I Don't Approve My Tax Dollars to do That: Free-for-All Military Spending

In the United States, the first Tuesday in November is probably the most famous day of the month in the United States behind Black Friday and Thanksgiving. That day, which happens to be today, is Election Day. By the end of the night, we [hopefully] will know our leader of the next four years, if voting goes as planned. We shall see if that actually pans out.

Although both presidential candidates have attempted to distinguish themselves over the course of the campaign, portions of their policies line up with one another. One example is that Obama and Romney have both promised to increase the defense budget. As a twenty-year-old with residual resentment about the Iraq War, I’m tired of hearing out expansion of military spending. Problems here at home need urgent attention too, not just those abroad. Imagine my surprise when I read an article posted by my politics professor in which a Marine reserve officer actually agreed with me.

Huh?

In his op-ed column for the New York Times, Aaron B. O’Connell compares our country’s present relationship with the military to that at the end Eisenhower’s presidency. Eisenhower warned of the military becoming too large of an influence in political and domestic affairs, becoming a epicenter around which all other policies would circle, defense-related or not. He pointed out that few of his Naval Academy students remember when America was not at war. I cannot say I recall when a time bombings, death tolls, yellow ribbons and camouflage were not daily contributors on the nightly news. O’Connell claims that service is glorified in the media through television shows and video games. Various military-related demonstrations precede major sporting events. When did we, the civilian population, become so obsessed with our nation’s unequivocal military might?

Particularly popular after 9/11 and the immediate outbreak of the Iraq War, the yellow ribbon, a symbol of supporting the troops and thus being a "good" American, is seen everywhere from trees to cars to businesses. I remember in 5th grade tying yellow ribbons around tree trunks outside of my elementary school in 2003. Now such practice in a public school would bother me. We ten and eleven year olds were not given an option not to support our troops. We just did. In essence we were brainwashed: that the military going to war was a good thing. War is never a good thing. 

How much the US devoted to military expenditures in 2012 compared to the world's other leading nations. The sum of China, Russia, the UK and France's spending barely exceeds half of what the US alone spends in a year. How much of what we spend is really necessary? 

Photo credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures

The most interesting aspect of O’Connell’s op-ed however was his critique of the excessive military spending. I assumed that as an officer he would be all for more money and resources. He is not. In fact, he calls for increased skepticism and criticism from Congress. The majority of representatives and senators have no military background, trapping them in a dangerous Catch-22: criticize the military without the proper credentials and be deemed un-patriotic or provide “unhesitating adulation” and allow military spending to balloon out of control. Guess which choice leads to re-election (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/05/opinion/the-permanent-militarization-of-america.html?ref=opinion).

The concept of trade-offs in terms of spending often gets lost among political jargon and election ads. When we appropriate funds for one project, another project inevitably loses them. We devote more money to the military, chances are that gets taken from other areas at home. Instead of working to pay off the deficit, we build more tanks. Rather than reduce the cost of a higher education, we establish more bases. Money does not just magically appear; it all comes from somewhere and more importantly, it is a finite amount. Regardless of the outcome of today’s election, I hope our next president will weed out the military budget with the guidance of those who know the industry best. It’s time we bring the troops and the money home.

Increased military spending for the few years after the 9/11 attacks does not come as a surprise. But ten years after the fall of the Twin Towers, why are we still increasing the budget? 

Photo credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:U.S._Defense_Spending_Trends.png 

I don’t approve my tax dollars to do that: free-for-all military spending  

I Never Approved My Tax Dollars to do That: Steal Food

I have a problem when my tax dollars end up supporting the military expenditures of corrupt governments. I have an even bigger problem when those funds appropriated toward supplying the impoverished with sufficient food are instead used to fatten up already stocky politicians. And of course used to pad their pockets.

India is experiencing the “biggest food heist” in its history. One in five adults are malnourished, as are half of children under the age of five. According to Bloomberg News, over $14.5 billion dollars in food has disappeared within the past 10 years – money intended to feed some of the approximately 900 million Indians who consume less than the daily “government-recommended” minimum. 

This map compares overall population hunger levels across the globe in 2011. Although the brackets are fairly wide (India sits in the 20-34% range), it does illustrate that even economically sound countries (CHINA) have high percentages of higher among their population. As expected, Africa has the highest levels of hunger of any continent. 

photo credit: http://filipspagnoli.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/word-hunger-map.png?w=600&h=420

Despite a food and storage budget upwards of $13 billion, the vast stockpiles of grain are not distributed to the needy. CBI leading officer Javeed Ahmad described the lucrative scam to Bloomberg Business Week:  

“…Often using dummy firms, local officials paid the national government the subsidized prices for the food—as little as one-tenth of the market rate—then sold it to private companies at market prices and pocketed the difference. Poor Indians seeking rations at their local Fair Price Shop would find a locked door, Ahmad says, or be told to “buzz off” and return the following month. By 2007, this was standard practice in at least 30 of Uttar Pradesh’s 71 districts…”(http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-06/indias-poor-starve-as-politicians-steal-their-food)

In 2010, the United States allocated $41 million dollars worth of foreign grants and credits to India. (http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/foreign_commerce_aid/foreign_aid.html).

Compared to other expenditures I have investigated, the $41 million is actually a lower figure than I had anticipated. Therefore I’m finding it difficult to view India with an “all-or-nothing” approach I had taken with regards to other abused aid, such the poaching of elephants in Africa. I do however think the United States should threaten to withhold funds and put increased pressure on the Indian government to combat the corruption. If United States rejects any proposed involvement in going after the corruption, which may be a good thing in itself, then an international governing body must finally speak up for India’s people. It is grossly disgusting that a government would withhold so much of a basic necessity from its people. It does not even try to disguise it either. The stockpiles just sit, tantalizing and mocking the hungry: salt in an open wound.

India's rapidly growing urban population is only going to exacerbate the already existing food shortages. Unless something is done to implicate and stop the Indian government, the country will face an even larger problem in failing to feed its population. 

photo credit: http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article32764.html

I never approved my tax dollars to do that.