e3

[chad]

Chad Czekner
12Dec09
English 101
Prof. O’Connel
E.3

Empty Dollars

When Napoleon said that an army marches on it’s stomach he was
giving a generalized overview. Certainly an army can function much
more efficiently on a full stomach. Napoleon was using a metaphor,
that is if you want the machine of war to function properly then it
requires constant input of trained men, updated equipment, accurate
information and most importantly, money. The correlation between
America being the wealthiest country on earth and also having the most
dominant military force is no surprise. Large quantities of wealth of
been spent on our military endeavors.
Like Timon throwing decadent parties to glorify his stature among the
townspeople so to is America intent on frivolous spending and
flaunting its splendor.
President Obama was part of the graduation ceremonies at the
U.S Naval academy. Apart from handing John Sydney McCain, son of
Arizona senator John McCain, his bachelor degree he also gave a
speech. He pledged to keep U.S dominance abroad. If there were any
economists in the crowd they may have wandered what the price tag of
that dominance would be. When we combine both past and future
expenditures for our current military endeavor the numbers are
staggeringly large. There are various models for determining what the
final cost will amount to. Considering on how we digest information
they’re emerges both optimistic and some astoundingly realistic
models. Given it’s cryptic approach to divulging budgetary matters,
information that the Department of Defense releases can never be
confidently interpreted. Recent studies preformed show that by 2017
with all variables calculated, showed that around three trillion
dollars will have been exhausted. There are also expenditures to our
nation that hold greater value than a monetary one, there’s also a
substantial social costs. Consider the unremitting stress that has
been placed on soldiers and their families on all sides.
Our spending doctrine has been largely mismanaged and been
dictated by people who are clearly oblivious to the ramifications. As
more money is funneled away from socially beneficial programs and
poured into our conquests, America is rapidly evolving into a place
that lacks the inspiration to be preserved. On August 1 2007 a portion
of the I 35 bride that spanned the Mississippi collapsed into the
drink, killing thirteen. Unfortunately most of our vital
infrastructure is in similar disrepair. Highways, schools, airports,
bridges, these are the machines that help drive our economies, more
importantly our very livelihoods. When these machines break down they
require maintenance, but haphazard spending has left the coffers dry.
What makes a country a splendid place to live? If you asked a citizen
of ancient Rome, they would tell you that roads that connect towns,
and aqueducts that pour in fresh water. If you asked them what their
opinion on why did ancient Rome collapse, they might reply that a
gradual deterioration of these systems would play a substantial part.
So to has America begun a slow but , gradual decent into
deterioration, brought on by a few whose decisions on lackluster
spending on illusions of grandeur will leave the country in despair.
As Timon lost all his fortune and was banished from Athens, he
also shouldered the indisputable realization that he also lost his
respect. The flame atop the Statue of Liberty has shone a metaphorical
light on the rest of the world for generations now. A place where
ambitions can be lived up to, where justice prevailed, and truth and
logic would be a guiding principal. That keystone idea has been all
but disintegrated. What about the credibility that took so long for us
to accumulate? Our ideology was the admiration of the world. The
concept of individual rights and free speech catapulted us to the
predominant country of the world. We accomplished great public works
and provided some of the greatest minds in the fields of science,
literature and, technology. It is now becoming evident that we might
be loosing some of that illustrious praise and been noted as being one
of the most dangerous countries in all of recorded history. More
ominous than the world loosing respect for us is America loosing
respect for itself. The fact is that we can see the errors of our way
yet we initiate no action to curtail our demise. A recent article by
Dean Baker provided insurmountable evidence that current spending on
defense would lead to an even higher rate of unemployment. A soldier
fighting abroad may loose some of his patriotic fervor when he
realizes that his family is unemployed and soon after his tour of duty
he may be disenfranchised as well. Some Americans have forgotten what
being American is all about which can have a devastating effect on
moral.
There is no such place as utopia, but the idea of such a place can
serve as a matrix for organized governments to follow. America has
been blessed with ample resources, land suitable for farming and a
geographical position that allows us just the right amount of privacy
we desire. Some people have defined happiness as excess, and if that’s
the case then we should be ecstatic. History may judge us on what we
do with that excess. Will we squander our fortune away on petty
nonsense like Timon? Ideally we should be investing that excess right
back to the idea of America. Investing in our educational institutions
will develop minds that can deal with the issues that will arise in
the future both man made and natural. Funds spent on a fair and
equally balanced healthcare system will instill a sense of trust and
well being in all of us. We will take pride in ourselves and our
outward appearance on the world. Technological advances will be made
to alleviate some of effects that our ambition has burdened the
environment. Basically we would be investing in ourselves, our pride,
and our future.
The point of no return is rapidly approaching. We will be faced
with an enormous but, rather obvious choice. Should America continue
down the tumultuous path we’ve been heading or should we opt for a
more diplomatic approach. When Timon found that undeserved gold in his
cave he was faced with the same decision. A path of decadent and
harmful spending or a more monastic approach. Regrettably he chose the
route of instant gratification. However there did exist a person in
Athens who surprisingly saw the error of Timons way. General
Alcibiads knew all to well the negative effects this might of on
society. He knew the pursuit of revenge would only lead down a
reckless path A recent study on world military spending concluded that
41 percent of the total spending on the military forces of the world
was attributed to the United States. When there is that kind of
dispaportioned spending it’s fairly obvious that there will arise some
major problems in the future. Are there any more General Alcibiads
residing in America, willing to step forward and shine a light on our
faults? Although a large portion of the population can identify the
root problems of our current situation, only a small number actually
effectively voice their concerns.
America in general has citizens that represent both characters
referenced above. On one side the citizens who continuously insist on
exorbitant spending habits that hold little hope for our future. Like
Timon they share no vision or discipline. On the other hand are a
percentage of people, mimicking General Alcibiads, who are determined
to hold us back from the brink of collapse. History is not
preordained. As Americans we have the responsibility to make sure that
those in power make sure that the decisions made have a beneficial
outcome for every generation to come.

References



Berman, Morris. (2006). Dark Ages America: The final Phase of Empire.
New York, NY: W.W. Norton& Company.

Bacevich j. Andrew. (2008). The Limits Of Power: The End of American
Exceptionalism.
New York, NY: Metropolitan Books, Henry Holt and Company.

Stiglitz E. Joseph. (2008). The Trillion Dollar War: The true Cost Of
the Iraq Conflict. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company.

Shakespeare. William. (1967). Timon of Athens. New York, NY: Pocket
Books.


Shah, Anup. “World Military Spending.” Global Issues, Updated: 13 Sep.
2009. Accessed: 12 Dec. 2009. <http://www.globalissues.org/article/75/
world-military-spending>

Lee E. Carol. (2009, May 22). Barack Obama pledges to keep U.S.
“dominance”. Politico: Politics. http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0509/22869.htmlBarack
Obama pledges to keep U.S. 'dominance'


I-35W Mississippi River bridge. (2009, December 10). In Wikipedia, The
Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 03:17, December 13, 2009, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=I-35W_Mississippi_River_bridge&oldid=330801171

Baker Dean. t r u t h o u t | News Analysis.
( 2009 November 11),Corporationhttp://www.truthout.org/1109097.