well it would certainly create popular feeling towards the government from some liberal and pacifist circles and it probably could pull out some of its forces from certain countries. hower i do not feel it would be wise to pull troops out of iraq. the current climate is simply too tense and a removal of such a powerful body could mean current terror groups attempt to capitalise on a power vacuum which the us withdrawal would create,

Personally, I think that it would create more of a problem than leaving them where they are, especially in the middle east. We have British colonialism to thank for that one. Someone took a map and drew some lines on it without any consideration of where different groups of people actually lived. Thus we end up with groups split over 2 or 3 countries, while rival groups are also sharing these countries with them. Thus internal power struggles are almost inevitable. Right or wrong, the US sent the military in and overthrew the factions in power with a misguided belief that democracy works for everyone. If they were to leave, there would be a power vacuum, and rival factions would vie for control over one another rather than trying to work together for the greater good of their countries. Eventually all problems in the country, no matter how long they had existed, would be blamed on the US interference, which would of course lead to retaliatory actions in some form or another. The combination of civil war and hate of external interference would create conditions which could be dangerous for the entire world. I'm not saying that the US forces should have ever been sent where they are, but they sure as hell don't need to just pull out until things have stabilized.

The yanks would run out of oil so the oil price would go through the roof and America would go bankrupt real quick and since America doesn't make anything anymore, would turn into a third world country. Well, that's just a blunt summation of what I've read anyway. I'd love to see any arguments either supporting or rejecting what I've just written.

Because there are so many US troops stationed all over the world, each has to be considered separately. It would also be somewhat different depending upon whether the withdrawal was seen as a total inward turning, not to be reversed, or it was thought that troops could be redeployed if there were a new demand. In Iraq and Afghanistan, if the US pulled out, both countries would descend into civil war. The outcome of this (other than much misery) would be difficult to predict, but I would guess the return of a Taliban regime in Afghanistan and something pretty Islamist in Iraq - probably under the "protection" of Iran. If the other Middle Eastern bases were closed, the Arab states would get jittery. There *might* be some sort of attempted regime change in one or other Gulf state, but I doubt it. US troops could be pulled out of Europe with no worries. Yes, there would be a lot of political hot air, but nothing would actually happen. There is no danger of Russia trying anything military in the near future, but it might get more aggressive in its use of its energy power to pull Ukraine and various 'stans etc. back into the fold. Japan would get very upset about withdrawal of troops from that area. It would probably jolt Japan out of its extreme neutrality - which might upset other countries in the area, making them more jittery. The absence of a US presence, and "tripwire" might might make China get more aggressive towards Taiwan. Given the amount it has to lose in commercial terms, I find China's attitude towards Taiwan worrying already. Of course, they will never drop their claim to sovereignty - but they could let it lie on the table more than they do. If the US were to disappear from the Western Pacific, the Chinese just might try their luck on Taiwan. Probably not, but I worry. North Korea is the big worry. Both the actual removal of US troops as a fighting force from S Korea and Japan, and the symbolic message conveyed might cause that mad regime to try a snap attack. Win or lose, it would be disastrous. And such symbols matter - the Falklands war happened because the UK withdrew a "naval" research ship with a single small gun on the foredeck. Militarily it was nothing; symbolically it was read as "we don't care". And the same thing could happen in Korea. As to all the other garrisons and outposts: the US position in the world would go down. The US would cease to have the automatic access to heads of state whenever it wanted. Some minor troubles would flare up - piracy in various sea areas where the US contributes to patrols. So Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Koreas are the only places I would expect problems. Iraq is a self-inflicted wound. Afghanistan would be well on the way to solution if the resources wasted in Iraq had been spent there. And North Korea - is just a problem.

Global economy would suffer. US troops contribute an amazing amount of $$$ to foreign governments.

If the US withdrew all forces from around the world, nothing would change immediately. As soon as the world became assured that the US was not going to try to be the enforcer of international law and defender of human rights anymore, all hell would break loose. You think it's bad in Africa now with the death squads wiping out entire populations of towns and villages, and do you know Japan has such a weak military because the terms of surrender in WWII demanded it? Do you believe the Serbs, Kroats, Czheks, and Romanians could defend themselves from each other or another country? The USA and its mighty presence throughout the world is one major reason that a lot of bullies aren't more dangerous than they are. The world without the USA would be a lot like Europe from 1934 to 1942. HELL !