[–] dbag2070 0 points 11 points 11 points (+11|-0) ago (edited ago)
If I am reading the tables correctly, the US is only spending 3.5% of its total GDP on the military. that doesn't really seem like a lot. yes 610Billion is A LOT of money or as some might put it A Fuck Ton of money, but its still only 3.5% of GDP.. I guess that just how big the US economy is.. its all relative.
Saudi Arabia on the other hand is spending a whopping 10% of its GDP on the military..
Edit: Am I missing something?
[–] refugee610 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
Yes, that's to be expected when we're subsidizing the defense of most of the Western world. How do you think all those tiny, podunk countries in Europe can afford those amazing social welfare programs? They are protected under the umbrella of the US military.
[–] RunsWithScissors ago
Yes, those allies like the UK. The UK has a population of 64m, and a land area of 243,610 km².
You don't compare two very differently sized countries in terms of absolute dollars, you use GDP. In terms of GDP, the US spends less than other world powers. Which, I think, is a good thing: Russia may have an enormous army, but we have a more sophisticated one.
[–] [deleted] 2 points 3 points 5 points (+5|-2) ago
[–] zambeezy 0 points 8 points 8 points (+8|-0) ago (edited ago)
If you think the U.S. is "meddling" because it wants to then you need to research foreign policy a bit more. We're the assumed leader because we stepped up a long time ago and the ball just kept rolling whether we wanted it to or not. As soon as other countries want to step up to take responsibility and stop blaming the U.S. when we don't step in I'm sure our nation's leaders will be all for it.
Typical ignorant post is ignorant