The US spends twice as much in the military than all other countries in the world combined. According to GlobalSecurity.org, last year alone, the figure was $625 billion of taxpayer's dollars.
And this doesn't take into account money spent in nuclear weapons which is handled separately by the Energy Department, or Veterans Affairs, or interest on money borrowed to fund previous wars. After adding all the previous the total rises to an unimaginable one trillion dollars per year. If this information was more readily and massively available, will the people of the US not raise their voices in discontent? Maybe, but maybe not, since we're trapped in a culture of fear and anybody who dares to speak about it is immediately labeled unpatriotic or a terrorist.
Of course, we can't overlook the fact that without it, the US wouldn't have become this great empire. However, the cold war is over, we have nuclear weapons, there is no apparent threat, other than a bunch of misguided young people in mountains and caves who need more our guidence, than our violence. It should be time than, to use those taxpayers dollars to improve our quality of life. Healthcare and education are two major issues that need urgent attention across the board. And we could have both. If only more Americans could see past their TV screens, and all the new, shiny objects (made in China) that lure them into more debt and increased stress. If enough people really paid attention to what the public school system has become. Schools are prisons; kids and teachers alike are prisoners in a viscious cycle. The government doesn't work for us, that is crystal clear, and it never has. The vision got blurred and the plan got entangled along the way. We've become conditioned and we need to re-learn, go back to basics and start over. Re-educate adults along with kids. The first lady is showing us the way. Grow your own food, serve your neighbors, especially if they're less fortunate; defend your resources and become more self-sufficient. We are still "We, the people...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I feel there are some good arguments to the post, but I'm not completely sold. I voted for Obama and I'm looking for a more respectful approach to other nations in our foreign policy, so I agree that we spend too much on Defense. However, I have no problem that we outspend all the other nations. The world is a dangerous place and we need to prepared for fast rising adversaries who would take a jab at the United States. We learned that lesson from Pearl Harbor. So I hope there's no contradiction when I say, yes, spend less, but still spend a bunch!
ReplyDeleteWith what to do with the savings from Defense, we could begin
to shore up or restructure our entitlement systems. Social Security and Medicare is crippling the country and our elected leaders are afraid of any real reform because seniors are
a powerful voting bloc.
On the other hand, you mention putting the savings into education which I'm entirely for. You lament that Americans can't see "past their TV screens" are unaware of how staggering the Defense budget it. Perhaps putting the money into education, thereby creating a more educated voter (or potential voter), they would pay more attention to our national budget. They would potentially counter the senior voting bloc, restore the United States competitive edge (China and India are graduating many more engineers than we are), and surely stop up from putting so many children on a path to prison (studies show that the less education a person has, the increased likelihood they will end up in jail).
Investigating in education sounds like a fabulous deal. So what's the problem, America?
Maria Carrillo is very right when she says that we are the highest spending country in the world. With as much money we have as a whole, most people would think there should be no reason why our economy is the way it is. Of course those who were in power before have left our budget in a state of disappointment. It is good to have a strong military and I think that it is a good thing to be putting money into but $625 billion is a huge chunk of money. We are not making great changes in the countries in which our troops are in so I think that expense should be cut down significantly. I agree that we should put healthcare and education should be at the top of our list of things to change and to invest into.
ReplyDelete