The reciprocal scenario of foreign bases in America is unthinkable

Evidence

And yet the subject is barely discussed in the media. Rarely does anyone ask whether we need hundreds of bases overseas, or whether we can afford them. Rarely does anyone consider how we would feel with a foreign base on U.S. soil, or how we would react if China, Russia, or Iran built even a single base somewhere near our borders today. For most in the United States, the idea of even the nicest, most benign foreign troops arriving with their tanks, planes, and high-powered weaponry and making themselves at home in our country—occupying and fencing off hundreds or thousands of acres of our land—is unthinkable. — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 13

Categorization

• SEED: Thought experiment angle: reversing the base question reveals the asymmetry and double standard at the core of U.S. base policy.