Military Industrial Complex Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Military Industrial Complex - Essay Example vast proportions†¦ The total influence – economic, political, even spiritual – is felt in every city, every statehouse, every office of the federal government†¦ In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. (Eisenhower, 1961) What this Eisenhower speech underscored was that the link between economics and war is a real one especially that the connection operates in contemporary capitalist society through money- making and globalization. Hence, its influence crept up to the highest echelon of the government influencing policy-making to the extent of war-mongering in order to profit. Unfortunately, Eisenhower’s warning is starting to be lost amid the rapid and numerous economic and political developments not just in America but in the global stage. This is not surprising at all. The highly capitalist society of the US and its dominance in the world stage tempered this issue that today, only the left-wing critics tend to advance the cause against the military industrial complex. Indeed, according to the imminent economist, Joseph Schumpeter (1991), the orientation toward war is mainly fostered by the domestic interests of ruling classes and the influence of those who stand to gain individually from a war policy. (p. 188) After the Second World War, the US was the unrivaled power throughout the capitalist world. In addition, the US provided a military security for the West with the existence of a credible threat embodied by the USSR. However, in the 1970s the Soviet Union collapsed and the US security umbrella was no longer needed. The US power began a long decline as the economies in Europe and Japan recovered. This was alarming since according to Richard Appelbaum and William Robinson (2005), the MIC is the structural heart of the US superpower status. (p. 141)