In Defense of the Military-Industrial Complex

Of all government activities, none is more important than the provision of national defense. If government does not adequately defend our borders, its other activities will be of no consequence. Although informed differences exist over the proper size of the military budget, there can be no debate over the fact that an adequate national defense requires a sizable resource commitment. The crucial importance and enormous expense of national defense do much to explain the attention and criticism that are directed at waste in military spending. It is not easy to tolerate waste in programs that are so vital to our security and exert so large a claim on our national income. All government expenditure programs attract special interests that benefit from and contribute to waste in those programs. But it is the special interests organized around military appropriations that have been singled out for special criticism and contempt