U.S. national debate topic, 2010-2011

By 2009, the U.S. military had come to control an estimated 795,000 acres of land -- territory enough to house some 190,000 troops on more than 1,000 bases in dozens of countries. Much of this military might was -- and, as of this writing, is -- concentrated in Afghanistan and Iraq, nations the United States and its allies invaded in 2001 and 2003, respectively. While Bush's successor, Barack Obama, announced in 2009 exit strategies for both Iraq and Afghanistan, questions concerning how and when the United States should flex its military muscle remain unanswered. Mindful of this point, the National Forensics League chose as its 2010-2011 debate topic the following: "Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially reduce its military and/or police presence in one or more of the following: South Korea, Japan, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Iraq, Turkey." - Preface.