before we go telling someone else what to do. olddad56 Feb 2014 #21
Putin knows that there isn't a damn thing Obama can do cosmicone Feb 2014 #25
"Russia can take out our carriers"--um, not really. Not without grave consequences TwilightGardener Feb 2014 #28
Personally I would not recommend a land war in Eurasia fedsron2us Feb 2014 #26
My take is, Russia is lashing out--they lost control of their TwilightGardener Feb 2014 #27
I agree with this alarimer Mar 2014 #36
Our damn government should be helping the US middle class recover, truedelphi Mar 2014 #38
Oh, dear! Do we still have that cool reset button? We're going to need it! Pterodactyl Mar 2014 #31
There should be "costs" and they cannot be military. We don't have to "fight fire with fire". pampango Mar 2014 #33
Latest Discussions»Latest Breaking News»Obama warns Russia 'there...»Reply #37