The United States became an imperialist nation at the end of the 19th century because Americans wanted to expand over seas with their belief in manifest destiny. The three factors that started American imperialism were political and military competition including the creation of a strong naval force, economic competition among industrial nations and a belief in the racial and cultural superiority of people of Anglo-Saxon decent. The Spanish American War marked the emergence of the …showed first 75 words of 416 total…

…showed last 75 words of 416 total…of the construction of the Canal was nearly $400 million dollars. On August 15, 1914 the Canal opened for business. Control of the Panama Canal enhanced the power of the United States, however the way the canal was built damaged United States-Latin American relations. Imperialism has proven both destructive and creative, for better or for worse, it has destroyed traditional institutions and ways of thinking and has replaced them with the habits and mentality of the Western world.