General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Why does America prefer guns and war over life? [View all]Igel
(35,191 posts)"The US spends $600 billion a year on the military. That is over half the federal budget. "
In 2016 the military got 16% of the overall budget. Medicare/health, 27%. Social security and unemployment, 33%.
It's like the cuttlefish video where the narrator says that the cuttlefish's brain is larger than its entire body, including the brain. If 16% is over half, then the 33% spent on social security is more than the entire budget including social security ... and we haven't even considered health spending.
There's a discretionary budget that's part of the overall budget. In that portion of the budget, the military got 54%, but Social Security only got 3% or around $31 billion.
Note that $1,370 billion spent on Social Security/unemployment, not $31 billion. The $1,100 billion spent on health is still real money. And both are separately much larger than the $625 billion spent on the military. (Which also includes health and welfare spending, as well as science/research.) We need to keep clear the distinction between discretionary and total US budgets otherwise we use confusion not just as a tool against enemies but as a tool against ourselves. (I'll leave aside the idea of confusion as a licit tool for use in domestic political arguments in a free and fair society.)
In the discretionary budget the military is #3. #4 is national debt interest, #5 is veteran's benefits (arguably more social benefits, just to a select group, and largely not for wartime injuries). #6 is food and agriculture. I'm not sure if the interest on the debt is just external debt interest or also internal interest, say to the SSA.
But remember, if a cuttlefish approaches your face, cover your nose.