When we remember what a close the US came to giving the Philippines independence immediately after the war, we'll realize how little the US was interested in the game of empire outside the Western Hemisphere.
Bill, I agree that the US didn't want to hang on to the Philippines. But even if the Americans weren't keen on a long term political/military occupation of the islands, they did succeed in culturally colonizing the Filipinos to a surprising degree. Over a relatively short period of time Spanish has almost disappeared in the Philippines, with English taking its place alongside Filipino as a major language. The culture has absorbed many American influences (though the Filipinos held onto Catholicism and many Spanish influenced Filipino customs as well). The Americans accomplished this all within roughly fifty years of occupation. It took the Spanish a lot longer to integrate the Filipino people into their culture. Why were the Americans so successful in Americanizing certain aspects of Filipino life, especially if the Americans were not overtly interested in a long-term or permanent occupation of the Philippines?
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