Discussion: 1950s: The Military Industrial Complex

The military-industrial complex is a nation’s military establishment, as well as the
industries involved in the production of armaments and other military materials. In his
1961 farewell address, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower famously warned the
public of the nation’s increasingly powerful military-industrial complex and the threat it
posed to American democracy. Today, the United States routinely outspends every
other country for military and defense expenditures. Watch the video below and read the
last section of Ch 24 “The End of the 1950s”.
Questions:
1. Given that there has not been a declared war since 1945, what accounts for
this rise in spending throughout the Cold War and into later decades?
2. How did competition with other powers like the Soviet Union drive the
increase in arms spending? In historical hindsight, was this justified?
3. Congress continues to dump vast amounts of money into the defense
budget, even after an incremental withdrawal from the longest military conflict
in US history, Afghanistan. What continues to drive massive military spending
in the US and how is the spending seen by the general public? Positively or
negatively? Cite examples.
Sufficient = INITIAL POST should contain 300 words, substantive and address
the prompt. Each of the the required secondary posts and commentary should
EACH be at least 150 words of relevant and substantial responses
Watch this video