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posted by martyb on Friday March 24 2017, @11:26PM   Printer-friendly
from the which-swamps-are-we-draining? dept.

President Trump has proposed a $54 billion increase in defense spending, which he said would be "one of the largest increases in national defense spending in American history."

Past administrations have increased military spending, but typically to fulfil a specific mission. Jimmy Carter expanded operations in the Persian Gulf. Ronald Reagan pursued an arms race with the Soviet Union, and George W. Bush waged wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Mr. Trump has not articulated a new mission that would require a military spending increase. This has left analysts wondering what goals he has in mind. Erin M. Simpson, a national security consultant, called Mr. Trump's plans "a budget in search of a strategy."

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/03/22/us/is-americas-military-big-enough.html

Donald J. Trump - Military Readiness Remarks

[Related]: 2017 Outlook for Navy Shipbuilding

What do you think about the proposed increase in military spending ? Does USA really need more weapons ?


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  • (Score: 2) by driverless on Saturday March 25 2017, @10:27AM (1 child)

    by driverless (4770) on Saturday March 25 2017, @10:27AM (#484068)

    Do we really need the F-35 money-pit?

    Yes! We have to be "ready" for that hot war with China.

    China will churn up more low-tech drones than you'll be able to destroy then swamp the operation theatre with them.

    If it actually ever really came to a war between China and the US, China would dump its T-bills and cause the US dollar to collapse. No need to fire a shot.

    Before people jump in and say "that would never work", it already has, and it was the US that did it. They told the UK to get out of Egypt or they'd destroy the pound, and the UK did, ending the Suez crisis.

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  • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Saturday March 25 2017, @11:38AM

    by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Saturday March 25 2017, @11:38AM (#484077) Journal

    If it actually ever really came to a war between China and the US, China would dump its T-bills and cause the US dollar to collapse.

    Would have been effective close to 2008, but today that's disputable [wikipedia.org]

    A significant number of economists and analysts dismiss any and all concerns over foreign holdings of United States government debt denominated in U.S. Dollars, including China's holdings. [15][16][17][18]

    However, other economists have also argued that it is only China and Japan's willingness to hold US dollars that prevent a shock to the global economy. Therefore, it is arguable that as the Chinese economy gradually shifts from an export based economy into a service economy, their need to hold US dollars in order to strengthen the renminbi will diminish.[19]

    --
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford