IKE'S WARNING 54 YEARS LATER
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) 54 years ago tonight, January 17, 1961, President Dwight D. Eisenhower delivered his Farewell Address to the Nation on radio and television in which he warned of the dangers of the "military-industrial complex."
The President said...
"America is today the strongest...nation in the world (but) we recognize that America's prestige depends on how we use our power in the interests of world peace...
A vital element in keeping (it) is our military establishment We have been compelled to create a permanent arm(s) industry of vast proportions.
This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large industry is new in the American experience. The total influence--economic, political, even spiritual--is felt in every city, every state house and every office of the Federal government.
We must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence...by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misled power exists and will persist. We must never let this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes."
The warning is made even more significant by the fact that Dwight Eisenhower was the only General to attain the Presidency in the 20th century and a career army officer who had retired as a Five Star General.
Several weeks before his farewell, Ike told advisers...
"God help this country when someone sits in this chair who doesn't know the military as well as I do"
Eisenhower's speech was drafted by Ralph E. Williams, who relied on guidance from Political Science professor Malcolm Moos and the President's brother, Milton Eisenhower.
Today, 54 years after Ike's Farewell Address, we can make a judgement of what the President was talking about by looking at the online source Military Industrial Complex which reports details about US government military contracts since 2006.
MIC says that the United States Navy, President Kennedy's branch of service, "is one of the most expensive branches of service within the American war machine."
Between 2006 and 2015, the US Navy/Marine Corps was granted 10,343 defense contracts worth a total of $651,777,504,365. One of the most lucrative contracts is with CGI Federal, Inc. of Fairfax, Virginia and DRS Laurel Technologies of Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
The contract provides for Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services or CANES with work performed in Charleston, SC and Johnstown. Work is expected to be completed by 2022. Seven offers were considered in the bidding process.
According, to MIC, "CANES serves as the bridge to the future of Navy stand-alone networks, consolidating existing legacy and stand-alone networks and provides the necessary infrastructure for applications systems and services to operate in a tactical domain."
The United States Army, President Eisenhower's branch of service, has been granted 8,852 defense contracts totaling more than $488 billion since 2006.
By far the highest contract award went to Raytheon Corporation of Andover Massachusetts on 12/19/2014.
The total amount is $2,397,211,870.
This contract calls for 10 PATRIOT fire units for the State of Qatar with work performed in Arkansas and California as well as Greece and Turkey. The estimated completion date in 2019. Raytheon's was the only bid.
The United States Air Force received 4,915 defense contracts totaling more than $561 billion between 2006 and 2015.
One of the largest is to Lockheed Martin Corporation of Marietta, Georgia worth $662,032,335. The contract calls for 2 MC-13OJ, 2 HC-130J, 3 KC-13OJ, and 1 C-13oJ production aircraft along with 20 quick engine change assemblies. The work on this is done in Marietta with a completion date of 2018.
SOURCE
Military Industrial Complex, www.militaryindustrialcomplex.com/
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) 54 years ago tonight, January 17, 1961, President Dwight D. Eisenhower delivered his Farewell Address to the Nation on radio and television in which he warned of the dangers of the "military-industrial complex."
The President said...
"America is today the strongest...nation in the world (but) we recognize that America's prestige depends on how we use our power in the interests of world peace...
A vital element in keeping (it) is our military establishment We have been compelled to create a permanent arm(s) industry of vast proportions.
This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large industry is new in the American experience. The total influence--economic, political, even spiritual--is felt in every city, every state house and every office of the Federal government.
We must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence...by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misled power exists and will persist. We must never let this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes."
Several weeks before his farewell, Ike told advisers...
"God help this country when someone sits in this chair who doesn't know the military as well as I do"
Eisenhower's speech was drafted by Ralph E. Williams, who relied on guidance from Political Science professor Malcolm Moos and the President's brother, Milton Eisenhower.
Today, 54 years after Ike's Farewell Address, we can make a judgement of what the President was talking about by looking at the online source Military Industrial Complex which reports details about US government military contracts since 2006.
MIC says that the United States Navy, President Kennedy's branch of service, "is one of the most expensive branches of service within the American war machine."
Between 2006 and 2015, the US Navy/Marine Corps was granted 10,343 defense contracts worth a total of $651,777,504,365. One of the most lucrative contracts is with CGI Federal, Inc. of Fairfax, Virginia and DRS Laurel Technologies of Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
The contract provides for Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services or CANES with work performed in Charleston, SC and Johnstown. Work is expected to be completed by 2022. Seven offers were considered in the bidding process.
According, to MIC, "CANES serves as the bridge to the future of Navy stand-alone networks, consolidating existing legacy and stand-alone networks and provides the necessary infrastructure for applications systems and services to operate in a tactical domain."
The United States Army, President Eisenhower's branch of service, has been granted 8,852 defense contracts totaling more than $488 billion since 2006.
By far the highest contract award went to Raytheon Corporation of Andover Massachusetts on 12/19/2014.
The total amount is $2,397,211,870.
This contract calls for 10 PATRIOT fire units for the State of Qatar with work performed in Arkansas and California as well as Greece and Turkey. The estimated completion date in 2019. Raytheon's was the only bid.
The United States Air Force received 4,915 defense contracts totaling more than $561 billion between 2006 and 2015.
One of the largest is to Lockheed Martin Corporation of Marietta, Georgia worth $662,032,335. The contract calls for 2 MC-13OJ, 2 HC-130J, 3 KC-13OJ, and 1 C-13oJ production aircraft along with 20 quick engine change assemblies. The work on this is done in Marietta with a completion date of 2018.
SOURCE
Military Industrial Complex, www.militaryindustrialcomplex.com/
