Is War a Racket? ?

Question

Smedley Butler, Marine Major General and the most decorated US military man of all time gave a speech, in 1935, now entitled "War is a Racket."

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article4377.htm

WAR is a racket. It always has been

It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives.

A racket is best described, I believe, as something that is not what it seems to the majority of the people. Only a small "inside" group knows what it is about. It is conducted for the benefit of the very few, at the expense of the very many. Out of war a few people make huge fortunes.

Does this still apply today? Why?

Answer 1

Of course war is a racket.  Look at Iraq.  We have more contractors in there than we do soldiers.  We're still occupying the place, but Hussein was captured five years ago.  And where's Bin Laden?  Is there any effort to capture him?  Or is he just an excuse to be in the Middle East?  We spend $500 billion a year on defense.  Where is that money going?  

On top of that, Bin Laden's not even the one responsible for 9/11.

The link below takes you to the FBI's wanted poster for Bin Laden.  9/11 is not one of the crimes he's wanted for.  That's because the FBI doesn't have enough evidence to charge him.  Show that to your teacher.  

Answer 2

general butler is one of my all time heroes, one of the reasons i joined the marine corps.  yes, his words are as true today as ever.  maybe even more so.

racket?  how about halliburton?  or raytheon?  northrup, general dynamics?

oh h**l, take a look at these guys:  http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/i...