The US House of Representatives today overwhelmingly approved the $725 billion military appropriations bill for 2011, by far the largest single military spending bill in the history of mankind.
The 341-48 vote saw vast majorities of both parties supporting it, and was referred to by officials as a “stripped down” version, despite its impossibly large pricetag. In addition to its budget busting expense, the bill also solidified the ban on closing the detention center at Guantanamo Bay.
The bill now moves on to the lame duck Senate, where it is expected to face at least some resistance around the Gitmo ban and a scramble to even have a vote in the waning days before it goes into recess.
Some officials expressed disappointment with the $725 billion in spending, not because it was so much, but because it actually didn’t include every major expense people were hoping to shoehorn into it. In that regard, it seems the Obama Administration may be facing the prospect of an “emergency” appropriation bill at some point next year that will push the already record bill even closer to a trillion dollars.
WOW!! Thts just absurd… Obama? Change?? He's just another media mask in front of the stage… The real show goes on behind closed doors
We get told we can't have unemployment benefits.
We get told that we have to give up our retirements to pay for the deficit.
But, hey, we got $725 billion to spend on 'defense' when we spend more on 'defense' than every other country in the world. And when most of the top ten are our allies.
And of course we have all the money we need to keep Dubya's tax cuts for the rich in place.
No surprise they try to hide this in a lame duck session while everyone's getting ready for the holidays.
We really, really, really need a new Congress. No Democrats. No Republicans. Just a whole new Congress.
I understand the sentiment, but a new Congress of any party would not be brave enough to cut spending by the amounts needed. The only thing that will stop this out-of-control government is some kind of outside force.
The government has over-reached, and will be brought to heel in due course, just as all past empires have been brought down. Its hard to predict how, but it will come from outside, not from within.
And Obama the pussy still hasn't closed the Guantanamo Bay prison. He still could if he had any balls. He could move the prisoners out and let Congress continue to fund a prison that had guards and no prisoners–or perhaps fill it with the crooks from the Bush administration and on Wall Street.
I guess you haven't heard but there is a growing movement out there to send balls to Obama for X-mas as a present from the serfs. Any kind of balls: tennis balls, meatballs, golf balls, goof balls, Matzo balls. If the White House is covered with them, maybe, he'll get the message. Ya think? Naaaaaaw.
That's right America. Spend your way right into bankruptcy with runaway military costs, just like the USSR did. IDIOTS!
Maybe the cloud has a silver lining. The Empire of the American States™ is that much closer to extinction. Again, just like the USSR.
A blogger (name forgotten) reminded readers the Legions of Rome carried their SPQR standard long after these same Legions ceased answering to either Senate or People.
The American military is a Frankenstein monster. He was created, paid, & seated above the salt by The Ruling Class. The predominant characteristic of the Ruling Class is violence and to these end(s) Frankenstein has been kept busy busting apart other people's homes. When The Empire is finally forced to strike the tents overseas in what capacity will The Ruling Class further employ Frankenstein?
The $725 million is a vast underestimate of what is spent for the armed forces of Empire. A more accurate number would include all the spending on "national security" abroad. That should be factored in – along with foreign aid. And the budgets of the NSA and CIA and the unknown black budget and on and on. $1 trillion is a safe round number to use. The GDP of the world is around $60 trillion so that the US uses $1 out of 60 of the world's annual production on instruments of war.
Second, many antiwar "liberals," for example Jim McGovern, heart throb of The Nation voted for it. And these bastards claiming to be for peace vote routinely for war.
Third, no outside force will stop this – only a rebellion on the part of Americans. And increasingly I believe that the Right not the Left will lead this movement. There is no other way. We have to do it.
Elementary, my dear Watson!
If he keeps this up he might win a second nobel peace prize