Military Industrial Complex Debate

[Anna Komnene]

In his farewell address on January 17, 1961, President Dwight Eisenhower warned about the dangers of a "military industrial complex" for American civil and political society, though he did acknowledge that vast military power was necessary in a changing world.  Here's an excerpt from his speech.

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Do you believe that a military industrial complex exists in the United States?  If so, does it have a positive or negative impact on the country? 

[RaphaelDLG]

Undoubtedly yes, and strongly negative.  Our politicians are bribed into making armaments that are outdated, wasteful, and useless, rather than focusing on spending on the new warfare technologies we need and cutting our massively bloated defense budget.

But this pattern of graft and anti-competitive behavior through congressional influence is present in every major industry.

[Santander]

Certainly, but it has the side effect of keeping us safe, which is more than you can say about most other industries' excess influence.

[Beet]

December 7, 1941 irrevocably forced the hand of the United States into world affairs, and the military-industrial complex exists and is a consequence of this forcing (although it was developing before this point as well).

Is it good for American society, domestically? Probably not, although military Keynesianism had some role in stimulating economically underdeveloped parts of the American West and South.

Another underappreciated aspect of the military-industrial complex is that it gives the U.S. reserve currency status, which means that the dollar will always be overvalued relative to what its market value as determined solely by the U.S.'s current and capital accounts would be. That means that structurally, the U.S. is doomed to constantly run trade deficit unless we continually depreciate our currency. The moment we stop depreciating, the currency will jump to a level that will induce a trade deficit.

We also run world monetary policy.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Worth noting that, in many ways, the US military-industrial complex works as an (extremely inefficient) substitute for the glaring lack of a comprehensive Welfare State. Which is part of why it's so hard to get rid of.

[dead0man]

A necessary evil that me and mine have benefited greatly from.  I'm very torn on the issue.

[RFayette]

Worth noting that, in many ways, the US military-industrial complex works as an (extremely inefficient) substitute for the glaring lack of a comprehensive Welfare State. Which is part of why it's so hard to get rid of.

This i true - it also functions as a pretty great jobs program in that for unemployed young men and women, it may be the only option, especially in recession years.  Obviously, drastic reductions in military spending without subsequent investments in other jobs programs would be pretty catastrophic for the US economy.