ABSTRACT
In the military field integration could be hardware or software oriented. It can be oriented towards the weapons, the means of destruction themselves; or towards the men who are experts in using them, the soldiers of all kinds and ranks. The most surprising thing about the US empire is its relatively short duration. It is probably more correct to say that the US empire started by beating another imperialist power, Spain, in Latin America and in South East Asia around the turn of the century. The symbolic value of rumors of US troop withdrawal is immense, although it is apparent that withdrawal must be accompanied by an increase in hardware. Moves towards independence from the USSR may take well-known forms: the Czechoslovakian form of 1968 where most of the nation, it seems, wanted to stake out its own course; and the Hungarian form of 1956, which to start with was directed against the party elites.
