The MIC=Military Industrial Complex. In his latest piece for TruthDig, Robert Scheer examines the whys and where-for's of the reasons we are still in Iraq. His title is: "Ike was right". What we need to fear is the MIC. I blogged about this angle earlier in the year. I think Ike was spot on, and Scheer, like myself, quotes Ike's final speech on the subject:
“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 phrase "unwarranted influence whether sought or unsought" really jacks my jaw. Its true you know, there is far too much influence brought to bear on what we do in our foreign policy based on what private companies, such as Halliburton, can reap.
One paragraph I smirked at in Scheer's piece was this:
"Yes, some, like Paul Wolfowitz, the genius who was the No. 2 in the U.S. Defense Department and has been rewarded for his leadership with appointment as head of the World Bank, did argue that Iraq’s oil revenue would pay for our imperial adventure. A recent study by Nobel Prize-wining economist Joseph E. Stiglitz and Harvard University’s Linda Bilmes marked that absurdity by estimating the true cost of the Iraq adventure to U.S taxpayers at a whopping $2.267 trillion, in excess of any cost borne by the Iraqis themselves."
Wolfowitz is a fucking tool, and he has done everything in his power to distance himself from the fray that is the war in Iraq. This nimrod was part and parcel of the group that planned and executed the beginnings of the war. He needs to be singled out on the same level as Rummy and Bush when it comes down to the idiots that got us into this nightmare.
Its a good read if you wish to avail yourself of Scheer's words. They echo many of my sentiments from the August post. I want a strong military, I just don't want private corporations little greedy fingers involved in it without tremendous oversight by our legislative branch.... I am looking at you the Democratic-led 110th Congress.
Tags: Politics, Robert Scheer, Military Industrial Complex, Halliburton Sucks
