[rayiner]

Which society? The US isn't the ruler of the world. It can't purport to impose criminal jurisdiction on foreigners waging war against it, and any attempt to pretend to do so would be a sham. There is the domestic criminal justice system, and internationally there is only war between sovereign actors.

[barry-cotter]

The US isn't the ruler of the world

63 countries have US military bases and troops, 156 countries have US troops (overlapping sets), 46 have no US military presence[0]. The Five Eyes are basically the US's subalterns in Empire. Outside of Russia , North Korea and China calling non US countries independent is a bit of a stretch. Classical international law certainly wouldn't have considered any country with another's military bases anything but a protectorate.

[0]www.miprox.de/USA_speziell/US-Military-Bases-Worldwide. jpg

[Someone]

That stretches it a bit. If a foreign base in your country makes you a protectorate, the USA is a protectorate of Germany (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holloman_Air_Force_Base#German_...)

In other words: one should nuance that a bit. Yes, in NATO, he USA is by far the biggest player, and it contributes beyond its size, but protectorate stretches it, certainly in some cases.