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Essay / The Economic and Political Benefits of American Imperialism It is clear that due to industrial expansion led by companies such as Carnegie Steel, the United States increased its production capacity and, while the United States had adopted a policy based on isolationism, foreign traders had established strong and profitable markets into which they exported. and imported large quantities of goods and services. Isolationism was an ingrained characteristic of the administration of the American economy from its origins when George Washington addressed the subject, asserting that "in the wars of the European powers, in the questions concerning them, we have never taken part, and that doesn't suit us either. with our policy, this is what we have to do. However, a theory known as Social Darwinism challenged this isolationist notion, in which Darwin's theory of natural selection and conservative sociological theories asserted that nations and individuals competed with each other to succeed in life, and that administrations such as the US government measured this success by the prosperity of its economy and the imposition of political power over other nations. Therefore, imperialist policies relied primarily on Social Darwinism as a means of justifying their involvement and investments in wars and bearing the costs. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essay The roots of American imperialism date back to 1867, when the US government launched a purchase from Russia to obtain Alaska , known as "Seward's". Madness'. Besides the debt accumulated during the Civil War, Alaska was purchased due to its availability of resources such as oil, timber, and its large deposit of gold. Many events followed in which the United States participated in foreign affairs by providing financial opportunities, but these intentions were the same that led Congress to declare war on Spain and resulted in thousands of casualties both during the Philippine Insurrection and other events. events of the same nature. The prosperity of the American economy and its political power came at a very high cost and the support of the American population for imperialism resulted from the fact that these intentions were hidden by the facade of "manifest destiny" and the desire to impose Western culture and religion to help the United States. those who found themselves trapped under colonial rule. Therefore, in this article I intend to describe how the pursuit of imperialism does not arise from such charitable causes, but has always been rooted in maximizing profits in the economy and in establishing and the exercise of domination and power over other countries. The industrialization that the American economy experienced in the late 19th century eventually led to the United States surpassing Britain in terms of means of production, to the point that it could now export much larger quantities of final products as well as capital and production resources and any surplus they had. could now benefit from it since they had access to foreign markets. The Spanish-American War was particularly beneficial for the United States since, in addition to using much of its resources, the United States gained large territories with many resources such as sugar and minerals in the Philippines after taking control of the country with Puerto Rico and Guam following the Treatyfrom Paris. The Treaty of Paris took place in December 1898 and ended the Spanish-American War. However, what seems curious to me are the main reasons for declaring war on Spain. The catalyst used by Congress to convince and incite the vengeance that resulted in the declaration of war on Spain was the attack on the "Battleship Maine" in which 266 crew members were killed by the mine explosion and the government, after investigation, did not blame any nation or individual. However, the government had an interest in attacking the Spanish army since Spain controlled many strategic and resourceful locations. Consequently, Congress blamed Spain for the attack, and public opinion supported retaliation. However, many historians now believe that the explosion was due to a ship malfunction, for which reason no one was to blame, but it proved a convenient incentive to declare war on Spain. improve the American economy and its political reach. If there is one statement to be made, it is that in most cases the U.S. government has prioritized economic opportunity and political sovereignty abroad while providing a facade or distorted version of reality to direct public intent in line with the government's own objectives. A clear example of how the United States neglected its intention to help the less fortunate and uncivilized under the pretext of Manifest Destiny by which American values were imposed by force is the acquisition of the Philippines after fighting alongside the oppressed inhabitants of the islands against Spanish rule. . After the United States "bought a revolution for twenty million dollars", the results were catastrophic with 24,200 casualties of US attacks on freedom in battles such as the "Battle of Bay". Manila.” Therefore, the administration that is the US Congress clearly did not start a war against Spain to deliver the promised freedom to the people of Spain's oppressed colonies such as Cuba, the Philippines, Puerto Rico and Guam. In turn, the United States used the existing opposition and its desire for freedom to make alliances in these territories and replace the authoritarian system already in place to not only implement but also take advantage of this system and commit " atrocious cruelties... matched only by those of Spain. » Taking control of countries such as the Philippines provided the United States with valuable resources and manpower that increased the nation's production possibilities and, furthermore, the acquisition of consuls in the islands of the Pacific led to more profits, which resulted in a dependence of trade on these trade routes from Asia. It could therefore be concluded that imperialism in the Pacific Islands was primarily motivated by economic expansionism. However, perhaps a more important motive for this expansion into the Pacific, as far as Guam and the Philippine archipelago, was Washington's clear desire to demonstrate American political and military power in the Western Pacific. These were strategic geographic locations that proved of great value in the various wars that followed American control of these colonies. For example, Hawaii was annexed by President McKinkley to the United States because of its convenient and necessary geographic location during the Spanish-American War. However, when President McKinley called this event "the inevitable consequence of three-quarters of a century" in June 1898, we must recognize that the timing of this event was not »..
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