Date: 06/27/2010
The Military Can Waste Money Too
by Ron Paul
This past week various news events once again made it abundantly clear that our foreign policy is an abject failure. Unfortunately, in spite of this the administration is determined to stay on this destructive course, despite any past promises to change it. For Afghanistan especially, if ever there was an opportunity to admit shortcomings and change strategies along with leaders, this past week was it.
There really is nothing for us to win in Afghanistan. Our mission has morphed from apprehending those who attacked us, to apprehending those who threaten or dislike us for invading their country, to remaking an entire political system and even a culture. I remain highly skeptical that, as foreign occupiers, we can ever impose western-style democracy on another country. Our troops have debilitating restrictions on defending themselves against enemies, which are so often indistinguishable from civilians. They also face dire setbacks in winning hearts and minds when innocents are mistakenly harmed, which happens all the time. We can never make friends this way; the tactic never works.
This is an expensive, bloody, endless exercise in futility. Not everyone is willing to admit this just yet. But every second they spend in denial has real costs in lives and livelihoods.
Many of us can agree on one thing, however. Our military spending in general has grown way out of control. This is largely because fiscal accountability in military budgeting is seen, by many, as weak on defense. This is absolutely wrong and a dangerous way to think. It is certainly possible for the military to waste money, or to spend money counterproductively, and indeed it has. But out of political correctness, the military has been getting blank checks from the administrations and Congress for far too long.
It is important to defend our soil, but let us defend our own soil instead of defending Europe’s soil. Our willingness to defend Europe enables their lavish social spending at our expense, while they criticize our model of capitalism. It is time they allocated the money for their own defense. The same goes for Korea, Japan and other countries like Egypt and Israel.
It is also important that while our troops are in combat, our soldiers have what they need to do the best they can, even if we disagree with why they are there. It is an embarrassment that some soldiers and families have had to buy body armor at their own expense when billions are awarded to politically well-connected defense contractors for weapon systems that don’t work, are over-budget, past deadline. This is the kind of waste that needs to end. I firmly believe that there is enough waste in the military budget that we can both save money overall and at the same time be safer.
Of course, the obvious way to save money and be safer is to stop meddling in the affairs of foreign countries and just bring our troops home. This will happen eventually if our empire, like every other fallen empire, insists on spending itself into collapse. If we want to avoid this, we must look into ways to bring our costs under control. Military budgets must be on the chopping block along with everything else.
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Dr. Paul’s proposed foreign policy is as unique and sensible as his proposed monetary policy. He simply looks to the Constitution for Federal authority to conduct war and coin money. Since his colleagues in the House and all the Senators take the same oath as He, shouldn’t we demand the same from them?
Having read Staunton Evan’s BLACKLISTED BY HISTORY about the McCarthy hearings, I am convinced the domestic enemies of the Constitution are usually real, while the foreign enemies are fabricated by those very domestic enemies lurking in government. Robert Welch, Martin Dies and Joseph McCarthy all suspected Eisenhower of deliberately allowing the USSR’s occupation of Eastern Europe as Supreme Allied European Commander at the end of World War II.
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GO DR. NO!
NO GOVERNMENT THAT IS NOT LIMITED BY THE CONSTITUTION!
NO UNPROVOKED WARS!
NO FEDERAL RESERVE!
NO INCOME TAX!
NO MONEY THAT IS NOT BACKED UP WITH GOLD OR SILVER!
NO BIG GOVERNMENT!
NO FISCAL IRRESPONSIBILITY!
NO LOSS OF OUR BILL OF RIGHTS!
NO EXECUTIONS WITHOUT DUE PROCESS!
NO TORTURE!
NO LOSS OF HABEAS CORPUS!
I AGREE WITH EVERYTHING RON PAUL SAYS NO TO!
NO DRUG WAR!
RON PAUL IN 2012!!!!!… OR SOONER!
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Highly rated. What do you think?
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Ben,
“Yeah, the old recruiting tool argument. I see, so the only way to fight them is not to fight them. There isn’t a war in history that’s been won with that kind of backwards thinking.”
Actually you are wrong in your statement…Without ever organizing a convetional army Gandhi liberated India from England, and stopped two wars. As well during WWII many Norwegians, Danes, and Bulgarian patriots resisted their Nazi overloards and internal puppets by such weapons as underground newspapers, labor slow-downs, general strikes, refusal of collaboration, special boycotts of German troops and quislings, and non cooperation with facist controls and efforts to restructure their societies’ institutions. Civil Disobedience, and nonviolent resistence acheives way more then you give it credit for. It takes, will, patience,and intellegence…All bombs and bullets have done for us is lead us into the next war, raise the bar on weapon power, and increase the death toll amongst both the trained and the innocent.
There is no glory or honor or humanity in war.
But for those who are for war…You can make a quick buck!
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Yep Machine, “underground resistance” was pretty powerful in WW-2 in particular in the western part of France. Guerilla. The Netherlands, Belgium, Demolishing population records, blowing up railways and bridges, all kinds of nasty sabotage, smuggling shot-down US/UK-airplane pilots to Spain and overseas, hiding jewish families in the back-country, liberating political prisoners, operating “illegal” printing presses&communication networks. Lots of traitors and blackmarketeers too. For one SS-Nazi-guy assassinated, the Germans lined up 100 innocent civilians and gunned them dead. It is pretty simple: the foreign occupying troops always feel alienated, mistrusted and they are under a budget/time line. Well, the “natives” are at home, they know every streetcorner and they have all the time in the world. I guess in Vietnam, and now in Iraq and Afghanistan it is no different. Eventually the occupiers will HAVE to go away. No matter the advanced weaponry or whatever they have.
And all military strategists know: there is no defense against a suicide guerilla attack.
What did it cost to make the trillion$$$ US-”empire” tremble? 30 airplane tickets and a discount on flying lessons because it was not necessarily to land.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sxHY4VcnvM&feature=player_embedded
Kucinich: We Are Losing Our Nation to Lies About the Necessity of War
WASHINGTON – June 28 – Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) today made the following statement on the floor of the House concerning an expected vote on a $33 billion supplemental war funding bill:
“In a little more than a year the United States flew $12 billion in cash to Iraq, much of it in $100 bills, shrink wrapped and loaded onto pallets. Vanity Fair reported in 2004 that ‘at least $9 billion’ of the cash had ‘gone missing, unaccounted for.’ $9 billion.
“Today, we learned that suitcases of $3 billion in cash have openly moved through the Kabul airport. One U.S. official quoted by the Wall Street Journal said, ‘A lot of this looks like our tax dollars being stolen.’ $3 billion. Consider this as the American people sweat out an extension of unemployment benefits.
“Last week, the BBC reported that “the US military has been giving tens of millions of dollars to Afghan security firms who are funneling the money to warlords.” Add to that a corrupt Afghan government underwritten by the lives of our troops.
“And now reports indicate that Congress is preparing to attach $10 billion in state education funding to a $33 billion spending bill to keep the war going.
“Back home millions of Americans are out of work, losing their homes, losing their savings, their pensions, and their retirement security. We are losing our nation to lies about the necessity of war.
“Bring our troops home. End the war. Secure our economy.”
Credit goes to; http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/06/28-17
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OBAMA’s Government can kill ANYONE including YOU without trial COVERTLY !!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRGlAjBSlec&feature=player_embedded
If you don’t like to listen to watch all the video, Listen to Dr. Ron Paul Statements at 04:58 min- 9:43 min.
Thank you Dr. Paul. Now I know who to fear from and watch out for.
RON PAUL 2012
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