Why can't anyone understand that the only reason why the U.S. spends more on military than its own citizens is to protect their large number of allies? Including (Most likely) your own country?
One of the most prominent critiques of US military spending is Noam Chomsky. The 88 year old have lived long enough to witness the Great depression, WWII and the rise of America as the greatest world power.According to Noam, in pre- WWII period, the US was going through a major economic downturn we all know it as The Great Depression (1930–39). Post Parl Harbor attack of 1941, when US actively involved itself in the great war, the economy started to accelerate at a tremendous speed. And in 4 years time until the war ended the GDP of the US was almost double.Due to the ongoing war there was a huge surge in demand for food supplies, war equipment, fuel, defense research, combat uniforms etc for American soldiers fighting around the Pacific and the Atlantic. Due to which everybody had a job and were working their asses off, housewives had to come out to work for the first time in their lives, from athletes to college professors everyone war engaged in the war industry.After the war ended, the men that were fighting all around the world came back home to their families and the demand started to fall and so was the employment rates, the economy was slowing down again. The leaders had a fresh memory of the pre-war recession, so they started manufactured wars to get the economy going, starting with the Koran war than the Vietnam war and numerous invasions in South and Central America.The War industry contributes greatly to the US economy.Let me give you a present day example.The DPRK had to develop Nuclear weapons because of its threat from the United states. There had been thousands of US soldiers posted in the military base of South Korea ever since the Korean war ended in 1953, thereby posing threats of invasion to North Korea through military exercises in its borders along with US Navy fleets moving on and off its coasts and fighter jets in its airspace.North Korea had no other options to defend itself but to come up with a Nuclear bomb. Now, with the rationale of defending its allies US will deploy more troops in South Korea and sell the country a modern piece of military equipment worth billions.Resulting in more Military spending for the Govt due to deployment of more troops but more profit for the private Weapons manufacturing farm that developed the piece of weaponry. Profit of the Weapons company outnumbers the defense spending and the economy grows.Gains for the corporations and at the cost of the welfare state.