What is to be understood by Kipling's poem 'White Man's Burden'?

Question:

What is to be understood by Kipling's poem 'White Man's Burden'?

I have been told to find out about this poem but I don't completely understand it. Can anyone please shed some light?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

This poem was written in 1899 and addressed to "The United States and the Philippine Islands".

1.
What Kipling is saying is that when a "white" western civilisation colonises or otherwise interferes in a country, they have a responsibility. You are sending your "sons" out there only because you consider it necessary. But it shouldn't be for the necessity of anything other than the benefit of the native inhabitants.

2
You shouldn't be spreading terror as conquerors, you shouldn't be proud and lording it over them, you should be working for to bring prosperity to the people there.

3
Rather than fight wars you must battle to stop famine and sickness, and when you think you've just about accomplished it, expect the locals not follow your good practices because either they are too lazy or because they don't understand why.

4
The White Man's Burden is not to live ostentatiously just because you can, it is to understand and work to improve the lives of all the lowest caste people. And expect your families to die there from tropical diseases or whatever.

5
And don't expect anyone to thank you. Whatever you do will be wrong - the people you've been trying to help will blame you, the locals you are trying to protect will hate you, where you've been trying to bring civilisation or industrialisation, they will tell you they preferred the old way of life.

6
If you've started on this policy, you've got to do it properly, thankless and exhausting though it may be. You can't just go in heavy handed and say "Well, we've given them their Freedom!", and leave it at that, because everything you do or don't do is advertising to these people just how a Christian nation behaves, and therefore what value they should place on Christ.

7
So now, United States, you have grown up. The old countries of Europe are not going to praise you easily any more for how well you've done in your first century and a bit of nationhood. From now on, you are going to be watched and judged by us on your foreign policy and how you behave in the world.

.....

So there you have a verse by verse interpretation.
What WAS the United States doing in the Philippines in 1899?