The Viking wrote: Army Brigades in 1990, 76. Today 45
Navy Ships in 1990, 546. Today 288
USAF Fighter Squadrons in 1990, 82. Today 39
Strategic Bombers in 1990, 360. Today 154.
We are a much weaker military nation by half than what we were just 20 years ago but people still complain that we spend too much.
Just because we have less equipment doesn't mean that we are weaker - modern wars are needing less and less big expensive equipment because they are being fought differently and the military should adapt to the times. Or do you think we should still be building battleships and we're weaker because we no longer have any?
Al Qaeda isn't found in any one country or localized spot - we can't bomb the crap out of Pakistan and Afghanistan and hope to eliminate the threat - we need people on the ground, getting good intelligence, and carrying out operations like the one that got bin Laden - you don't need an aircraft carrier for that. Frankly, humanitarian aid would go further in helping eliminate the threats against us than military action would, but that kind of thinking doesn't sit well with the MIC - those subcontractors have a vested interest in keeping us buying their unnecessary stuff.
And even though we may have less stuff (I'm not fact-checking this post at 2am to confirm that we do indeed have fewer strategic bombers!), we're still spending more on our military than several other countries combined - can you justify that considering the state of our economy?
"Now, more than ever, the illusions of division threaten our very existence. We all know the truth: more connects us than separates us. But in times of crisis the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another as if we were one single tribe.” -King T'Challa, Black Panther
The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it. ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is. ~Winston Churchill
Interesting, everytime there is a Democratic President, our military gets cut, and reduced. As I do believe there is alot of waste in the DOD that can be stopped. Duplication of jobs that could be done away with, etc. Drastic cuts in the military thru history have proven to be a bad thing. I believe the Navy for one should be a 350 ship Navy. The projects that Presence of sea power that is being challenged almost daily anymore. The Carrier Battlegroups are the most sought after by field commanders due to what it brings to the table and how quick that can happen.
Should we be spending more on the AMERICAN citizens, yes. Places I think alot of this money can come from. Other that what I mentioned above, stopped all the pork crap that the congress idiots throw into everybill. Hell that is billions right there. Then lets start cutting funding to some of these foreign countries, more billions. Start a pullout of Iraq. Even bigger savings. Throw the UN out of the US, let other countries deal with the stupidity. And we can even (which has actually started), reduce the number of flag rank officers in the military, which is at its highest of all time since WWII, and save more millions.
As for what happened last night, the Republicans that voted for it without getting a real reduction are cowards, the Democrats, hell they are doing nothing more than trying to just spend spend spend. They haven't figured out how to balance a check book. Its a lose lose situation no matter what.
WayneH wrote: We're not the envy of the world. We're the laughing stock because we spend so much on our military and so little on our citizens.
So true Wayne........why American citizens seem to be so unimportant to many of our elected officials has always baffled me....until this message board, then I saw that same thinking among our neighbors and decided that the government is just a reflection of our own citizen's priorities. People are at the bottom of the list.....defense & corporations .....are at the top. How warped is that?
Whine more often? The poor of this nation are taken better care of now than ever before. Want to see what percentage of the budget goes to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Food Stamps, goverment housing, welfare, etc? It is a lot more than the military budget! Some states even provide free cell phones.
Do you really think the main business of goverment is handouts?
Thomas Sowell: There are no solutions, just trade-offs.
WayneH wrote: We're not the envy of the world. We're the laughing stock because we spend so much on our military and so little on our citizens.
So true Wayne........why American citizens seem to be so unimportant to many of our elected officials has always baffled me....until this message board, then I saw that same thinking among our neighbors and decided that the government is just a reflection of our own citizen's priorities. People are at the bottom of the list.....defense & corporations .....are at the top. How warped is that?
Whine more often? The poor of this nation are taken better care of now than ever before. Want to see what percentage of the budget goes to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Food Stamps, goverment housing, welfare, etc? It is a lot more than the military budget! Some states even provide free cell phones.
Do you really think the main business of goverment is handouts?
Yes she does. 44 million on food stamps and more on wlefare, medicare, madicaid, and SS than ever in history but archer doesn't live in reality. Her statement above about Peopl at the bottom is the biggest lie posted on here in a long time. It's all about the drama and scare tactics for the libs. Unfortunately I am not sure we can blame her for the lie as they have tried to brainwash Americans into believing it for so long that people really believe it. And many Libs like archer are the most vulnerable to follow.
And....you are ALL wrong. I should have been more specific....when I suggest we should be spending more on our citizens and less on defense, entitlements were not what I was referring to...they are their own separate issue and not in the discretionary spending that will be cut so drastically. Infrastructure is a big one....roads, bridges, etc that are deteriorating.....border security....that I think is more important than fighting foreign wars, medical research, and a whole lot of other thing that would benefit our citizens here at home more than the money expended on the military for overpriced toilet seats and jets they don't even want.
If you all don't want to cut defense spending to make life better for American citizens, then at least shift the money to better pay for the troops and follow up care when they are injured. Our defense budget has been a sacred cow for too long.
OK.... You may all go back to telling me what I think and why I think it.
archer wrote: If you all don't want to cut defense spending to make life better for American citizens, then at least shift the money to better pay for the troops and follow up care when they are injured. Our defense budget has been a sacred cow for too long.
navycpo7 wrote: Interesting, everytime there is a Democratic President, our military gets cut, and reduced. As I do believe there is alot of waste in the DOD that can be stopped. Duplication of jobs that could be done away with, etc. Drastic cuts in the military thru history have proven to be a bad thing. I believe the Navy for one should be a 350 ship Navy. The projects that Presence of sea power that is being challenged almost daily anymore. The Carrier Battlegroups are the most sought after by field commanders due to what it brings to the table and how quick that can happen.
Should we be spending more on the AMERICAN citizens, yes. Places I think alot of this money can come from. Other that what I mentioned above, stopped all the pork crap that the congress idiots throw into everybill. Hell that is billions right there. Then lets start cutting funding to some of these foreign countries, more billions. Start a pullout of Iraq. Even bigger savings. Throw the UN out of the US, let other countries deal with the stupidity. And we can even (which has actually started), reduce the number of flag rank officers in the military, which is at its highest of all time since WWII, and save more millions.
As for what happened last night, the Republicans that voted for it without getting a real reduction are cowards, the Democrats, hell they are doing nothing more than trying to just spend spend spend. They haven't figured out how to balance a check book. Its a lose lose situation no matter what.
Interesting when you consider that George H. W. Bush cut the military by 25%... And factchecker bears it out:
