[lisptime]

In a democracy, that public support really matters.

Indeed.

Since the end of World War II, there have been 248 armed conflicts in 153 locations around the world. The United States launched 201 overseas military operations between the end of World War II and 2001, and since then, others, including Afghanistan and Iraq.

http://scientistsascitizens.org/2014/05/15/academics-and-sci...

[veidr]

Yeah, my point wasn't that democracies don't wage wars -- just that they can't ignore the will of the citizenry (unless they don't actually have a democracy).

As an American, the USA's bottomless well of rah-rah nationalism any time they trot out the troops has always been a mystery. But it's definitely there, and I don't think any other country since the USSR has come close to the USA in terms of attacking other countries.

I also disagree with the comment below about a war-weary USA having a tepid response to China seizing a minor uninhabited American island. I think public support for a military response would be huge, like always.

What I was saying was that in Japan specifically, that knee-jerk support would not be there.

[tlear]

Huge support would be a massive understatement. Half the congress would be for an all out ICBM strike and other half would be for levelling the country and sending it back to stone age.