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I doubt NZ and Australia would have held off the Japanese for very long at all even with their armies back at home. The Japanese were much stronger and had already defeated greater countries defenses. I think we do owe a lot to the Americans who did save us, though you could say the Americans only did so because they were at war with Japan because Japan attacked them. The Americans wouldn't have come to our aid otherwise any more than they did France who was an historic Ally of the USA who had given them the statue of Liberty etc. Perhaps we just owe a lot to the Japanese leader who decided to attack the USA and so bring them into the war to save us all.

As for this quote "Cept for the SAS, New Zealand's army can go home and get back on the dole", I don't think the USA,or Australia for that matter should find it funny that the NZ defense forces have become so depleated since the USA broke it's defense pact with NZ. Considering that NZ fights in every war America leads, it was in the USA's interest to keep NZ's military strong. If you think about it, the USA always seeks Allys for its actions because it doesn't want to go it alone morally. The USA doesn't need help militarily but prefers to have it to add to the strength of their moral argument, and so keeping NZ strong would enable an Ally to always be able to help. The USA should really have given free planes etc to NZ and Australia, and then there wouldn't be only Britain and the USA flying over Iraq at the moment. The USA gives military aid to Egypt and Saudi Arabia and Israel. It would be in their own interests to give it to Australia and NZ too who can't afford to buy high tech miliary hardware themselves, but would pay the price of training a pilot and sending him to war alongside the USA. Apart from US led wars, the NZ armed forces have only ever been part of UN peace keeping. Their only purpose for existing is to support the USA and UN. They couldn't defend us against attack.

I should have mentioned that the USA is owed a great deal of thanks these days for protecting the world. The UN doesn't have any real power because they can only talk, but the USA has the power militarily and they do a lot for the world. I know every small country in the world would expect the USA to do something if they got invaded by another country, including NZ. That is a high price to pay for the USA, who has to go to war all over the world for other countries. It is a high price to pay for the people living in the USA who know that their sons may have to go and fight in a war somewhere and maybe give their lives to save some other country and make the world a safer place. They pay the price also by becoming a target for terrorism and hatred from anyone who disagrees with them on how they go about protecting the world. They spend a fortune in Foreign aid to keep bad countries on side and giving them incentives to keep the peace. No other country does this, and we owe the USA a huge debt of gratitude. That is why I am glad NZ is pro American, and supports the USA in their efforts. Without the USA where would the world be?