When was the last truly defensive war the US has fought?

Hasn't every US war fought since the Civil War been a war of, for and about empire?

Yes, Hawaii was attacked in 1941. However, Hawaii was not a state.

How far away from the mainland US is Hawaii? Wasn't US occupation of Hawaii nothing more than the further expansion of US imperial desire for empire that came into conflict with the imperial designs of another empire seeking expansion?

Its ALL about economics, natural resources, cheap labor for corporations to exploit.

I served in the US Navy during the 1980's ensuring US empirical dominance - I was NOT "defending our freedom"

Interesting angle. I think we had to fight in WWII, since our government and Big Business did nothing to fight Hitler before he became a real menace (and he got a LOT of help from same before we decided to fight him).

the War of 1812 was about annexing Canada, and even Abraham Lincoln spoke out against the imperialist aggression of the Mexican War. And every war fought against Native Americans was a war of aggression.

I forgot that one.

By the way, Puerto Rico isn't a state either but if the Japanese had bombed there instead....

The Japs bombed/attacked the most important military installations of the US in the Pacific and I call that starting a war

but were not those "important military installations in the Pacific" imperial acquisitions?

(as in, not at all)

No doubt the Germans were a real threat and great danger to America.

We may have been able to coexist with a Japanese empire but not a German empire.

The Fascist threat needed to be defeated. I think it's debatable whether the Axis powers could have been defeated without the US entry into the war. And, if the US had stayed neutral and allowed the Axis to prevail, then they would have eventually come after us, or we would have become them.

corporate fascists in the US trading with the Nazi's prior to 1941 saw fascist Germany as a check against communism expanding from outside of Russia.

Roosevelt not only had to deal with fascist Germany but homegrown American fascists doing business with Hitler.

defensive or altruistic wars we've ever fought, excluding possibly the Revolution. The Civil War was simply a mess that shouldn't have happened.

WWII needs little explanation, but Truman went into Korea because the North Koreans and Chinese were testing the 38th parallel, and by extension, the entire concept of the United Nations and international law.

Letting them get away with it would have enormous consequences for the future, and although there were plenty of Cold War politics involved, it was a crucial test of the very new concept of the UN and international cooperation and diplomacy.

We've been involved in some "peacekeeping" operations that have in essence been altruistic, but we rarely stayed long enough to make much of a difference, so they don't really count. Maybe going after the Barbary pirates was an exception. Or maybe not.

remember, Nicaragua was only a two-day march from Texas. :scared: