Military Industrial Complex: A Discussion of Selected Issues

摘要

Recent defense budgets under the Reagan Administration have again fired up the controversy concerning the ominious 'Military Industrial Complex', coined into existence by President Eisenhower over 23 years ago. This paper examines two major issues surrounding the 'complex' : (1) Is the complex the new phenomena Eisenhower spoke of or is it the evolved relationship deeply set in our American society from its beginnings as a nation. This is addressed in an historical perspective by tracing the evolution of the military-industrial relationship over our history as well as commenting on the need for this relationship. (2) Is the complex wasteful, corrupt and exerting too strong an influence on the nations resources. Each of these criticisms are presented in the form articulated by the opponents of the complex, rebuttal arguments are presented, followed by an analysis of available data. A conclusion is made as to the validity of each of the criticisms.