Obama War Budget Games

In my younger days, I was not much of an Ozzie Osbourne fan. But, on occasion one of my housemates would be driving me nuts with Black Sabbath’s music and I’d catch some lyrics that resonated.

Today, the words from Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” comes to mind, especially when I listen to the stupid, usless words coming from our elected officials and their appointed henchmen.

COST OF A GLOBAL EMPIRE

Generals gathered in their masses
Just like witches at black masses
Evil minds that plot destruction
Sorcerers of deaths construction
In the fields the bodies burning
As the war machine keeps turning
Death and hatred to mankind
Poisoning their brainwashed minds, oh Lord yeah!

The U.S. war machine keeps turning. As we enforce our will on foreign countries, we produce more people who hate us.

Just when you think the U.S. government is beginning to make sense by withdrawing troops from Iraq, they make the terrible decision to shuttle 21,000 more troops into the Afghan calamity.

At a cost of $3.2 billion per month, we will throw another $38 billion down a rat hole in a country that has no vital strategic importance to the United States.

Barack Obama is doing this to prove that he is a true statesman.

In a word – CRAP. Obama, how up impressing us and stop trying to promote yourself. Leadership is about taking the right action, not about sucking up to a bunch of self-serving international politicians.

The Soviet Union killed over 1 million Afghans, while driving another 5 million out of the country and the Soviets left bankrupted and defeated after ten years.

Young Americans will continue to die for who? For what?

Our foreign policy during the last eight years can be summed up in one military term, SNAFU - Situation Normal All Fouled Up.

These foreign interventions are a smoke screen for what is really going on in this country. When a government has unsolvable domestic problems, they try to distract the public by creating foreign conflicts.

General Douglas MacArthur understood the danger. "I am concerned for the security of our great Nation; not so much because of any threat from without, but because of the insidious forces working from within.”

Any doubt that the Military Industrial Complex is as strong as ever should be removed after examining Obama's 2010 budget.

It calls for 26% more in spending on Defense than President Bush spent in 2006.

Hey, the Soviet Union collapsed in 1989, leaving the United States as the only remaining superpower on earth.

Since 1990, the United States has depleted the U.S. Treasury of $7 trillion for spending on Defense.

There is no military on earth capable of challenging us, so why would there be a need to spend this much on the military?

Over this same time frame the U.S. spent $360 billion on science, space & technology and $52 billion on energy, a mere 6% of the spending on killing machines.

Military expenditures benefit humanity in no way.

If these trillions had been invested by the private sector or devoted to energy and scientific research, our economy might not be a hollowed out shell dependent on China and oil exporting countries.

Nationalists argue that the Defense industry employs millions and benefits the country.

These companies employ brilliant engineers and scientists who spend their days developing things that kill people more efficiently.

If they had been employed developing electric cars, solar power, wind power, nuclear power, an efficient electric grid, infrastructure upgrades, or finding a cure for Alzheimer's, would the United States be better off today?

The National Debt in 1990 was $3.2 trillion.

Today, it is $11 trillion.

This is a 343% increase in nineteen years.

What benefit has $7 trillion of spending on Defense produced for the United States or the world?

In 2001, spending on Defense was 17% of total governmental spending.

In 2008, Defense, Homeland Security, and war spending accounted for 26% of government spending.

In the meantime, major cities have had blackouts due to an overloaded electrical grid, our 156,000 structurally deficient bridges crumble, one hundred year old water pipes burst under our streets every day, and we send $500 billion per year to foreign countries for oil.

FYI, the 19 terrorist hijackers who implanted their plan with knives spent less than $500,000 to pull off their 9/11 acts of terror.

The United States has spent over $1 trillion in response, without capturing the mastermind of the attacks.

The National Debt in 1990 was $3.2 trillion.

Today, it is $11 trillion. This is a 343% increase in nineteen years.

What benefit has $7 trillion of spending on Defense produced for the United States or the world?

In 2001, spending on Defense was 17% of total governmental spending.

In 2008, Defense, Homeland Security, and war spending accounted for 26% of government spending.

In the meantime, major cities have had blackouts due to an overloaded electrical grid, our 156,000 structurally deficient bridges crumble, one hundred year old water pipes burst under our streets every day, and we send $500 billion per year to foreign countries for oil.

The 19 terrorist hijackers who implemented their plan with knives spent less than $500,000 to pull off their 9/11 acts of terror.

The United States has spent over $1 trillion in response, without capturing the mastermind of the attacks.

You would think we must be trying to keep up with our enemies by spending $765 billion per year on the Military.

But the facts are that the United States is spending as much as the rest of the world combined!

Our two potential rivals, Russia and China, spent $192 billion combined in 2008. This is 27% of U.S. spending!

From a foreign perspective, one must wonder why the U.S. is spending such vast quantities on our military. They can only conclude that it is for offensive intentions rather than defensive.

The United States soil has not been attacked by a foreign power since December 7, 1941. Prior to that surprise attack, a foreign power hadn't attacked the U.S. since the War of 1812.

With this level of spending, our leaders feel compelled to interfere in the business of sovereign nations.

Killing the proposed 26% defense spending increase and a 10% cut would free up $225 billion. That means we could give evey one of the 15 million unemployed Americans a check for about $15,000.

You decide. More bombs or help out our co-workers and friends that have lost their jobs.

Make a difference call and write your elected officials today.