Military Spending
By: Alex Mauch
We all know that America has the best military in the world, but most people don’t understand the costs of that military. The U.S. spent a grand total of $596 Billion on defensive measures in 2015 alone. And the spending will only increase. The proposed defense budget for 2017 is $859 Billion, of which, $617 Billion Dollars will be spent on military expenditures. The remaining $242 Billion of the proposed budget will be split between Veterans spending, foreign policy, and foreign aid. The U.S. ranks #1 for military spending by far. No other country even compares to how much the U.S. spends, in fact, the U.S. spends more money on defense than the next top 7 countries.
Whenever our military spending increases, it is either due to inflation, or due to foreign affairs. Throughout all of World War II, the U.S. only spent roughly $296 Billion from 1941-1945, and today, we spend more than twice that amount in only 1 year. Although the amount of money that the U.S. spends on its defense budget today seems incredibly high, it is actually much less than what most people would expect. The total military spending during WWII hasn't taken price changes into effect and as a result, have only presented Nominal GDP. In reality, the U.S. spent 41% of its GDP in the peak year of the war. That is equivalent to $4.3 Trillion in today’s standards compared to the $596 Billion that the U.S. spends today. In fact, since WWI, every war in our nation's history, in terms of GDP, has cost more than the wars fought post 9/11. Although it may seem ridiculous to increase military spending since the total debt is at an all time high, and continues to grow, the U.S. has been spending an average of 4.9% of it’s GDP in the past decade on the defensive budget, vs the 41% of the total GDP that the U.S. spent during WWII.
The demand for a safe country will never go away. But It is up to the government to decide how much to spend on guns and how much to spend on butter. How much is necessary to spend in order to keep the U.S. safe. In 2017 the proposed defensive spending budget is $859 Billion, but that is only 5% of the GDP, leaving room for 95% of the GDP to be spent wherever else is necessary.
While I understand that the military is using the money for good purpose I would kind of like to know how much money goes into certain categories such as training or facilities ect. Also its interesting that the military spending increase was effected by inflation that personally surprises me.
ReplyDeleteI found this blog post really interesting because I learned that the US military spends more on defensive measures than the next top 7 countries. That says a lot about where we are putting our money, but I also found it interesting that that is only about 5% of our GDP. It would be interesting to see how the other countries’ economies are in comparison to ours with inflation rates. I wonder if it is just the inflation rates that continue to grow our debt or if it is just that we are spending excessive dollars where they don’t need to be spent. Overall this blog post was an interesting read, and it would be interesting to find out what other factors lead to such high expenditures on our military spending.
ReplyDeleteIt is insane that the United States spends more money on military than the 7 other top countries. Sure, it makes America look much stronger in comparison, but is it really worth it? Is this really the way in which our country should be spending our money? I think that yes, it is probably good for us to spend a little bit more than the other countries, but the amount we are spending currently just seems like far too much. We can’t just keep throwing money at our problems and expecting it to become fixed. Therefore, while I do think it’s good that we are putting a good amount of money into our military, I feel that it is probably much more than is necessary.
ReplyDeleteI was not aware that the US spent so much money on defense for the military. I was really shocked to see that the amount that we spend is more than the combination of seven other countries. This seems almost unnecessary. However, the defense for our country shouldn't be compromised because of a price so therefore, I agree that we should spend as much needed in order to keep the country as safe as possible. Given that we spent so much during WW2, it is fair to say that we should be able to spend that much at any given time, if it is truly needed. Since the demand for a safe country is at an all time high now a days, it is fair to say that by sacrificing the cost, we will receive a much larger benefit, which is the high caliber protection of this country.
ReplyDeleteThere’s always some quandary as to how much the defense budget should receive, with many saying that the budget is too high and could be distributed among other departments. However, they are looking at the wrong figure, a biased one. What really matters is military spending as a percentage of GDP. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the U.S. spent 3.5% of its GDP on defense good enough for fourth on the list. The reason the overall number is so high is that the U.S. has the highest GDP in the entire world - they can afford to spend that much. As a percentage of the GDP, they’re not even top 3. If they want to make the case to lower the defense spending even with this other graphic, that’s fine, but I don’t see how one can advocate for a lower defense budget, when we percentage-wise aren’t going crazy and just happen to be the leader of freedom and democracy.
ReplyDeleteThe military is the area in which the government spends most of its money...but some question if it's worth it. I think it comes down to a matter of priorities. The marginal cost is billions of dollars, but what is the marginal benefit? The overall safety and well being of our country and our citizens. Depending on one's viewpoint, they might say that that marginal benefit outweighs that marginal cost. Others might think that marginal benefit doesn't outweigh the marginal cost. Such an abstract idea, applied to something so concrete as economics.
ReplyDeletePrior to reading this, I knew America had the best military, but I really had no idea we spent that much on it. Obviously I love living in a country where I constantly feel safe, however I do think that our budget for military expenditures is too much. As of right now, we're not being attacked and we're not really in a huge war, so we're probably okay with the defense machines and weapons that we already have. I think our country needs to focus a little less on all of the weapons and a little more on our insane debt. Overall, I really liked that you picked to talk about this topic, considering that you're going into the military and I learned a lot about how much we're spending on the military now versus in World War 1, 2 and other wars and crisis'.
ReplyDeleteWhen looking at our defense we notice how much it influences us, but after reading this I didn’t think it was that big of an impact. Personally I think that we are spending way too much money on our defense due to the fact that we keep getting ourselves into situations that we potentially don’t need to be in. Yes we are one of and maybe the most powerful countries, but we don’t have to go to other countries to try and fix their problems. Because of our enormous spending on our military, we are just adding on and on to our debt that is looking impossible to come out of. What do you think will come from Donald Trump becoming president with the military? From what he has said in the past it’s looking like that spending is just going to increase dramatically. I appreciate highly of those who decide to devote their life so I can have mine obviously, but I feel the higher decision makers are making mistakes with the choices and spendings they’re doing. I also believe that with our country becoming so powerful has created all these threats of terrorist and virtually is only going to climb on top of each other. Meaning as we continue to grow our military and defense, more and more terrorists are going to want to attack America. Overall I thought it was written good and the graphs really was a nice visual aid to your topic.
ReplyDeleteNot only has our military spending been less than in wars in the past but has decreased over the past decade. You also have to consider that WWII was the biggest war our world has seen, so the huge war expenditure is expected. It could also be argued that war spending helps the economy of the US. Most military spending goes right to US producers and the more money back to industry, the better. The spike in war industry is what brought the US out of the Great Depression. Our military spending is also very large because the cost to produce goods in the US is very high, and we buy from the homeland. The amount we spend on military could be decreased if the restrictions on industry change and allow for cheaper goods. There is no way the US can maintain our military standard with a cut budget unless there is a decrease in production costs in our country.
ReplyDeleteAlthough the amount of military spending seems outrageous, it's actually good that we maintain our military and keep it in great conditions. We also are coming to other countries aid which is a good thing for us to do since we are such a dominant force. If they see us helping out other countries, then others will follow suit. Although, our spending may go up even more if we were to get involved in another big war, which would really cut into our populations GDP.
ReplyDeleteIt is a very true point that the demand to keep our country and our people safe and that is part of the reason why we spend so much money on weapons and the military. I think that it is kind of crazy how much we spend on our military especially because other countries don't size up at all to how much we spend. It doesn't really make much sense why we spend so much when the other countries don't and they seem totally fine in the sense of wars.
ReplyDeleteSpending money that we don't have seems to be part of the issue here. I know how important our military is, but I think it is necessary to cut spending at any costs possible in order to lower our country's deficit. I hope there is a way that the United States can keep the same strong military, but cut down on spending and expense.
ReplyDeleteI think the increase in spending is an overall good thing for the country. Like Nate stated, most of our military equipment and production is done and made right here in country, which in turn is more expensive because we pay workers more. But with the increase in defense spending we will be promoting more domestic production which will help boost production in the country. Also a higher defense spending means better benefits for veterans, who are not being benefited as they should be right now in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteI feel that the spending America does on the military is a bit excess. Our country is constantly focused on going to war and defending our soil, when many others are able to complete this with a much lower budget. The economics behind our spending shows less return for our money spend than other nations, as we are spending more money that we actually have. America needs to start to cut back a bit and use military expenses more efficiently and wisely, avoiding unneeded costs. We should focus more of the money on retired veterans, as their benefits are not as good as they should be, and create a more organized system of expenses and economics within our country's military.
ReplyDeleteIt was startling to see how much we actually spend on military -- I knew how we stacked up against other countries, but honestly I didn’t think it would be this much. It is hard to think of everything this money could be put towards. I’m not saying get rid of military spending all together, but we could cut it down drastically. We aren’t in desperate need of spending billions of dollars on defense when other countries don’t even spend half that amount. I think we should cut down on spending in this area -- it would benefit us much more than it is currently.
ReplyDeleteReading through the article I had an opinion and then reading through the comments my opinion completely changed on the topic. I do believe that we are spending a ridiculously large amount of money on defense, which isn't entirely justifiable when there are better things to be spending our budget on, like the education for the future, or investing on foreign trade and relations so that there won't be a use for such heavy defense... I also see the point equally that in the grand scheme of things, the amount of money we spend on military isn't any more of our budget than is has been in the last few years, and it hasn't negatively impacted us to have a lot of defense. All in all, I don't think I have enough information or care on the topic to know more but it is interesting to see the strong opinions that people do have on the issue.
ReplyDeleteI feel that the increase spending in the military is a good thing because I would rather pay the military more money to ensure that I am safe in my country rather than not paying them as much and being unsure if I am truly safe. And with technology improving everyday the price that is going to increase. So for the military to remain on top they need more money to pay for the advanced stuff. Not only that but it benefits our veterans, who could always use some more money.
ReplyDeleteI stand with the most of the comments, and how the spending is a good thing, mainly because of the peace of mind that I get being safe in our country. Yes, the spending is a lot, for sure more than it should be, but it is beneficial to our economy. For example, the government spends a lot of money on military vehicles, which most of them are made in Oshkosh, WI. This is obviously good for our nations economy, as well as our state's economy, because it gives people jobs. So overall, military spending is beneficial.
ReplyDeleteYour comparison of percentage of GDP spent in current day vs. the World War II era is a bit preposterous. To begin the breakdown, your stat on military spending, adjusted for inflation, of 4.3 trillion USD is impossible, considering that during WWII, the highest America's Real GDP had reached was 2.239 trillion in 1944. That is adjusted for inflation.
ReplyDeleteYou also compare that America is only spending 4.9% of its GDP on the military in contrast to 41% in WWII. In truth, that's a very unfair comparison, as the America and the rest of the World hasn't been sucked into a major global conflict. Keep in mind that the US had committed to a total war effort. In a time where America is making attempts to be less policing in World Affairs, 5% of GDP going to the military is asinine. 5% of GDP isn't a matter of "only", as if it's a small amount. That's incredibly high for a single program. People that support military spending increase also question the benefits of welfare programs in the country, which leads me to wonder: should I really trust the government to make the best decisions based on decisions to fight domestic funding?
The U.S should spend some money on the military but I don’t think it should be $859 billion dollars I think it should be $800 billion dollars. So that way the U.S can use the $59 billion dollars on other matters like getting more people out of poverty or putting some of that money towards military families. Also the spending in GDP for military should only be around 4% or $800 billion dollars whichever one is higher.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I know how the money spending works in military it was still surprising to see how much money they spend, But I also want to know more about the splitting between everything in military because, in my reality most people have quit because how of how much their pay is. In my opinion money spending towards military is not a big deal for me because they are the one who serves the country and they need everything to protect us.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your blog I found one thing to be overwhelmingly true. More and more people think that we spend literally all of the federal spending budget on the military. In all truth the federal budget, though it does spend a lot, does not spend everything that the public thinks that it does. If we did not spend the amount that we do on the military, we wouldn't be as large of a force as we are. In all it really is good that we spend a lot on the military to keep us safe.
ReplyDeleteAlthough that number may be extremely high at first glance, it's important to remember that it's only a small portion of the federal budget. I believe paying for our safety is worth it. Because in order for the US military to maintain a strong defense we need to give them resources to do so.
ReplyDeleteBased off of the other comments, I do agree with their surprised responses about how much we spend on our Military. In some circumstances I think the amount we spend is accurate based on how much our Military is involved with other countries. I am mostly surprised about the comparison of money spent to the 7 leading countries. I'm very interested to see what the price inflation will be in the future for our Military spending.
ReplyDeleteYes, the spending on our military seems like a lot of money, but think of the price they are paying for us, not in terms of money. They are going out on the front lines and risking their lives for us so we can be safe and free. While it is a lot of money spent, it is spent on equipment and guns to keep us safe. But the government spends more on other things like Medicare and Social Security. In the end, the actual price of spending on our military seems like a lot, but it’s not nearly as much as other federal expenses.
ReplyDeleteWhile I do find merit in keeping our country safe, I also think that there are various other aspects of the country that are lacking in funding. However, I was not aware of how much was going to veterans spending because I do not discredit the work and service these soldiers do/have done. In the case of veteran funding, I believe it is absolutely viable and should continue to rise since there are so many who are without when the come back from a tour.
ReplyDeleteLike others, I am very surprised by the amount of money being put into our military and wondering what it is all being put towards. It would be interesting to see if this is all worth it based on what the military is using it for. There are many aspects that are lacking in funding within our country and people question whether it is a good idea to have so much money invest into one element of our country. I agree as I wonder what could be used to help our country in other aspects instead of putting it all towards our military.
ReplyDeleteIt is very surprising that the U.S. spends more on its military then the next 7 countries combined! Even though we only use 5% of our GDP towards the military, could it be possible to lower that down to 4%? Even then we would by far spend the most money on our military, while decreasing the overall total cost. I know that a lot of this money goes into research, new equipment, salaries, and veterans, but we could cut some of that spending and use the money in other useful places.
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