Paul reminds me of one of the most interesting parts of Chapter VII; the 1891 war crisis between Italy and the United States. The good people of New Orleans saw fit to lynch eleven Italians for roughly the same reasons that the good people of New Orleans ever see fit to lynch people, and the Italian government took offense. There was concern about the possibility of war, and someone noticed that the Italian Navy was actually larger and more capable than its US equivalent. An apology ensued.
Erik brings a second image argument to the table re: the military capabilities question. Heh; it's so like an American historian to think that the development of ideas and institutions within the United States have a lasting effect on its foreign policy. So reductionist... Anyway, the argument is that a general skepticism towards the Federal government and preference for private actors permeated nineteenth century American politics, minimizing the interest in a large standing military. This isn't quite the same as blaming the institutions; the US federal government maintained the capacity to mobilize behind big projects, but simply chose not to.
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