by James Glaser
October 28, 2002

Every minute of every day the United States is spending over 676,000 dollars to just defend our soil. This week President Bush signed the defense bill that came in at 355,400,000,000.00 dollars. The President wanted more, but our fiscally conservative congress held him back. They cut out the ten billion the President wanted as a terrorist slush fund that he could spend on anything he wanted to in dealing with terrorism.

America already is spending more than the next 20 or so highest spending countries on defense. One has to remember that not one penny of this money is to help those less fortunate than we are. Not one penny will be used to deter terrorism, on the contrary this money will be used to create more terrorism and if it makes you feel safe think again.

Every terrorist organization on this globe can look at our defense budget and say to their followers, "See what those Americans are doing now, they are building up even higher and are going to take over the world."

Many American writers have been writing about "Emperor," Bush. Many American writers have been writing about how George Bush wants everlasting war and that his whole administration is filled with War Hawks. Several American writers are comparing George Bush to Adolph Hitler. This is not lost on the rest of the world.

The United States of America could defend itself with a fraction of what we are spending, but the word "Defense" is a misnomer. America's money is really for offense. Having troops stationed in over sixty other countries is Offense. Buying more jets and bombers when we already have the most in the world is Offense. Flexing our "muscle" with "war games" around the globe is Offense.

Threatening to attack any country we think is a threat is being on the offensive. Telling the rest of the world that they will not be allowed to create a "Defense" like we have is also being on the offensive. All of this "Offense" is like making recruiter material for every terrorist organization in the world.

America could be telling the rest of the world, "We are going to get you clean drinking water," or "America is starting a War on HIV." How about telling the world, "America is going to educate every child in the world." Or even better yet, "America is going to leave you people alone and bring our troops home."

We could do any of these projects and maybe all of them, we even have the money. It is just that right now we are using that money to make more terrorists.