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Agreed. There's a lot of hyperventilating in this article that, gosh, a wealthy country might want to spend a bit of money to build some weapons to defend itsel

by mark212 10y ago

Agreed. There's a lot of hyperventilating in this article that, gosh, a wealthy country might want to spend a bit of money to build some weapons to defend itself. And then, incredibly, sell them to other rich countries.

dbg31415 10y ago
Additional reading: * Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II procurement - Wikipedia || https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_Martin_F-35_Lightning_II_procurement https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_Martin_F-35_Lightning...
rangibaby 10y ago
Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.
- WhitneyLand 10y ago
  Come on, Eisenhower was provably wrong. Countless times throughout history people have suffered the worst horrors imaginable because their side was militarily weaker. So much unjust loss as someone wanted more power and took it just because they could. The truth is that military spending, benevolent and power checked leaders, and government at least capable enough to not collapse in on itself are all essential. The hard question is only how to attain these and in the right balance. Too much military spending surely will cause unnecessary suffering, too little has been proven just as capable as ending in ruin.
  - rangibaby 10y ago
    Hi I think the peace dividend showed that Eisenhower's theory had basis in reality. No one reasonable is in favor of abolishing the militaries of powerful nations entirely but disarmament is something that we (as humans) should work towards. Not just for the money it would save, but because it brings nations together. See: START
- ThrowawayR2 10y ago
  How soon people forget that peace among nations is not the norm. If you think that the indigent are forgotten now, consider what their plight would be if the clouds of war were gathering. "Si vis pacem, para bellum" ("If you desire peace, be prepared for war.") is just as true today as it was in Vegetius' time.
  - duncan_bayne 10y ago
    It is indeed still true, and probably will be forever. We're just saying that the F-35 doesn't seem to be an effective or efficient way of preparing :)
gech 10y ago
From that article: "Over the lifetime of the project the US is expected to have spent $1.5 trillion designing, building and maintaining 2500 planes for its own use: enough to forgive the entire nation’s student debts, or pay for the healthcare of every low-income American family for the next three years, or build a border wall that encircles the Earth four times." Waste

by mark212 10y ago

dbg31415 10y ago

Additional reading: * Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II procurement - Wikipedia || https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_Martin_F-35_Lightning_II_procurement https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_Martin_F-35_Lightning...

rangibaby 10y ago

Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.

WhitneyLand 10y ago
Come on, Eisenhower was provably wrong. Countless times throughout history people have suffered the worst horrors imaginable because their side was militarily weaker. So much unjust loss as someone wanted more power and took it just because they could. The truth is that military spending, benevolent and power checked leaders, and government at least capable enough to not collapse in on itself are all essential. The hard question is only how to attain these and in the right balance. Too much military spending surely will cause unnecessary suffering, too little has been proven just as capable as ending in ruin.
- rangibaby 10y ago
  Hi I think the peace dividend showed that Eisenhower's theory had basis in reality. No one reasonable is in favor of abolishing the militaries of powerful nations entirely but disarmament is something that we (as humans) should work towards. Not just for the money it would save, but because it brings nations together. See: START
ThrowawayR2 10y ago
How soon people forget that peace among nations is not the norm. If you think that the indigent are forgotten now, consider what their plight would be if the clouds of war were gathering. "Si vis pacem, para bellum" ("If you desire peace, be prepared for war.") is just as true today as it was in Vegetius' time.
- duncan_bayne 10y ago
  It is indeed still true, and probably will be forever. We're just saying that the F-35 doesn't seem to be an effective or efficient way of preparing :)

gech 10y ago

From that article: "Over the lifetime of the project the US is expected to have spent $1.5 trillion designing, building and maintaining 2500 planes for its own use: enough to forgive the entire nation’s student debts, or pay for the healthcare of every low-income American family for the next three years, or build a border wall that encircles the Earth four times." Waste