Voice of the Left: The British Are Coming! The British Are Coming! by Glenn Swift
Glenn Swift
November 30, 2007
Look out! The Empire is back! Yes, believe it or not, the United Kingdom is arming itself to the teeth. No wonder the pound is soaring! Those sneaky little limeys. Just when you thought they were content to sit back and drink tea! Weapons of Mass Destruction??? They’ve got plenty of ‘em. Don’t forget, we’ve already gone to war with these guys twice!
America must act!
OK...ha ha ha...Now let’s get serious. No, the Brits are not a threat to the security of the United States. But here’s the point... Like a broken record, we keep hearing from the neocons (a.k.a. the Warocracy) about “China’s massive military buildup.” What’s the truth? You tell me.
This year the People’s Republic of China, a nation of 1.3 billion people that borders three nuclear powers (Russia, India, and Pakistan), will spend approximately $45 billion this year for defense. Is that a lot? Well, to begin with, the United States will spend over $500 billion – TEN TIMES what the Chinese are spending. Moreover, the Chinese armed forces total over 2.2 million personnel, or about 1.5 times the size of the U.S. military. That’s a lot more mouths the Chinese have to feed, clothe, and provide shelter for – and a lot less they’ve got left over to spend on advanced weaponry.
And what about those Brits we spoke about earlier? Well... the UK will spend in 2007 around $70 billion (the world’s second largest military budget) on a military comprised of just 430,000 active and reserve personnel – that’s a lot left over for fancy new weapons.
Then there’s France. You know, that vile, rogue nation of ungrateful people who refused to participate in the “glorious” liberation of Iraq. What are they spending? About $65 billion! Almost as much as the Brits... and 50% MORE than China.
And what about Germany and Japan? Well... Our “old enemies” spend more than China too ($52 billion and $49 billion respectively). As for our northern neighbors (with all due respect, not exactly a military behemoth), Canada spends almost 40% as much as China.)
Is the “Chinese military buildup” the right-wingers keep warning us about something with which we should be concerned?
You do the math.
(Source: United States Central Intelligence Agency World Factbook)
America must act!
OK...ha ha ha...Now let’s get serious. No, the Brits are not a threat to the security of the United States. But here’s the point... Like a broken record, we keep hearing from the neocons (a.k.a. the Warocracy) about “China’s massive military buildup.” What’s the truth? You tell me.
This year the People’s Republic of China, a nation of 1.3 billion people that borders three nuclear powers (Russia, India, and Pakistan), will spend approximately $45 billion this year for defense. Is that a lot? Well, to begin with, the United States will spend over $500 billion – TEN TIMES what the Chinese are spending. Moreover, the Chinese armed forces total over 2.2 million personnel, or about 1.5 times the size of the U.S. military. That’s a lot more mouths the Chinese have to feed, clothe, and provide shelter for – and a lot less they’ve got left over to spend on advanced weaponry.
And what about those Brits we spoke about earlier? Well... the UK will spend in 2007 around $70 billion (the world’s second largest military budget) on a military comprised of just 430,000 active and reserve personnel – that’s a lot left over for fancy new weapons.
Then there’s France. You know, that vile, rogue nation of ungrateful people who refused to participate in the “glorious” liberation of Iraq. What are they spending? About $65 billion! Almost as much as the Brits... and 50% MORE than China.
And what about Germany and Japan? Well... Our “old enemies” spend more than China too ($52 billion and $49 billion respectively). As for our northern neighbors (with all due respect, not exactly a military behemoth), Canada spends almost 40% as much as China.)
Is the “Chinese military buildup” the right-wingers keep warning us about something with which we should be concerned?
You do the math.
(Source: United States Central Intelligence Agency World Factbook)
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