Sunday, February 17, 2008

Out of America

The unholy trinity of arms manufacturers, the Pentagon, & Congress

By Rupert Cornwell | Global Research, Feb. 17, 2008

Whoever wins the presidency will most likely fail to take on the unholy trinity of the arms manufacturers, the Pentagon, and Congress

“Lockheed Martin,” intones the fruity male voice, drenched in patriotism. “We begin with the things that matter… [pregnant pause]… Freedom.” Such are the joys of listening to radio commercials as you drive to work in Washington DC. Lockheed, of course, is a giant defence contractor. Hearing this ad, and similar inspirational stuff from Boeing and the like, you might think you were on the front lines of a war that reached into your living room.

That, of course, is precisely what George W Bush would like you to think of his “war on terror”, even though the closest the average citizen here ever gets to it is a security line at an airport. But those commercials are part of another struggle, less violent but no less relentless. It is being fought out by companies like Lockheed over the lucrative and effectively captive US government arms market.

Obscured by the great Obama-Hillary battle and the drama of Super Tuesday, the final budget of the Bush era was published last week. It covers the 2009 financial year, and contains one startling fact. If this President has his way, the US will next year be spending more on its military (adjusted for inflation) than at any time since the Second World War.

Continued . . .

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