In a speech of less than 10 minutes, on January 17, 1961, President Dwight Eisenhower delivered his political farewell to the American people on national television from the Oval Office of the White House.
In his farewell, President Eisenhower gave strong warnings about the dangers of the "military-industrial complex," the nation's armed forces, its suppliers of weapons systems, supplies and services, and its civil government.
As President of the United States for two terms, Eisenhower had slowed the push for increased defense spending despite pressure to build more military equipment during the Cold War's arms race. Nonetheless, the American military services and the defense industry had expanded a great deal in the 1950s. Eisenhower thought this growth was needed to counter the Soviet Union, but it confounded him. Through he did not say so explicitly, his standing as a military leader helped give him the credibility to stand up to the pressures of this new, powerful interest group.
However, our leaders today are not as strong, nor as knowledgeable about the military as Ike was. They have not the ability to check this 'unwarranted influence,' and so the Military-Industrial Complex spores itself throughout our government, and in extension, our culture.
Today, there are few people in the public eye willing to speak out about the Military Industrial Complex. In fact, there's only one candidate running for President in 2008 to confront it directly, Sen. Mike Gravel.
http://www.gravel2008.us
Concept by Jay Clark
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