11/25/2006

Why Fund Expensive Weapons for Troops?















Dear Editor,

Recently I learned that my Great Grandfather was a soldier in the American Civil War.
The Civil War had no stealth bombers, no patriot missiles, no kevlar body armor, no computerized armored vehicles or attack helicopters. Yet evidence suggests that soldiers whose medal had been tested in the foxholes fought more valiantly than today's videogame smartbomb jockeys. Interestingly, when defense is discussed today there's no weapons system costly enough, no stealth bombers stealthy enough, and no missile defense that works despite it mega billion dollar price tag.
Instead we see cars with yellow ribbons to "Support Our Troops". We have seen defense contractors literally get contracts (Halliburton )to rebuild infrastucture with no bid contracts before our military had destroyed it in Iraq. We see chicken hawks demanding new and larger defense contracts. $420 Billion dollars is not enough. Yet we cannot defend ourselves from grandmothers with explosive vests.

Issues of defense can be addressed in a number of ways. David didn't need a stealth bomber to defeat Galiath. General Grant did need attack helecopters to defeat General Lee. Greed is usually associated with private sector defense contractors, but I contend that where greed actually resides.
Meanwhile there are thousands of kids around the world who would be happy to just get their hands on an AK-47. In many places in Africa they already have. Yet we are asked to spend more on defense? I fear that as we focus on weapons, we will loose our focus on combat. I also fear that as we continue to sow the seeds of discontentment in our defense contractors, that we will reap what we have sown for many defense budget cycles to come.
Our soldiers should be able to fight just as well with muskets and dry powder. When taxpayers send our troops out to fight and die, it shouldn't cost us an arm and a leg.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Once we get them fitted with muskets, maybe we can train them on the playgrounds of all the one-room school houses that Lori Bernard is purposing we bring back. That would bring back the concept of the local militia and the furor of the 2nd Amendment would fade away.

Cato,

Have you ever read the book Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond?

Anonymous said...

cato, please read the Bernard letter to the editor. Put it in perspective.
By the way, did you notice the latest charges on the borderline?
Roy S is now accused of some extramarital inuendo.
So, the response from the idiots when pressed on the gutless behavior of their nutless leader is an attack on someones personal life with out even acknowledging the misdeeds of CW.
Dean Knudson and other local leaders must just love having their name associated with garbage like this. Wasn't it Dean Knudson who has backed responsible campaigning practices and yet now allows his good friend Weese to post illegal "vote no" signs?
Anybody care to explain that?
Is Chris Kilber, founder of the otbl blog proud of himself?

Anonymous said...

Broken Record:

Is there any truth to the innuedos they are casting on the borderline? They are turning into virtual window peekers at OTBL.

Anonymous said...

Cato:

ON Guns, Germs & Steel, a veteran of both Iraq Wars recommended that to me. He said it gives a picture-overview of war. Being that he is a military veteran will many years of service, I had asked him for recommendations of books about the current situation. He said any of those types of books just give a view from a single set of eyes that are usually only looking at a small piece of the pie. Another book he recommended was "Plagues and People." I haven't got to that yet.

I've read some of David Mc's stuff and think American Experience has been one of the best shows on TV for along time.

What books would you recommend by Gould? Along the same lines, any other books to recommend?

Anonymous said...

CATO:

"cato, please read the Bernard letter to the editor. Put it in perspective."

I'll go a step further. Create a Word document with 2 columns. Paste this post on the right, the Lori Bernard letter on the left. Maybe then you'll "get" it.

Anonymous said...

Cato:

Have you ever read any of Loren Eisley's writings? He looks into the areas of evolution and biology. In addition of a brilliant, well-respected scientist, he wal known from his creative, inventive prose.

http://www.eiseley.unomaha.edu/

Andy Rand said...

CATO:

Think of what you just said the next time your called upon to forge molton steel into a commodity, in you bathroom.

Give me a break, "facilities" is akin to "the battlefield". I think you just won a nomination for your own award.

Andy Rand said...

CATO:

I think the writer's analogy though maybe not clever is appropriate.

When someone insinuates that we should return to the one room school house to educate kids, suggesting we return to a previous historic state of warfare is equally stupid. That's the point.

What good have all the high budget, high tech weapons done when it comes to fighting a guerrilla war? They're a waste of money exponentially greater than a decent school.

Andy Rand said...

CATO:

"decent teachers are what kids desperately need, not a prettier or larger school."

Great "market based argument" for paying teachers more.


Funny how all the Banks in town couldn't do the same business from their garages?