Dr. Henry helped defeat the USSR. And your definition of realpoltik is, well, weird. It's simply the advancement of national interest. If you don't believe national interest is "real" then plz pass me some of them drugs....
It's in the national interest of the US to keep sea and air lanes of communication (aka trade) open. Japan and the US are linked at the hip as economies. So instead of asking "should the US military leave Japan," a more appropriate question might be why would the US willing leave a forward deployed location with much of the expense born by the host nation? Don't you think it kinda helps the US deal with the few remaining communists such as N Korea and China?
Also, why would Japan want the US to leave? You don't think they like the status quo?
I'm just trying to think about this from a rational point of view...
A LOT of people regardless of political persuasion don't like the good doctor.
My carreer military uncle at least read the book "The Trial of Henry Kissinger".
To be honest I do not know what he left about it, but I do know he read it.
"national interest"
according to whom?
How can nearly 300 million people have the same interests?
I'm not a Libertarian (or any party member for that matter),
but I happen to agree with Texas Republican congressman Ron Paul,
that "national interest" is always
somebody's interests.
It has been noted that governments are the representation of domestic power structures. Who has the power in the US? I would answer the corporations. Those that wish to maintain their legal privaleges that the corporate legal construct allows them. Furthermore, in foreign policy - of the US - corporate interests are favored above all else. US foreign policy is and has been about shoving the
corporation down other country's throats.
The corporation is a legal entity, not a force of nature like a regular business, say owned by your mom or dad, sister or brother, neighbor, etc...
When a business or whatever is incorporated, that is granted a license or charter from the state, it operates with various privaleges that are just that - privaleges, not rights. Limited liability is one such privalege. Limited liability is not a right. Slave owners and kings thought they had limited liability granted by god. They were wrong.
Other peoples have the right to make their own laws, including not only not constructing such legal entities, but also not allowing corporations from other countries to operate in their countries at all.
While I can appreciate the concern over any type of rule by the few such as China or North Korea, I do not believe they want to try to 'take over the world, let alone their neighbors. South Koreans ceratinly feel this way about North Korea and were even trying to re-connect with their brethern at the end of the 90s and even up to when the US gov't came up with the phrase 'axis of evil'.
So no I do not believe the US should maitain over 700 known & acknowledged bases in over 130 different countries, including Japan.