Military Spending

Asia's Mad Arms Race

Conn Hallinan | Posted 05.29.2012

Read More: India, Arms Race, Asia, Military Spending, China, Taiwan, China Arms Race, India Arms Race, Asia Arms Race, World News
Conn Hallinan

Asia is currently in the middle of an unprecedented arms race that is not only sharpening tensions in the region but also competing with efforts by Asian countries to address poverty and growing economic disparity.

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On Military Budgets and Spiritual Death

Nicolas J.S. Davies | Posted 05.23.2012

Read More: War Spending, Terrorism Military Spending, Defense Budget Spending, Military Spending, MLK Spiritual Death, Military Budget, Politics News
Nicolas J.S. Davies

As Martin Luther King told us, "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death." What kind of society can regard such indiscriminate violence and taking of life as a justifiable form of defense?

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GOP Blasts Obama Defense Budget 5 Times Larger Than China's

Bloomberg | Posted 05.22.2012

Read More: Pentagon, Obama Pentagon Budget, National Defense Authorization Act, Military Spending, Ndaa, Obama Budget, Obama, Gop Defense Budget, Defense Spending, Obama Defense Budget, Pentagon Budget, Defense Budget, Politics News

Republicans and President Barack Obama are squaring off again over federal spending, only this time the president wants to cut it and the Republicans ...

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Should NATO Be Handling World Security?

Lawrence Wittner | Posted 05.21.2012

Read More: Russia, Peace Action, Nato Summit 2012, Nato, Military Spending, Libya War, War, United Nations, UN Security Council, Soviet Union, China, Afghanistan War, World News
Lawrence Wittner

There are real international security problems, and some entity should certainly be addressing them. But is NATO the proper entity?

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GOP-Controlled House Passes Social Service Cuts To Fund Military

Posted 05.10.2012

Read More: Food Stamp Cuts, Gop Budget Cuts, Video, Food Stamps, Budget Cuts, Military Spending, House Budget Cuts, Politics News

By ANDREW TAYLOR, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON -- The GOP-controlled House Thursday passed legislation to replace a looming 10 percent cut to th...

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The Enemies We Love

Christopher Holshek | Posted 05.04.2012

Read More: Defense Spending, Foreign Policy, Spending Cuts, Military Spending, Defense Budget, Defense Cuts, Military Budget, Obama Spending Cuts, Politics News
Christopher Holshek

Obama's proposed cuts, part of a strategic rebalancing towards greater investment in infrastructure, education, and other long-term sources of American strength, are relative -- at worst, they represent a flatlining of defense spending.

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The F-22: Final Delivery for a Flying Disaster

William Hartung | Posted 05.03.2012

Read More: F-22, Fighter Jet, Pentagon, Lockheed Martin, F-35, Military Industrial Complex, F22, Military Spending, F-22 Raptor, Air Force Jets, Politics News
William Hartung

Wednesday Lockheed Martin delivered the last of 187 F-22 Raptor fighter jets to the U.S. Air Force. The roll out prompted executives to describe the plane as "the baddest bird on the planet" and "an icon of American power." The facts suggest otherwise.

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Budget Control Act: Military Cuts Will Cover the Social Security Shortfall

Robert Naiman | Posted 04.25.2012

Read More: Social Security, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Military Spending, Robert Greenstein, Military Budget Cuts, Budget Cuts, Obama Social Security, Military Budget, Politics News
Robert Naiman

A key reason that it's relatively easy to scaremonger about predictions regarding Social Security's finances decades in the future is that the language often used to talk about Social Security's finances isn't immediately comparable to anything else that most people can relate to.

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Why I Didn't Celebrate Earth Day 2012

Shireen Younus | Posted 04.25.2012

Read More: Earth Day 2012, Earth Day, Deforestation, Military Spending, Teen News
Shireen Younus

It's easier to plant a tree, clean up a road, or fight for fat, furry and friendly creatures miles away in the Arctic. It's harder to fight against hunger, disease, social conflict and war.

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The Shame of Nations: A New Record Is Set on Spending for War

Lawrence Wittner | Posted 04.24.2012

Read More: Taxes, Russia, Military Industrial Complex, U.S. Military, Military Spending, War, Defense Spending, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Defense Budget, China, World News
Lawrence Wittner

What is the explanation for the fact that the United States -- today's military giant -- is currently engaged in at least two wars (in Iraq and Afghanistan) and appears to be on the verge of a third (with Iran)?

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How to Solve All Our Budget Fights, Forever

Chris Weigant | Posted 04.18.2012

Read More: Grace Slick, Taxes, Guns or Butter, Spending, Budget, Congress, Somebody to Love, Military Spending, Tax Reform, Politics News
Chris Weigant

Imagine: after filling out your tax form, you then filled in a separate form. Say you paid $5,000 in income taxes last year. You'd then allocate that money as you saw fit, dollar by dollar, among the budget line items you chose.

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You Can't Say That

Bill Zimmerman | Posted 04.11.2012

Read More: 99 Percent, Top 1 Percent, U.S. Economic Crisis, War in Afghanistan, Military Spending, Vietnam War, Politics News
Bill Zimmerman

Common sense solutions like these, while painfully obvious, are entirely inadmissible within mainstream political dialogue. Why is that? Why can't common sense be applied to our defense expenditures, which now are almost equal to the rest of the world combined?

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Arms Down

John Feffer | Posted 04.10.2012

Read More: Mitt Romney, u.s. Military Spending, Tom Coburn, Arms Trade Treaty, Arms-Trade, Barack Obama, Military Spending, Military Reductions, Disarmament, Arms Reduction, Arms Race, World News
John Feffer

We are in a dangerous zero-sum world in which a military reduction in the United States means a military increase somewhere else. To break out of this situation and create a virtuous circle of military reductions, we must pursue a three-prong strategy.

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Obama By Default

Robert Scheer | Posted 04.05.2012

Read More: Robert Scheer, Speech, Bush, Clinton, Economy, War, Ron Paul, Obama, Campaign, Democrats, Election, 2012, History, Politics, Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, Wall Street, Republicans, Government Spending, Elections 2012, 2012 Election, Military Spending, Defense Spending, Politics News
Robert Scheer

The GOP has defined itself indelibly as the party of moneyed greed and unfettered imperialism. The Republicans are a sick joke, and their narrow ideological stupidity has left rational voters no choice in the coming presidential election but Barack Obama.

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Calling It Quits in Afghanistan

Malou Innocent | Posted 04.28.2012

Read More: Islam, Nato, Coin, Counterterrorism, Afghanistan, Military Spending, Isaf, Counterinsurgency, Koran, Quran, World News
Malou Innocent

How many more American soldiers and innocent Afghan civilians have to die before the Obama administration withdraws from Afghanistan?

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Economic Consequences of War on U.S. Economy: Debt, Taxes and Inflation Increase; Consumption and Investment Decrease

Michael Shank | Posted 04.23.2012

Read More: Pentagon, Institute for Economics and Peace, Economic Consequences of War on US Economy, Inflation, Taxes, Education, Jobs, High-Tech, Debt, Cold War, Wars, Afghanistan War, Department of Defense, Vietnam War, Iraq War, Korean War, Military Spending, Defense Spending, Investment, World War II, Deficits, Economy, Politics News
Michael Shank

The organization for which I work, the Institute for Economics and Peace, released a new report this week detailing the macroeconomic effects of U.S. ...

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Saying No to Militarism

Robert Koehler | Posted 04.24.2012

Read More: Police, Military Spending, Militarism, Toxic Waste, Nuclear Fallout, Armored Vehicles, Defense Budget, Depleted Uranium, Politics News
Robert Koehler

The grotesque insult of "austerity" in the shadow of limitless military spending is destroying our national sanity.

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Our Man in Beijing?

John Feffer | Posted 04.23.2012

Read More: Xi Jinping, Hu Jintao, Military Spending, South China Sea, China, World News
John Feffer

Sure, a Chinese leader might like American basketball or admire American business. But the essential fact is that he leads a political, economic, and military apparatus dedicated to preserving itself and the country's territorial integrity.

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The Hidden Costs of Star Creep: Generals Making More in Retirement Than in Service

Ben Freeman | Posted 04.10.2012

Read More: Pentagon, Department of Defense, National Defense Authorization Act, US Military, Retired Generals, 2007 Defense Authorization Bill, Generals, Defense Budget, Military Budget, Military, Defense, National Security, Military Spending, Retired Military, Defense Spending, Star Creep, Military Pension, Politics News
Ben Freeman

Our troops need to know that in this tight fiscal climate they still have our complete support. Former top commanders raking in seven figure salaries from taxpayers while active duty soldiers bear the brunt of the cuts sends the opposite message.

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Social Justice Quiz 2012: Thirteen Questions

Bill Quigley | Posted 04.01.2012

Read More: Foreign Aid, CEO Pay, Incarceration, Military Spending, Net Worth, Living Wage, Global Poverty, Affordable Housing, Class Warfare, Income Inequality, Economic Inequality, Politics News
Bill Quigley

Question One. The combined pay of the 299 highest paid CEOs in the U.S. is enough to support how many median salary jobs?

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Pentagon Unveils Strategic Downscaling

Reuters | Posted 03.27.2012

Read More: Pentagon, US Military, Military, 2013 Defense Budget, Military Budget Cuts, Budget Cuts, Military Spending, Pentagon Budget Cut, Reuters, Military Cuts, Defense Budget Cuts, Video, World News

By David Alexander and Jim Wolf WASHINGTON, Jan 26 (Reuters) - The Pentagon unveiled a 2013 budget plan that would cut $487 billion in...

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America's Emerging Military Posture

Michael_Doyle | Posted 03.24.2012

Read More: Pentagon, Department of Defense, Military, US Military, Military Spending, Defense Spending, Pentagon Budget, Foreign Policy, World News
Michael_Doyle

As the US cuts back its armed forces, other nations will upgrade theirs, which will require the US to constantly reevaluate its global military posture. The Pentagon will have to reorient itself and rely increasingly on regional allies to maintain stability acceptable to the US.

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Flea-Markets and Foreign Aid: Things Aren't Always What They Seem

Rachel Cook | Posted 03.18.2012

Read More: Foreign Aid, Budget, Military Spending, West Virginia, Ohio, Aid, Foreign Aid Budget, US Foreign Aid, Foreign Aid Reform, Foreign Aid Spending, World News
Rachel Cook

In 2010, the United States spent 20 percent of its budget on Defense and Security, as opposed to less than 1 percent on non-security related international assistance. This 1 percent is less than half of the foreign aid budget of the 1980s, and even less of earlier decades. What's the deal?

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Government Accounted For Nearly A Third Of All Layoffs In 2011: Report

The Huffington Post | Alexander Eichler | Posted 01.05.2012

Read More: Pentagon, Financial Industry, U.S. Economy, Financial Sector, Financial Industry Layoffs, Public Debt, Retail, Challenger Gray & Christmas, Consumer Spending, Local Government, Layoffs, State Government, Retail Industry, National Debt, Unemployment, Postal Service, Wall Street, Job Cuts, Government Layoffs, Federal Government, Military Spending, Government Jobs, Defense Spending, Video, Business News

For government workers and financial sector employees, last year was a particularly bad one -- and 2012 likely won't be much better. More jobs were...

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In Iowa, Peace Voters Turned Out for Ron Paul in Higher Numbers Than Anticipated

Robert Naiman | Posted 03.05.2012

Read More: Iowa Caucus, War With Iran, Peace, Military Spending, Ron Paul, Afghanistan War, Ron Paul Spending, Ron Paul Defense, Ron Paul Iowa Caucus, Ron Paul Iowa, Politics News
Robert Naiman

You could say the Iowa caucus was a coming-out party for the new Republican peace movement.

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