>How does the US retain its allies?
Its first world allies get a pretty good deal. They've got living standards as high as ours or higher, they need spend almost nothing on their own militaries, and the U.S. guarantees political and economic "stability." It's a classic case of hegemony, of voluntary submission to the order.
Leo Panitch is very good on this topic in my interview with him at <http://www.leftbusinessobserver.com/Radio.html>. Scroll down a screen to the March 25 show.
Doug