Senate passes $612 bln defense spending bill

[Jayford]

Quote from Traber:

Bush at the head. Make sure he does more damage before he leaves office. How can the possibly pass this with the economy as it is now is beyond me.

Congress authorizes spending. Congress is democrat dominated. Blame Bush all you want, but congress is equally culpable.

I'm not saying Bush isn't an idiot for proposing this. I am saying they are all idiots for allowing this much spending.

 

[DynamicHedge]

Quote from W4rl0ck:

To top it off - a lot of that money will just "disappear" from the defense dept. books.

Somebody is making/stealing a lot of money.

CBS news reported in 2002, that more than $2.3 Trillion were stolen from the pentagon and that the Defense Department "Cannot Account for"(insiders have stolen) 25% Of Funds :

Defense Department Cannot Account For 25% Of Funds — $2.3 Trillion stolen

 

[bwolinsky]

$612b/14.5t=4.22% of gdp. That's not bad. Small price to pay. I guess we'd take over the world at 50% of gdp like N. Korea.

 

[bwolinsky]

Quote from DynamicHedge:

CBS news reported in 2002, that more than $2.3 Trillion were stolen from the pentagon and that the Defense Department "Cannot Account for"(insiders have stolen) 25% Of Funds :

Defense Department Cannot Account For 25% Of Funds — $2.3 Trillion stolen

This doesn't bother me at all, to be honest.

Ever wonder what UFO's are? Ever stop to think what's beyond an early nineties F-117 or B-2 bomber? Yeah, I'm sure you won't realize it till it's acknolwedged.

 

[bwolinsky]

Quote from crgarcia:

Military spending is bullish for stocks in the long run, this may contradict everything you hear in the media, but it's a plain fact.

Read the Report From Iron Mountain, to get further insight.

A more fundamental argument is its direct effect on aggregate demand, which spurs the economy. I think the Soviet Union tried to fight a market. It's not around anymore.

 

[Landis82]

Quote from bwolinsky:

$612b/14.5t=4.22% of gdp. That's not bad. Small price to pay. I guess we'd take over the world at 50% of gdp like N. Korea.

Very true.
As a percentage of GDP, this number is not all that big, and well under the average for the past 45 years.

Bottom line:

Hedge yourself by buying some LMT or LLL.

It is a great performing sector.

 

[piezoe]

Quote from crgarcia:

Military spending is bullish for stocks in the long run, this may contradict everything you hear in the media, but it's a plain fact.

Read the Report From Iron Mountain, to get further insight.

But just the opposite in the very long run. It's what bankrupts counties in the very long run. Spending too high a percentage of your assets (or borrowings) on wasting assets and too little on investment leads to ruin in the long run.

There is some very curious misguided thinking going on here. While it is true that military spending in the short to intermediate term can be bullish, the same affect can be had by spending on infrastructure. So it would be wrong to conclude that it is a good idea to waste your assets on military spending just to goose the stock market (and maybe maim a few thousand hapless people we don't know.) How bizarre is that? That's the kind of thinking (or perhaps "twinking", which is thinking with a wink) i'd expect from Lockheed Martin Marietta. But we at ET are too sophisticated to fall for those "arguments", aren't we?

I think we should change the name of the Department of Defense (DOD) to the Department of Aggression (DOA). Has a rather nice ring to it!

 

[SWhiting]

Quote from vv111y:

google

chalmers johnson

here's a good read:
http://www.countercurrents.org/us-lendman020307.htm


And a long clip, says much the same.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQi4-97GXrI&feature=PlayList&p=46A3C0BE053336A1&index=3

Excellent link.

Very depressing because 1) it's true, 2) the majority of Americans support our imperialism, and 3) a nation armed with nuclear weapons and a pyschology based on irrational religious beliefs and a history of militarism can mean nothing but trouble.

As Einstein said; ""I don't know what will be used in the next world war, but the 4th will be fought with stones."

It's selfish I know, but I can only hope that the chaos can be prevented until my death. At 54, that should only require 20 years or so.

 

[piezoe]

Very nice post. Thanks.

Quote from SWhiting:

Excellent link.

Very depressing because 1) it's true, 2) the majority of Americans support our imperialism, and 3) a nation armed with nuclear weapons and a pyschology based on irrational religious beliefs and a history of militarism can mean nothing but trouble.

As Einstein said; ""I don't know what will be used in the next world war, but the 4th will be fought with stones."

It's selfish I know, but I can only hope that the chaos can be prevented until my death. At 54, that should only require 20 years or so.

 

[staffpro]

Quote from bwolinsky:

$612b/14.5t=4.22% of gdp. That's not bad. Small price to pay. I guess we'd take over the world at 50% of gdp like N. Korea.

China 60 billion/11 trillion = .005%??? are my calculations right??

imo if china wanted to, they could snap their fingers and become a superpower 100x greater both financially(which they will be in 3-4 years anyway) as well as militarily EASILY.

at that point in time, the US credit rating will be in jeopardy