On
Jan. 17, 1961, during his farewell speech, President Dwight Eisenhower
delivered a dire warning about a grave threat to US Democracy.
The
following is a key excerpt from that address.
"In the councils
of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence,
whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential
for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists, and will persist."
The
military-industrial complex is an unholy alliance among war profiteers that
includes elected leaders, top bureaucrats, defense contractors, the armed
forces, international organizations, the news media, etc.
Their goal is to
compel governments to enter wars that facilitate the sales of arms and the
deployment of contracted mercenaries.
This is a
quid-pro-quo agreement.
The defense
contractors donate handsomely to the campaigns of elected politicians and offer
myriad other inducements. The recipient of inducements could also be influential
individuals or organizations beyond D.C.
In return, these
recipients campaign for wars, perhaps via op-eds in ‘reputed’ newspapers or
during TV appearances or speeches. Finally, they vote to approve billions in ‘aid’.
The contracts are
awarded and billions of taxpayer's funds flow away from the D.C. Treasury into
the accounts of favored arms dealers
Last week, the Ukrainian Embassy in D.C. hosted a reception to commemorate
the 31st anniversary of Ukraine’s armed services.
Jonathan Guyer, who covers foreign policy for Vox, revealed that the
invitation to the event had logos of arms dealers such as Lockheed Martin, Raytheon,
Pratt & Whitney, and Northrop Grumman.
Among the attendees of the event was Joint Chiefs chairman Gen.Milley
So how well have these four firms done in recent times?
Following the
conflict in Ukraine, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and Northrop Grumman saw their
stocks rise. Lockheed’s stock rose by about 38
percent. In fact, they had to accelerate
production to meet the demands in Ukraine.
This is happening at a time when the economy is sluggish and most
businesses in the US are suffering.
Clearly, war is a profitable business insulated from the economy.
Let’s look at deals some of these companies secured.
Raytheon secured
a $1.2
billion contract for six surface-to-air-missile
systems. The company co-produces Javelin missiles and Stinger missiles, which
the US awarded a $624
million contract. Pratt & Whitney, an aerospace company whose logo also
appeared on the invitation, is
one of Raytheon’s subsidiaries.
Lockheed Martin is a major player both in D.C. and Ukraine and ties
with every group that can influence armed conflicts.
Ukrainian officials appealed to D.C. to send Lockheed’s High
Mobility Artillery Rocket System. The US dispatched 20
of Lockheed’s missile defense systems to Ukraine and will dispatch 18 more,
costing the taxpayer around $1.1 billion.
Last month, the US Army awarded Lockheed $521
million to refill its own supplies.
There is no transparency on how these contracts were awarded.
Biden personally visited Lockheed’s Alabama factory to appreciate their efforts.
Lockheed donates
to members of both parties. Perhaps Lockheed enables enrichment
through other channels that cannot always be tracked. Lockheed also
has a record of bribing officials to peddle influence.
Agencies such as the CIA
supply intel which makes the case for war. The intelligence regarding the
presence of WMD led to the Iraq war. Well, Lockheed also has had deep ties with
the CIA since
the 1950s.
Propaganda is essential
to create the basis of war.
Hence Lockheed has cultivated with the news media.
Early this January,
Politico carried articles that revealed they were "presented by
Lockheed Martin". Those revelations
have been removed now and but the web advert of Lockheed still
remains. The
Washington Post and the New
York Times also carry articles sponsored by
Lockheed.
The Lockheed-linked
articles made the case for war, using the ‘need to defend freedom’ narrative.
There were official ties, but there also could be other ties of the unofficial variety.
Clearly, the media and D.C. hysteria about the urgent need to help
Ukraine in peril wasn’t driven by compassion for regular Ukrainians but by
avarice for considerable pecuniary gains.
This explains why so much time is dedicated to displaying footage of the devastation in Ukraine. The relentless spiels about defending freedom, the elevation of Zelensky as Churchill, and the demonization of President Putin as Hitler were all meant to drive public support which always helps during a war.
It also allows arms dealers
to claim benevolent motivations while enriching themselves.
The war in Ukraine is
an example of how D.C. could work when it desires.
They acted swiftly by passing bills almost unanimously to free up
public funds. All impediments were summarily removed. Contracts were awarded
and payments were. made. In days, the arms landed on Ukrainian shores.
When the
military-industrial bases faced microchip shortages, DC swiftly
passed the
bipartisan competition bill in DC, which
offered $52 billion in grants and subsidies for semiconductor manufacturers and
$45 billion to strengthen their supply chain.
Guyer revealed that Biden is using the ‘presidential drawdown
authority’ to quickly source high-end weapons from American stocks and get them
into Ukraine, and then use congressional funding to replenish those.
The same people in D.C. are unable to facilitate the supply of
clean water across the US, which is their duty and a basic need for citizens. If
challenged they will blame their political opponent, local authorities, and
more. When they do pass bills that claim to resolve the issue most of the
funding is dedicated to furthering their own agenda. The result is citizens
have to
consume contaminated water.
But when it comes to
funding a war that will enrich them, their commitment is for “as long as it takes.”
Congress has $68
billion in taxpayer funds for overall aid for Ukraine just this year alone
and could pass tens of billions more before the year’s end. Biden has asked Congress for $38
billion more. Even when the GOP controls the House expect very little change.
It must be remembered that the fund being dispatched have tracking
or transparency measures.
The US and its allies have procured around $50
billion worth of US weaponry in the past
last year, of this amount, the US spent. substantial $19.3
billion. Most of the arms were dispatched to Ukraine.
All of this is
occurring while the US going through myriad serious crises such as high
inflation, high gas prices, a fragile economy, a
crime wave, a drug crisis, and an uncontrolled influx of
illegal aliens. All of this is owing to Biden’s
misgovernance.
Ukrainian
officials claim that nearly 20,000 foreign
volunteers have signed up to fight alongside Ukrainian forces against the
Russian invasion. What if some of the unvetted merceries have links to terror
groups. They could sell this weaponry on the black market. They could use it to
attack US interests either on foreign soil or in the US itself.
But the powers that
be have no interest in what happens within the US because there is little to
gain from it.
This is exactly what
Eisenhower warned about in 1961.
The question is can this self-serving system ever be dismantled
Also appears on American Thinker
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