The recent focus on the federal deficit has brought up the question of what programs we have to cut. Among these are social welfare, infrastructure, education, and law enforcement. However there is one that has yet to be touched. Defense.
I can not but help to question the logic behind allowing America’s people to suffer while simultaneously continuing the practice of power projection. The Cold war is over. The threat of an organized military attack on the U.S. is nowhere near eminent. Yet for some reason, we keep pumping money into our military. Yes, we need to be able to defend ourselves, but that’s just it, we no longer just defend ourselves. We strike without warrant, ruin countries for our own sense of security. The need for this is nonexistent. My fleet has eleven aircraft carriers. ELEVEN! The Royal Navy operates two at half the cost per ship that we do. My squadron alone is compromised of more fighter aircraft than the entire Scandinavian Peninsula. This is just the Navy. Imagine the entire military combined.
America spends more than the next twenty highest spenders combined in total towards defense. How abhorrent is that? A society who marches to the tune of peace and understanding, creating a military that would make Hitler proud. Now don’t get me wrong, there is a need for our military. “Speak softly and walk with a big stick,” and all, but we are no longer walking with a stick. More like a redwood. When a single country has the strength to conquer lesser countries for no reason, (Iraq) and receive no backlash from the world community, something is wrong. We have become an all powerful agressor. No nation has the power to stand against us, and there is something inherently wrong with that.
Why should we be above the law? Especially the laws that we champion! Accountability has no regard towards the U.S. and its military actions anymore. War crimes are fine as long as the carry us closer to the end goal- an imperial empire. We shrug off any dissent from the United Nations and carry on as if the words of other countries carry no weight. There is a point to my ramble, and I will come to it now. We live in a global economy.
In today’s global economic structure, one event can destroy millions of capital. So imagine for a moment, how the world will react when we truly slip. Iraq was a precursor for what to expect. Rising costs of that country’s exports, and worldwide dissent against our actions. All of this accompanied with theproblems here stateside bring a clear solution to the problem- arms reduction.
We have a thirteen trillion dollar deficit, roughly the size of the entire U.S. economy. Tax cuts and large expenditures are the cause of this, there can be no argument otherwise. The total expenditure of the war on, “Terror,” is $1,142,463,119,724 at the second that this was typed. More than stimulus, or healthcare, which have brought growth to a struggling economy. The war is an anchor, costing more than it brings in by far. So, we cut the defense budget and do what with that money? Fund our public works, education, infrastructure, social welfare programs. We strengthen the safety net that has been weakened over the years and we beging to rebuild home.
Envision a country where the richest people are taxed at 90% and the middle class receives ample benefits to live comfortably. A new house is commonplace for a family, new cars are bought on an average of three years, and college was worried about as much as feeding the family dog. Guess what? You’re imagining America from 1946-1963. Afterwards, the tax rate hovered around 70%. Then, Ronald Reagan happened, and it dropped into the thirties. The problem isn’t with out of control spending, it is with buying into trickle down BS and building an imperial empire. Cut defense, tax the rich, and give to the base. Simple isn’t it? Now call your elected leaders and tell them.
Keep up the good fight progressives!
Very respectfully,
ATAN Larson, USN
Good write up, at least I am not the only Sailor(ex) to feel this way.