USA Budget spending

[cheeseburger]

The armed services is not what you may see depicted in movies where a soldier is constantly getting yelled at by a sergeant with an eighth grade education. Sign up for a 4 year tour in, oh let's just say, the air force and see what your opinion of their intellect is when you get out.

Judging by your attitude and your handle, I'm guessing youre from the millitary. Lets just end this amicably and agree to disagree.

What are we to do if ever needed in a far away place, refuel in the air? Then where would that fuel craft come from?

We are, so far, the only country insecure enough about our refueling to seem to need 12 floating runways and all the accessories. If France can do without them, so can America.

It may cost you tax dollars but at least, so far, you can sleep at night.

Let me ask you one, simple question that I think best demonstrates our opposite opinions: Do you honestly believe America is under the threat of an attack, i.e. do you believe we are at war right now? And do you think that the millitary is the institution that will prevent such an attack?

I may be no expert on counter-terrorism, but what I do know is that it was largely the internal intelligence agencies that were to blame for 9/11, not the armed forces. I don't believe that invading Iraq is making me safer. Spend money securing the border with Mexico. If that means increasing millitary spending, by all means do it. However, dont increase millitary spending just so we can invade Indonesia and then have the President land on an aircraft carrier in a millitary uniform.

We should all thank God every day for all the non-intelligent soldiers and all military personal who are defending our country so we can have the freedom to go about our everyday lives and make posts such as this.

This quote exemplifies why both no politicians or people that I know of ever talk of decreasing the millitary budget (more so than local economies, IDCrewDawg, IMO). Its also one of the reasons I was reluctant to start such a topic.

As soon as you raise a voice about maybe decreasing the millitary budget, they throw the book at you. You're an evil anarchist that despises America; you don't respect the armed forces, etc. None of the above are true.

If you really wanted the best for our troops, you would not support their senseless deployment in some random country. No clear answers on why they went there, no clear reasons why they stay there; just some dogma about freedom.

Before you ask, heres what I think they should do about Iran, Iraq, and all the rest of those weird Islamic countries with no respect for human life. Just routinely destroy all their oil-pumping rigs, or whatever they use to get oil out of the ground. If that means launching ICBMs from Florida every week, go ahead.

Lets say we did this for 5 years straight; the exact number is unimportant, all that matters is that those countries are unable to sell their oil for the simple reason that they cant dig it out. Where would they buy their weapons? What terrorists would there be?

Look at Africa. I'm sure a bunch of them hate America, but no one cares. You can't throw a rock across the atlantic ocean. If Iran was as 'rich' as Congo, what would they fund their nuclear research with? Where would they buy anti-tank missiles or whatever?

This scenario will never happen, largely because America cares more about the oil they buy from these countries than the lives of the soldiers in its own army. Thats why 'we' dont need such a big millitary, 'we' don't have the brains to use it. All we know how to do is build millitary bases and aircraft carriers, which all use exorbitant amounts of oil, by the way.