James Quinn

The Economic Cost of the Military Industrial Complex

I'm a Ron Paul Republican. About as far from a far left idealogue as you can get.

The Economic Cost of the Military Industrial Complex

rhs101

I have a few other articles on seeking alpha that will give you my view on the deficit and spending. Take a look at them and see if you agree.

The Economic Cost of the Military Industrial Complex

User242985 - Did you read the article or are you just spouting rhetoric.

I asked why our troops are in Germany and Japan. They need to be brought home.

I mentioned absolutely nothing about spending the money on social programs. We need to balance our budget and cut spending across the board.

I guess your warped interpretation of the article says more about you than me.

The Economic Cost of the Military Industrial Complex

Al, old buddy.

The chart of expenditures starts in 1998. I believe it was 9/11/2001. The numbers speak for themselves.

Guess whose side the U.S. was on during the Iraq/Iran war. We supported Sadaam with weapons and money because we hated Iran, so I guess we are responsible for the 1 million deaths.

Russia just invaded a sovereign country this week. Should we launch the ICBMs towards Moscow?

The French supported our war of independence. They didn't start it. There was no conflict in Iraq when we invaded.

The Economic Cost of the Military Industrial Complex

Democracy allows free speech. I'm exercising that right. I based the article on the wisdom of one of the greatest military commanders in U.S. history. The article was not anti-military. It was about unnecessary foreign intervention and the choices this country must make regarding our spending priorities.

The Economic Cost of the Military Industrial Complex

These are the words of David Walker, former Comptroller of the U.S. The fiscal crisis is here. We can keep spending billions on foreign ventures or fix the problems here.

“One of the concerns is obviously we are a great country but we face major sustainability challenges that we are not taking seriously enough,” said Mr Walker, who was appointed during the Clinton administration to the post, which carries a 15-year term.

The fiscal imbalance meant the US was “on a path toward an explosion of debt”.

“With the looming retirement of baby boomers, spiralling healthcare costs, plummeting savings rates and increasing reliance on foreign lenders, we face unprecedented fiscal risks,” said Mr Walker, a former senior executive at PwC auditing firm.

Current US policy on education, energy, the environment, immigration and Iraq also was on an “unsustainable path”.

“Our very prosperity is placing greater demands on our physical infrastructure. Billions of dollars will be needed to modernise everything from highways and airports to water and sewage systems. The recent bridge collapse in Minneapolis was a sobering wake-up call.”

Mr Walker said he would offer to brief the would-be presidential candidates next spring.

“They need to make fiscal responsibility and inter-generational equity one of their top priorities. If they do, I think we have a chance to turn this around but if they don’t, I think the risk of a serious crisis rises considerably”.