The Basing Mess

In all four examples given (Guam, Germany, South Korea, and Connecticut) things look gloom for the civilians involved in the military opening/closing of U.S. military bases. In South Korea, we see the example helpless villagers having their prime farmlands taken away for the creation of the base, and their own government ignores their cries for help. In Guam, the island is watching as the U.S. military makes it a strategic priority, and over time will have so much influence that the economy will focus around bases.

It is evident that the problem does not end when bases finally do close because even though the soldiers leave, the land is left stagnant in most examples of base closure. In the article on Stratford, it seemed as if Apuzzo was beginning to argue that base closure caused many small businesses to go under because their main clientele had vanished. However, it clear that the town is in trouble because the land has not returned to the community in order to create houses, factories, etc. The toxic waste that must be cleaned up by the military before it turns the land over, leaves the land stagnant for quite awhile because their is enormous cost in the cleanup job that the military is not hurrying up on spending. In Germany, it is not only detrimental to the community that the soldiers will be leaving, many that are intwined into the community through both the economy and even marriage, but it hurts the town because they are left with old barracks that have no functional use to benefit the town.

When looking at the problems of base opening/closing, the military is not looking at the big picture. In every case there should be resources set aside in order to not only enter in a rush, but to leave just as quickly. When they hurry into a community, they are very disruptive to the economy. Once they have been there, and the people have become dependent on the military influence, it is not fair for them to just get up and leave without a clean exit strategy. This practice puts several families in jeopardy.