it takes 500 Billion dollars to run it a year. I mean doesn't that seem excessive ? think about it, 500 Billion ? we could give each state 50 billion dollars !
2007-06-12 07:24:13 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Military
hmmm...each state 50?....you might wanna check your math...it should be each state 10 bil, good try though. anywho, one reason is that you have to think about how many people are in the military. they all need salaries, and it's not like we can just stop recruiting people, because as many people that die, we need that many to be hired back, and you gotta think that we're not just goin to Iraq, we go to all sorts of other places too, and then the transportation of those people, and then we have to make sure that they all have the latest equipment (which is a rarity some times). hey it's a big bill, but it's worth it...I'd rather be an american than anything else!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2007-06-12 08:38:31 · answer #1 · answered by Sire_D 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
$500 billion is less than 4% of the US. gross domestic product. In the US, we spend more money than that every year on tobacco products.
$500 billion is less than 17% of the total federal budget. Wanna make a guess where we spend more money -- in fact, more than twice as much? Well, I'll tell ya -- we spend it sending handouts to the states for -- GASP! -- entitlements payments: things like welfare, social security, Medicare, Medicaid, the new prescription benefit, WIC, . . . and the list goes on and on.
Compared to the obligations we have in entitlements, the military budget is a pittance.
2007-06-12 15:36:47 · answer #2 · answered by Dave_Stark 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Our military is not huge. It is actually much smaller than it has been in the past. However, modern weaponry is much more expensive. We pay the price for technology so that our soldiers can be better equipped and more capable than their enemies. It shows in terms of casualties. Some are upset because of the number of soldiers lost in Iraq. Compare that number with any other major war waged in the past 100 years. The numbers of people lost in the World Wars, Korea, and Vietnam are staggering by comparison.
By the way...we have more than 10 states in the US.
2007-06-12 14:40:10 · answer #3 · answered by thunderbolt_1963 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
500/50=10 billion, not 50 billion.
It costs a lot because it is a volunteer force and we must pay people a living wage to keep them in. We have also realized that to win at war we need to keep a technological edge. If you compare our spending (based on GDP) to other countries, we do not overspend.
2007-06-12 14:38:36 · answer #4 · answered by Smartassus 3 · 5⤊ 0⤋
It costs lots of money to train warriors and buy the things needed to keep all the cowards at home safe from the bad guys....Actually, it is Priceless....
Enjoy your freedoms, and thank a Vet
2007-06-12 14:52:39 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
The weaponary we havae today with it's sophistication takes money to sustain them, build them and invent them. We all know that military personel get paid crap so it's not that!
2007-06-12 14:28:33 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Because you are the strongest kid in the block and you have to live up to your reputation, or maybe you just feel that way. Many people "in the block" who admired you in the past, now look with displeasure your bullying attitudes. If you could realise that not everyone looks forward to be like you and that with their own quirks, strange as they may be, people like to be the way they are. you wouldn't need so big an army to be the police of the world and you could use the money spent in weaponry and soldiering in the other matters that you mention.
2007-06-12 14:32:34 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 5⤋
The welfare system costs alot more but I never hear libs screaming about that.
2007-06-12 14:47:39 · answer #8 · answered by USA Proud 3 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Because we feel that your freedoms are important.
2007-06-12 14:38:57 · answer #9 · answered by MikeGolf 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
smart bombs and tactical nukes cost alot
2007-06-12 14:27:03 · answer #10 · answered by Jacob C 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋