NEWS
& POLITICS
This is the Terrifying Reality of America's 'Deadly, Dangerous
and Destabilizing Role' in Global Arms Supply
Want to be part of peace? Stop working for, and
investing in, these Big 5 arms manufacturers.
September 12, 2018,
6:57 AM GMT
Army Research Laboratory
Most
Americans want peace—in the world, in their country, and in their own homes and
communities.
Even the
most committed Trump supporter might want peace in Latin America and the Middle
East—if it means “illegal” refugees stop “pouring” in to the USA.
Yet,
somehow, U.S. “commandos” were deployed to 149 countries in 2017 alone.
So why is it
then that so many Americans work for private, for-profit companies profiting
from war? And why are so many Americans invested financially in the merchants
of death profiting from war and manufactured
terror around the globe?
Perhaps it’s
out of simple ignorance of a) not knowing where their money is invested and b)
not knowing the U.S. companies that are manufacturing the weapons of death used
by the U.S. and their frenemies around the world.
Enter
CodePink’s new report, War Profiteers: The U.S. War Machine and the Arming of
Repressive Regimes, a handy guide to the companies that manufacture
weapons, and who they are selling them to. The report is primarily focused
on Boeing, General
Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon—the
largest military manufacturers in the U.S., and their deals with Saudi Arabia,
Israel, and Egypt.
“The United
States is the leading purveyor of arms sales, global war and militarism,” the report notes. “With 800 military bases in 80 countries
around the world, the U.S. has a larger military budget than the next seven countries combined, as well as an
arms industry that dominates the global arms trade.”
The report
delves into each of the Big Five arms manufacturers and their role and
involvement in the murders of civilians and children around the world. It seems
what are heralded as symbols of freedom in the U.S. are viewed as symbols of
absolute destruction and death to the children who bear witness to the violence
inflicted upon their communities by, for example, Apache helicopters or Eagle
fighters (Boeing-made combat aircraft supplied to Israel).
Of course,
it doesn’t help when U.S. leaders make threats and brag about their military or
economic power and their access to “the button.” For example, the ICC’s recent
accusations inspired national security adviser John Bolton to threaten the ICC
as “illegitimate” and that the U.S. “will respond against the ICC and its personnel.”
Current U.S.
leadership actions weren’t without foreshadowing by America’s military leaders
of ages past. “Those who measure security solely in terms of offensive capacity
distort its meaning and mislead those who pay them heed,” President Dwight D.
Eisenhower declared decades ago. “No modern nation has
ever equaled the crushing offensive power attained by the German war machine in
1939,” he continued. “No modern nation was broken and
smashed as was Germany six years later.”
It’s not
just the arrogant language leaders use, but also the corruption of language.
The report notes that, “Officially sanctioned
terms like ‘defense’ and ‘security’ act as a subterfuge to diminish and camouflage
the deadly, dangerous and destabilizing role that the United States is playing
in the world.”
The cost of
that coopting and corruption of language and perversion of justice and humanity
resonates deeply throughout the world, on an emotional, economic, and even
spiritual level. Even Eisenhower, the report also notes, said, “The total
influence—economic, political, even spiritual—is felt in every city, every
State House, every office of the Federal government. Yet we must not fail to
comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources, and livelihood are all
involved; so is the very structure of our society.”
So why is
it, then, that so many Americans continue to work for the companies profiting
from heinous wars? It probably isn’t Raytheon’s corny “Forget
Silicon Valley: Working for a defense contractor is surprisingly cool”
campaign that is attracting people to military subcontractors.
The numbers
of people working in this sector—nearly half a million officially in the Big Five
mentioned in the report—is troublesome considering the number of EPA employees
who have left under the Trump administration: an “exodus” of over 1,600 employees who are refusing to be a
part of the problem rather than the solution.
As
Eisenhower said, “Disarmament, with mutual honor and confidence, is
a continuing imperative. Together we must learn how to compose differences, not
with arms, but with intellect and decent purpose.” That can start by moving
your money—and your employment—to a different sector. But first, arm yourself
with knowledge.
You can
access the full CodePink report here.
This
article was produced by Local Peace Economy, a project of the
Independent Media Institute.
Valerie
Vande Panne is an Independent Media Institute writing
fellow who contributes to Columbia Journalism Review and Reuters
news service, among other outlets. She is the former editor-in-chief of
Detroit's alt-weekly, the Metro Times, and the former news editor
of High Times magazine. She is the founder of Blackbird
Literacy, an organization providing books to residents and literacy
programs in Detroit. Connect with her on Twitter @asktheduchess.
Donations can be sent
to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD
21218. Ph: 410-323-1607; Email: mobuszewski2001 [at] comcast.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/
"The master class
has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.
The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their lives."
Eugene Victor Debs
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