Imperial Overkill and the Death of US Empire http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/07/27-7

In the face of enormous budget constraints, the Pentagon still manages to receive the equivalent of what all of the other nations around the globe spend on their militaries. While the United States remains the overwhelming leader in military exports to the tune of 70 percent of the weapons market, it also continues to flout international treaties, such as those on cluster bombs. By ignoring these accords, the United States thereby erodes international legal standards.

To project its forward-basing power, the Pentagon garrisons the globe with what Chalmers Johnson calls an "empire of bases." This land presence - massive permanent bases like those in Germany and Okinawa, smaller "lily-pads" that now dot Central Asia, seven new bases in Colombia - is complimented by naval flotillas, particularly evident in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean.