Militarism Run Mad
W.J. Astore
Remember President Biden's request for $33 billion in "aid" to Ukraine? That $33 billion package has become $40 billion and has already been approved by the House. More than half of this "aid" is in the form of weapons or in support of deploying more U.S. troops and equipment to Europe. And even that $40 billion isn't high enough for some members of the Senate, who are calling for even more "aid," i.e. more spending at the expense of the American taxpayer that will likely serve to prolong the Russia-Ukraine War.
More and more money for war recalls a famous quip by Winston Churchill in the age of navalism, when industrial interests in the UK pushed for more and more battleships to be built so that Britain could continue to rule the waves and not be slaves.
As Churchill famously said: The Admiralty had demanded six ships; the economists offered four; and we finally compromised on eight.
America has embraced a militarized Keynesianism that is very good indeed for weapons makers like Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. It's also very good for the Pentagon, whose budget projections keep rising when they should be falling.
Think about it. Overall, the Russian military hasn't yet distinguished itself in Ukraine, and the longer the war lasts, the weaker that military becomes. If the U.S. military budget was actually based on an honest assessment of threats, the budget should be decreasing as Russia becomes less of a threat.
Another interesting aspect of this is that it's mainly been Republicans voting against the $40 billion package in "aid." Democrats, no matter how "progressive," are eagerly voting for it, even as inflation soars in America and people struggle to make ends meet.
Perhaps it's time to build more battleships to help the poor and struggling? We can house the unhoused in ships!